once again i credit immrnonamehello for the orginal idea and following on from brands that are expensive but crap - https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/795422?page=3#comment-1421…
i had another idea as i drove past Centercom in sunshine brands/companies that were once great built a good reputation but are now crap living off a reputation they built but no longer deserve…
So im thinking Centercom, Qantas, Sony, Disney, the ABC and SBS etc….maybe even Red Rooster….
if you have others comment below
What many people don't realise is that Business is there only to fleece money from the consumer.
They BEGRUDINGLY supply a product or service (most of the time).
As an innocent child you think that business exist to serve customers. But you grow up and realize that capitalist societies are based upon mutual predation. Everyone is trying to get rich by "stealing" from everyone else. Everyone is your enemy, competing for limited resources.
I just wish we would evolve and learn to share. Instead of everyone having multiple cars that are idle for almost the entire day, we could have community vehicles, for instance. Instead of a garage full of tools that are only used once in a blue moon, we would have community warehouses where people can take what they need and return it when finished. Public libraries operate on this principle; it needs to be greatly expanded.
That is never going to happen. Human nature is not that nice.
Consumers only win when there is competition.
Facebook/Instagram/Twitter. What started off being a lot of fun to connect and share with friends. Is now just the most toxic, fake, and horrible thing in everyone's life.
It's still part of your life even if you don't use it yourself because it is affecting the lives of your families and friends.
Twitter was ok if you controlled who you could see on there but Musk is doing his absolute best to ruin it.
Does Subway count? Once the go-to shop for sandwiches has turned to crap for the last 5-6 years.
Agree
Does Subway count? Once the go-to shop for sandwiches has turned to crap for the last 5-6 years.
As a general rule yes….but it 'really' depends i'd say they certainly 'charge' more now - but i have found the quality varies GREATLY depends on who serves you and where you go
I have the same opinion on Mc Cafe you can get some 'decent' coffee and you can get some real shockers
it always tasted like plastic chemical bread
Sidchrome, Stanley, Toyota.
Hitachi, JVC, Sharp.
Akai, TEAC, Polaroid, Kodak, etc. Now just brands slapped on the cheapest rubbish possible.
Bonds (Australian made vs now), Bethesda, Blizzard
Sony and Panasonic.
+100 Optus for arrogance dishonesty lack of trained staff, Woolworths for treating customers like thieves and profiling them
+ 1 JB HiFi for ridiculous return exchange policy unopened box etc
+1 Officeworks for inconsistent return policy depending on who is serving you
OMG Optus. I ring them because my internet data is not working. Hasn't been for days. After two hours online to tech support and trying all their stupid ideas. Suddenly he tells me, oh data on my account has been turned off, I just need to click this button and turn it back on.
O M G!
Probably already mentioned but JVC, AKAI, Teac, Blaupunkt spring to mind.
I guess we can look forward to the next topic: "Brands that were crap but are now good".
Hyundai and Kia for starters.
Most Korean brands
I think the general quality of the crappiest cheap clothing and similar household goods has improved. I can remember as a kid the cheap and nasty t-shirts you'd buy would be nearly see-through and shrivel up into a tiny ball in the wash, nowadays you can go to Big W or Kmart and get a much better quality shirt for a few $$.
sadly it's so many brands that position themslves higher up that have dropped, it's hard to find tshirts in heavier weight fabric, they all feel so thin and the necks stretch after a wash.
Google Assistant and Google Shopping List
Rivers
Zzz Atelier
So not just me then. I swear their mattress has become much softer and lousier?
MSY
Sealy matresses….it used to be good many many years ago. Now im not so sure. I could be the unlucky ones getting backache from it.
Disney
in fairness they have been shit for a 'long time' they havent been 'good' since the 90s but i do 100 percent agree
Was just about to comment "can't believe no one has mentioned Disney yet", and scroll to the last comment and bang - you nailed it.
Bonds. It used to be the Australian go-to for great underwear, but now it's cheap and lousy fast fashion.
I really want to say Apple.
I had an ipod mini (first apple product ever owned) that died, and that was warrantied free of charge. I had an iMac 27" for those of you old enough to know the bottom right part of the screen is unusually yellow. so I sent back the defective computer twice. the third one had a better display, some slight yellowing if you look carefully but nowhere near the first two units. I also had a stock pair of earphones from an iphone, that was replaced when the buttons stopped working. i also remember when the iphone 4 came out and there was the antennagate issue, steve jobs came out and did a press conference and apologised for it, explained the problem and gave everybody a free case.
more recently, when the battery died on my phone, they said they wouldnt replace it because it's apparently too dangerous as I've opened it before (for an unrelated matter). i have a new macbook and there's a hairline crack on the bottom bezel. they say the only way to replace that bezel is to replace the entire display and it's not covered under warranty (8 month old computer) - it's a manufacturing defect ffs, it's not like I sat on my laptop… also, not to mention the battery quality of the iphone 6 was inferior to the earlier models, which led them to throttle the CPU speed without being transparent about it… and whatever penny pinching planned obsolescence gimmicks they're pulling nowadays. not gonna say this is directly under the leadership of TC but they used to have really good customer service, that came before profits. i still use macs/iphones but I feel that they're now just milking their customers as much as they possibly can.
Cadbury chocolate. Quality and size keep decreasing and price keeps increasing.
Whirlpool Forums
Dick Smith
Dick Smith is just Kogan now with a different name.
Correct, which is exactly why I mentioned them.
ChatGPT
Have to agree on KFC. Chicken tenders are expensive and halved in size as well as chicken on their wraps. Maybe its tenders used on wraps also which reflects this.
Also Guzman meat portions have also halved in size, especially breakfast burritos.
On reflection i think I eat too much fast food anyway. A good reason to quit.
aussie broadband, used to be good but now the service always unstable and the tech team lacks of knowledge, always blame it's customer's fault (and turned out to be their fault of cos)
PCCG
Domino's, the size is getting smaller for large pizza and getting expensive.
I think Amazon is getting better as there's a lot more stuff available than when it first started. Still no comparison to the US though.
Subaru (WRX specifically)
Country Road
Esprit
Agree, but sadly that's just a reflection of the Australian retail market