She's On The Money - The Lipstick Index

Episode Date: January 17, 2023

Have you ever treated yourself to a little extra something when you’re under financial stress? Nothing too big… but perhaps a new shade of nail polish, or eyeshadow, or lipstick? Well this such a common thing for us to do that it has a name, the Lipstick Index! And rolling into 2023, staring down the barrel of a recession, join Victoria Devine and our brand new cohost Bec Syed as they talk about why you're likely to hear this term a whole lot more this year! Acknowledgement of Country By Natarsha Bamblett aka Queen Acknowledgements. The advice shared on She's On The Money is general in nature and does not consider your individual circumstances. She's On The Money exists purely for educational purposes and should not be relied upon to make an investment or financial decision. If you do choose to buy a financial product, read the PDS, TMD and obtain appropriate financial advice tailored towards your needs.  Victoria Devine and She's On The Money are authorised representatives of Money Sherpa PTY LTD ABN - 321649 27708,  AFSL - 451289.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hello, my name is Natasha Nabanunga-Bamblett. I'm a proud Yorta Yorta, Kurni, Wolperi and Awadjuri woman. And before we get started on She's on the Money podcast, I would like to acknowledge the traditional custodians of the land of which this podcast is recorded on Awadjuri country, acknowledging the elders, the ancestors and the next generation coming through. As this podcast is about connecting, empowering, knowledge sharing and the storytelling of you to make a difference for today and lasting impact for tomorrow. Let's get into it. She's on the money.

She's on the money. Hello and welcome to She's on the Money, the podcast for millennials who want financial freedom. My name is Bec Syed and with me is Victoria Devine. Hello and welcome to 2023 Deep Dives. Are you excited? I am so excited. A little nervous.

You look really nervous. Do I look really nervous? I'm not that scary, Bec. You're a little bit scary, V. Oh, really intimidating. All like five foot one of me just like towering over you. Yes, you're a little, I hate saying this, pocket rocket. No, worse.

We're going to get rid of that. Move on. No, we'll keep it. Move on. I'm very excited to do this deep dive with you today. Do you want to jump straight in? Yeah, let's jump straight in. Great. I think today's topic is actually all too relatable. I'll start by asking you, have you ever splurged a little bit when you really shouldn't have? Like not on anything huge, just mascara, nail polish, I don't know, lipstick, maybe. If you have, not only is it okay, but it's apparently so common that it's gotten its own name, the Lipstick Index. Have you heard of this? I have. I'm very excited to talk

about this. I've mentioned it to a few of my friends and they're like, what are you talking about? So now we're doing a whole episode on it. I mean, you've got to, I actually had never heard of this before, but it makes sense. I think this is a term we're going to hear more often this year. Do you know why it might be more common? Look, at the end of the day, the Lipstick Index exists as kind of like a really, it's a bit fluffy, but it's legit, which I find hilarious, but it's actually an indicator of an either an impending recession or that we're already in a recession and given we are likely to be headed into a recession this year I don't I don't want to put too many eggs all in that one basket but we've been talking about it in 2022 and I think it is

only fair to really embrace it this year and talk about it now but a lot of economists are predicting that we will fall into a recession this year which is essentially where we have a pretty significant an economic downturn. So it's a period of time where less people have jobs and there's less economic activity. So less trading, people are a little bit worried. And I would assume that if that's the case in the economy, that's the case in our community. So we want to talk about it. But during times of economic downturn, more crisis, you can't actually afford big ticket items. Like I'm not going to go out and buy a brand new washing machine when I'm financially stressed. But you know what I can afford? I can afford a like a little premium luxury. I can go

like go like lipstick that makes me feel good because I might not be able to justify a whole brand new outfit to make myself feel good. But you know what can make me feel good? Like refresh it. Treating yourself. Yeah, exactly. A lipstick. So that's why it's called the lipstick index because it basically makes you feel good, but is a small amount of money. Okay. That makes sense. I feel like I do that a little bit too often. When I'm feeling already good, I'll absolutely. You're like, I feel good. I need more.

