Thalia

In most developed countries, in almost every trade sector, prices have decreased considerably over the last few years - in some cases, by more than 20 per cent. The choice of products on offer is immense, and customers are inundated with a vast range of goods, costing very little money. In this compelling, powerful and shocking account of society's greedy over-consumption, David Bosshart paints a bleak picture of our increasing obsession with cheap goods. He exposes the darker side of some of our favourite organizations such as EasyJet, Wal-Mart, Aldi, Hennes and Mauritz, and Disney and reveals some substantial paradoxes in their business strategies. For example, while $13.00 is the average wage of union organized employees in California, Wal-Mart pays its staff just $8.50 an hour, and it creates only 1.5 jobs for every 2 that it destroys. David Bosshart leads us to question our pursuit of unbridled consumer choice and low prices, and the effect that it is having on the world's economies and societies. Can we rise to the challenge and overcome this obsession for cheap goods before it's too late?