I'm sure regular readers know my lifestyle.
Pretty frugal, don't buy things unnecessarily, no interest in luxury products.
I have low desire to spend money.
When I look at products, I assess if I need it, whether there is value in the purchase, before I decide to buy it.
The problem about this is that, when I look at Apple products, I find them extremely expensive for the utility. It's a good product. But for me, I don't understand it. There are other good products which give just as good a utility than Apple products. Be it the computers or phones, etc.
Not to mention I don't understand why would anyone want to be caught up in the Apple ecosystem which traps them into high cost items and services.
So to me, since I have difficulty in appreciating Apple products and services, it's hard for me to like it's stock. For me, as a consumer, I wouldn't want to pay high prices for their products, I don't want to be stuck in their Apple eco system where I have to buy expensive accessories and use their OS. That's why I stopped using Apple products.
BUT... I fail to realize, that many other people don't mind all these.
People love the brand, don't mind the inconvenience, or they feel inconvenienced but they don't want to bother to switch out of using Apple.
I'm not saying Apple is a good or bad stock. Their stock price has been rising and Berkshire owns a lot of Apple stock. It's just that I haven't done any analysis on it. Cos I don't appreciate the products. I cannot imagine why so many people are obsessed about Apple products.
HOWEVER...
I can appreciate other luxury brands like LVMH, Prada, Burberry, etc. I don't buy them, but I can see why it may be appealing to some folks. So I might look into researching these stocks cos I can understand the allure of the products and service.
Or services like Facebook and Instagram.
I used to use Facebook, then I realized that it consumed a lot of my day and attention. So I decided to delete the app from my phone. And that was it... life continued as normal for me.
But yet, there are so many people addicted to their phones and they love their apps.
So once again, I fail to appreciate such businesses.
I look at multiple businesses and think... why would anyone want such products/services. Somethings I can understand, some things, I don't understand. Especially if the product or service inconveniences or affects the life of the consumer, and yet the consumer continues to use the service.
Apple is inconvenient, and Facebook/Insta affects the lives of people. A lot of people have their eyes glued on their phones and ignore the real life around themselves.
And because I, personally, am unable to appreciate such businesses, I don't understand the moat around it, and there's good chance I miss a lot of opportunities.
But it is what it is. We are all biased.
I would think it's risky for me to invest in a business where I'm not interested in. Cos when trends change, I am unable to get a feel for it.
We are all biased in some way or another, or we invest in what we are familiar with.
How many Singaporeans invest mainly in SG shares? Especially REITS. Cos it's something we are familiar with. We know the place, we can see it. We "know" what we are investing in.
Not saying that's wrong. It's probably more prudent to invest in something we are familiar with. Better than making a bet on something which is just trendy.
And yet, there might be lost opportunities due to this.
Probably would be better to learn more about other countries and industries so as to better appreciate different businesses so that I am able to understand why people stick to certain businesses or brands.
But currently... yeah... my lifestyle and the way I perceive/value things and frugal lifestyle is really affecting how I view investments.
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