I feel good. I need to maintain this good feeling. I know that we're talking about the lipstick index, but if you don't mind, I might just quickly ask you what it actually is and give you some more info. How does this happen? How do we expect or predict a recession? What is a recession? Should I just be blissfully ignorant or should I know about this? Should I prepare myself for this? I think it's fair to know about it. I think that you would have heard, assuming that you don't live under a rock like Patrick the Sea Star, you would have heard of a recession and you would assume that it's not a good thing. In 2022, we did a whole podcast on it, but you weren't here in 2022. So this is a very fair question. And I'm assuming we also have

a number of brand new listeners. So we have heaps of resources that you can go back to. Just type into your search bar on whatever podcasting app you do use. She's on the money and then recession and our episodes that reference that will come up. But essentially a recession is a significant decline in economic activity that can last for months or even years. And experts basically declare, quote, we're in a recession when a nation's economy experiences negative gross domestic product, which is called GDP, so essentially exports, and rising levels of unemployment, as well as falling retail sales and contracting measures of income and manufacturing for extended periods of time. So it's kind of like everything grinds to a massive halt. I mean,

not absolutely everything, but like when things are going down, people get worried and you're like, oh, maybe I won't build that house. Maybe I won't buy so many clothes. Maybe I'll just put that thing I've been planning on purchasing off for a little bit longer because, you know, my husband now doesn't have a job or I'm seeing around me other people not have job stability, and that can be really stressful. So a recession is something that is really stressful. And the last one we went through was the GFC. So the global financial crisis that happened in 2008 and really impacted people in 2009. And that, you know, we covered that on the podcast as well. So if you want to look that up, search She's On The Money GSC and it will come up because I deep

dived into that. But essentially, it's important to not only understand what a recession is, but also financially prepare for it, which we're going to do a lot of content on this year. But the lipstick index is a term that's just kind of interesting. And I think the She's On The Money community will find it really interesting because it's one of those things that you don't realize how important little things are to a community until you know something bad happens and we start really appreciating the small pleasures and I think it's also a really nice reminder that we can still have nice things when we don't have massive budgets. That makes me feel a little bit better about my spending habits actually but it does seem to be weird that it's because like I

don't relate to I don't buy lipstick why is that the term? Yeah look you don't come across as the type of gal who decides that a lipstick is her splurge item. Yeah, like are we assuming that it's just for people who buy like small cosmetic items? No, no, no, no. So it was actually coined in the aftermath of September 11 during the 2001 US recession by a guy called Leonard Lauder who might be familiar because he's the chairman of Estee Lauder Cosmetics. And this guy, he found that lipstick sales for Estee Lauder rose in the autumn of that year, which indicates that women facing an uncertain economic environment actually turned to beauty products as an affordable little treaty treat, Bec, and it's continued to play out. So in the financial crisis of 2008 slash 2009 that

I mentioned before, sales of foundation went through the roof and L'Oreal's sales in general, like across the board, grew by 5.8%, which is wild given we were in a recession and everything else was just going down and L'Oreal's like, oh, we are over here making bank, having a really good time. Yeah. So it must be nice. Exactly. So the lipstick index just comes from a guy who decided to call it that. It's not because lipstick is the only thing we're spending on. It just came from a guy who happens to be a chairman of Estée Lauder. Just a small town guy. Just a small town guy living in a big city. That's actually very interesting. Do they know why that is? Can you tell me how that actually works? So the lipstick effect is a consumer expression of

something that economists like to call the income effect. So with normal goods, as a consumer's income rises, so does demand. And we've talked about this before, and I call it on the podcast Lifestyle Creep, which you would have heard me talk about a million times before. But essentially, an example of Lifestyle Creep is when I was at uni, I used to buy like makeup and stuff from the supermarket and from Priceline. And now I have a full-time job. I'm like dabbling with Mecca and my expenses have increased because obviously like a Mecca foundation, much more expensive, than the one on sale at Coles, but it kind of just slowly creeps up on you. So with that in mind, for some goods known as inferior goods, the rising consumer income actually weakens demand. So cheap

domestic beer is a really good example of that. Nobody wants to drink the cheap crappy stuff. And I think that that's a really good example of quote inferior goods. The opposite actually happens in the case of the lipstick effect. So as consumers incomes fall or become less stable, they'll actually forego big ticket luxury items or big ticket luxury purchases that they can no longer afford and instead spend their now reduced income on a smaller luxury item. Now, when I say luxury item, I'm not talking like, oh, like people are stopping buying Dior bags, Bec. Like, oh, they're not headed off to Chanel. I know I paused my Dior bag subscription during that time. Oh, you did? You have a Dior bag subscription? You must be big dog. Big dog, Bec.

