Essay question 7: In many countries, people nowadays are able to buy a wide range of goods from all over the world. Is this a positive or negative development?
There is a growing trend of purchasing a diversity of goods globally. This essay will first examine the advantages and disadvantages of this trend before outlining my own perspective.
On the one hand, online shopping would be beneficial for consumers and businesses. To begin with, people from different socioeconomic backgrounds could instantly tap into a vast range of globally different goods, as they could easily select the newest products that have been introduced on the global market, while comparing prices from different regions to serve business purposes. Each region is famous for certain expertise, so being able to purchase goods from all over the world grants citizens the selection of suitable choices for their needs. Swiss watches, for instance, are widely recognized among watch lovers. As a result, they would prioritise these region-specific watches over local ones. Beyond consumer benefits, the local businesses could also be more profitable when purchasing bulk raw materials from regions with more cost-effective production. In addition to the profit, the constant exposure to the foreign products would force local products to innovate faster in order to survive in competitive markets.
Despite the aforementioned arguments, I would contend that the significant benefits pale in comparison with the drawbacks. The primary reason behind this is the standardized quality of consumer goods, as the governments could not entirely verify the safety and quality of the astronomical amount of product from the increasing trend of online shopping. Consequently, citizens would encounter low-quality or even fake products that potentially affect customers' health. Dietary supplements is one pertinent example of this, since shopping online from a wide variety of countries would easily result in fake products, which lack FDA approval, medication interactions, and potential toxicity. Additionally, small shops and businesses would struggle to compete in prices with products from cost-effective regions, eventually leading to the deterioration of local businesses within the country.
In conclusion, while there are justifications for shopping globally, I would argue that this is a negative trend, as the benefits are inferior to the significant drawbacks.
There is a growing trend of purchasing a diversity of goods globally. This essay will first examine the advantages and disadvantages of this trend before outlining my own perspective.
On the one hand, online shopping would be beneficial for consumers and businesses. To begin with, people from different socioeconomic backgrounds could instantly tap into a vast range of globally different goods, as they could easily select the newest products that have been introduced on the global market, while comparing prices from different regions to serve business purposes. Each region is famous for certain expertise, so being able to purchase goods from all over the world grants citizens the selection of suitable choices for their needs. Swiss watches, for instance, are widely recognized among watch lovers. As a result, they would prioritise these region-specific watches over local ones. Beyond consumer benefits, the local businesses could also be more profitable when purchasing bulk raw materials from regions with more cost-effective production. In addition to the profit, the constant exposure to the foreign products would force local products to innovate faster in order to survive in competitive markets.
Despite the aforementioned arguments, I would contend that the significant benefits pale in comparison with the drawbacks. The primary reason behind this is the standardized quality of consumer goods, as the governments could not entirely verify the safety and quality of the astronomical amount of product from the increasing trend of online shopping. Consequently, citizens would encounter low-quality or even fake products that potentially affect customers' health. Dietary supplements is one pertinent example of this, since shopping online from a wide variety of countries would easily result in fake products, which lack FDA approval, medication interactions, and potential toxicity. Additionally, small shops and businesses would struggle to compete in prices with products from cost-effective regions, eventually leading to the deterioration of local businesses within the country.
In conclusion, while there are justifications for shopping globally, I would argue that this is a negative trend, as the benefits are inferior to the significant drawbacks.