Yeah, it's pretty nice. When we talk about that, I feel like the word luxury, especially in 2022 slash 2023, has a different take. Like to me, luxury are those things that are not necessary in your budget. So we're not talking about like designer goods. When someone says, oh, luxury, I'm like, I immediately think of designer items. I don't know about you. I immediately think, oh, they must be talking about like really expensive things. But luxury in this term of reference is actually just things that are not necessary. So like not housing, not food, not bills, like things that, you know, going out for a drink with your mates, that's a luxury.

That's not a necessity. So things that are not necessary for your budget or your life, if that makes sense. So we're not just talking about lipstick, but I feel like it's a good example, right? Because not everyone buys it. But like, for example, I'm going to pick on you for a hot second. You dyed your hair recently. I mean, it was fun to watch on Instagram and thankfully it looks really good. Like I'm shocked how good your hair looks. Does it look good? Yeah, it looks cute. You're real cute. But that would be a luxury purchase as opposed to you thinking maybe it was a deal.

Yep. Yep. That makes sense. Okay. When I think of luxury, I honestly don't even think that far ahead. But it is wild that going out for a drink with a mate is a luxury. Well, it totally is a luxury. Like it's something that not absolutely everybody has the privilege of experiencing because not everybody has the room in their budget to go, oh, I can pop out for a beer with a mate. Or it might be takeaway or Uber Eats, or it might be, you know, you buying the pre-prepared chicken at the supermarket as opposed to just marinating it yourself. Do you know what I mean? Like when we say luxury, we're saying a luxury from my perspective, especially as somebody who knows money is something that is not necessary, but makes you feel good.

So I guess you could probably understand that that's why I had to, well, I didn't have to, but I chose to bleach my hair at home as opposed to going to the salon. Yeah, but it's still a luxury, right? Like you were still able to afford to buy some bleach to do your hair. It's kind of like a more affordable luxury. And affordable luxury is something that I want to talk a little bit more about this year because I feel like people have blown it out of proportion. Like I'm on TikTok all the time now. I don't want to talk about my usage, but like I love TikTok. I'm obsessed with it. If anybody has noticed, I have been posting literally twice a day on TikTok. You need to talk about that. Yeah. Big dog energy. Let's see if I can keep

it up for the entirety of 2023. But something that I'm finding coming up on my For You page all the time is just like lots of luxury goods and people being like, oh, here's my haul from when I went shopping in Paris or here's my outfit of the day and like all of those things I really like consuming because like I love shiny things I'm basically like a magpie like I see shiny and I'm like oh I need it but it's interesting because I look at it and go wow like your outfit of the day is more than a thousand dollars like even a full outfit that's more than three hundred dollars to me is not reasonable like and I mean don't get me wrong I definitely have items in my wardrobe that are more than $300. So it's not about being a hypocrite here. I'm just looking at it going,

wow, like, is this the new normal? Are we meant to look at it and be like, oh, you're meant to be wearing Chanel shoes because like, oh, they're such a good staple and they get good cost per wear. Like why are people just, anyway, we can talk about affordable luxuries on another episode, but I think it's really important to kind of check our own privilege, right? Because regardless of what our income is, and as you said before, it's a really good example. You were like, I, you know, didn't go to the salon because to go as blonde as you went would be like minimum 600 bucks, right? Oh my God. Yeah. It's so expensive, but the audacity, you had to take that into your own hands. Like, and she also guys, she put it all over her Instagram and I was just

like living for it. Anyway, it's free to get advice from strangers on the internet. And I really, I probably could have gone to the salon. See, I feel like the thing you should have done in this circumstance is probably just head down to Chemist Warehouse or like, what is it? Hairhouse Warehouse? Everyone did recommend. Oh, they did. Surely they can't give me. How did you do it? Tell me. Sorry. We're going on a railroad. You want to know how I bleached? Did you just like go to like Kmart and buy a packet of dye and call it a day? I had some bleach left over in my cupboard. I don't know if it was expired or not. Was it hair bleach? It was sink bleach. I'm just kidding. No, it was hair bleach. This was about to go downhill and I was like, wow. But it was

several years old hair bleach. But I thought, you know what, I'll whip it up. Surely it doesn't expire. No, I don't think so. I didn't actually check, but it got there in the end. I bleached it five times. It turned jelly a little bit. Oh, just a little bit? Just a little bit of it went to jelly. That's all right. Is it all gone now? Look, it's actually hanging on by literally a thread. A jelly thread. A jelly thread. I can't get it wet right now. It will fall out. But I got there in the end. I just chucked a $12 silver toner through it, used my old bleach. I'm surprised at how good it looks given that experience. But for those of you who are playing along at home, I'd probably head to Hair House Warehouse and just ask someone there, say, look, I am going to be

dyeing my hair at home on my own. What would you recommend I do to make sure I don't pull a jelly beck? Speaking of hanging on by a thread beck, let's go to a quick break. And then when we get back, we'll reestablish and actually talk about the lipstick index. Okay, perfect. Sounds good. All right, V, we are back. We're talking about the lipstick index today. I guess I'm wondering what else does well? Because I know it can't just be lipstick. Is it all cosmetics? What are the other little things that do well in a time like this? Obviously it's not lipstick because as you said before, you're not a lipstick kind of gal and you're not going to go buy a lipstick, but I guarantee there's like small luxuries that you would be putting your money into. So it could be

anything. It could be skincare. It could be perfume. It could be premium hair care. Because when I say premium hair care, we're not talking about a Dyson Airwrap. Not everybody has. I think they're close to a thousand dollars now, which blows my mind. Absolutely worth it from my perspective, but definitely not an affordable luxury. But like a bottle of Olaplex, like what you were talking about before, it can be like 50 bucks for a bottle of Olaplex. But I would assume that those sales increased during that period of time. And we know those sales increased during that period of time because they are seen to be more of an affordable luxury. Like back to your example, you're not going to go to the salon and spend $600 getting bleached hair, but you might go

and go, all right, I'm going to bleach my hair at home and then I'm going to buy the $50 Olaplex to make sure that everything is a-okay and we're good to go. Things like clothing and shoes and going to the movies and types of entertainment are also likely to do really well during a recession. a lot of people make decisions like, oh, maybe I'll just like sign up for Stan instead of, you know, going out as much. So they justify smaller expenses because from their perspective, like, oh, and please don't quote me on this, 14 bucks a month, maybe. I cannot remember for the life of me what my Stan subscription is. Must be nice. No, thank you. Thank you. So rude. But I cannot for the life, I don't even think I've got Stan

at the moment just to back you back into your corner. Okay, fair enough. I definitely have Netflix. Can't remember what that is though. Must be nice. You can have my login if you want to. Yeah, you're welcome. You're welcome. But these are in a good position as well. And then lower to mid-range restaurants and more premium priced alcohol that you buy at the Bottle-O. So we're not talking about people go to the mid-range restaurant and order a bottle of like really expensive champagne. But if you went to Dan Murphy's, people are more likely to, you know, treat themselves with like a $30 or $40 bottle of wine instead of like $15 bottle of wine that they usually got because they feel like they're missing out in other areas of their life because

people basically want to treat themselves to something that lets them forget about their financial stresses and they'll go to a movie, but they probably won't go overseas because that puts way too much financial strain on. Before the break, Bec, I was talking to you about TikTok and how that seems like it's just, it's frustrating me. Like there's so many times that I really want of like, you can duet on TikTok. I feel, I feel so old when I explain this, but I really want to duet it, but then I don't want to come across as like condescending or rude or mean. And I'm not being that. I just want to be like, Hey, like this is a really good video and I really like it. But like, that's not reasonable to expect that a normal salary and wage earning human being would

actually have a thousand dollar pair of shoes and like cost per wear. Yeah. Like let's talk about cost per wear. That makes sense. But like on a thousand dollar pair of shoes, that's still not reasonable from my perspective. You're a vigilante. I think you should do it. Oh yeah. But I don't want to be rude because it's kind of like their intent is really beautiful, but it's also like, can we reframe this? Because normal people cannot afford that. Like that's not normal. Like that content isn't normal. Anyway, my point there is that social media really does play a big part in determining what category benefits from the lipstick effect based on trends and what you're seeing on social media and consuming. It sounds like literally all I

spend my money on during good times and bad times. So I wonder, you're like, oh, I'm just spending money. Why have you on the show? Because I feel like we've got work to do. Yeah. Okay. I've got a lot to learn. I've got a lot to learn. But I guess my question is, what are we actually cutting back on then? So obviously big ticket stuff. So all of the opposites of everything that I just said. So like expensive restaurants and going on holidays. But we also see it in the statistics around like home sales. So people aren't buying big luxury homes. They're not even buying their average standard home because during a time of recession, often our interest rates increase to kind of juxtapose what's going on and make things go back to normal. So during a period of time

where we're in a recession, it's much less likely that people are buying their first family homes. It's less likely that people are going out and buying brand new cars. Even if they need them, they're more likely to kind of push that purchase off because we're a bit anxious about it. So anything from, you know, electronics and, you know, white goods and stuff like that all the way through to big home renovations, like people aren't going to agree to, you know, chucking $100,000 into their home if they're seeing their friends and family go through rough financial periods of time. And it's not because they don't want their friends and family seeing that. They kind of get an idea in their head that they're like, oh, I could be next. So this period

of time. We're cutting back on this, but I think it's really important to then be thinking about, all right, well, where are our emergency funds? How much do I have saved? Do I maybe want to have a little bit more saved if I'm anxious and how does that work? So if you haven't got an emergency fund and you haven't really thought about it until 2023 and 2023 is your year to get your financial stuff sorted, that would be the place that I start because, Bec, I'm such a big believer in financial freedom being accessible at any income. And I know that that seems to be a little bit backwards because to a lot of people, financial freedom means that you never have to go to work and you've got like this big investment that pays you enough each and every single month or year

to exist without work. Right. But from my perspective, financial freedom isn't just that like, yes, that's the big outcome. Like that's big dog energy. That's the energy. Yeah, exactly. that's so exciting. But we can't have that in the here and now. But what can give us financial freedom is an emergency fund. So that if something pops up or an unexpected bill or an emergency happens, we have the financial freedom to pay for that and not go into debt or to go, oh, it doesn't matter. That's okay. I'm going to pay for flights to go, you know, see a sick parent or relative interstate because I have the money for those flights and I don't have to second guess it. And to me, that is a really, really big part of financial freedom is setting yourself up

so that you don't have to say no because you can't afford it. And I mean, when it comes to an emergency fund, we're not saying go to Europe with your girlfriends. Like that to me is not what your emergency fund is for. It's more for those things that pop up so that you can either get into a situation you need to be in or get out of a situation that you don't want to be in. Like Beck, what if one day you went home and all your housemates were, they've gone rancid. They have absolutely gone feral and you can't live there anymore.

Yep, they've ruined the house. They've decided to grow drugs in the laundry or something. And you're like, I can't live here anymore. But if you didn't have the finances to get yourself out of that circumstance, you might just be stuck there. But financial freedom is having enough finances behind you to get out of any circumstance or situation you don't want to be in because you shouldn't have to be in that. And that doesn't matter whether that's a housemate situation or a relationship

or even just you're on a holiday and you want to fly home because you're no longer comfortable with the friends that you're with, right? Like I think financial freedom to me means so much more. And if we're talking about what people are cutting back on, I think that we also need to really juxtapose that with, well, where should we be putting our money during this period of time? Because I think a lot of people just get anxious and then stop doing anything. And then they see all of these smaller things and you might not be spending, you know, you might go, oh, financial times are tough let's not spend $750 on a new washing machine we'll put that off that makes sense but if then you're not thinking about your money and you're going to price line every

couple of weeks and spending $30 here and there like that's going to add up to that $750 and you've lost that money and if I put a pile of makeup on the bench and also the washing machine and said Beck which one do you want you'd be like well I needed the washing machine but because you had your head in the sand, that money fell to the wayside and you didn't actually make the most of your financial circumstances. So from my perspective, yes, we're cutting back on things, but it should be really purposeful and we should be really thinking about it. Thank you for coming to my TED Talk. Financial freedom actually sounds like heaven. It's so sexy. It's kind of sexy. I feel like that could be the life for us. I mean, for you, it's already, maybe you're already there.

out of that? Well, I do have an emergency fund and that's something that makes me feel really good about the circumstances that I have. Like, you know, what if I didn't want to be with Steve anymore? Well, I don't. I love him. Oh, you don't want to be with Steve? No, no, no, no. I don't want to make that decision. I love him so much. You have to decide right now. Yeah, yeah. But like, what if something happened? Like, that is the one thing that keeps people in relationships they don't want to be in is finances. Like, I don't think anyone in our community should be in that circumstance. And when I say relationships, we're not just talking about your partner. We could be talking about your family circumstances. We could be talking about your work, your

relationship with your boss. That's a relationship too. And what if it's such a toxic environment that you need to leave, but you can't because you don't have the funds behind you? What if I said, oh, Bec, well, you've actually got three months worth of savings. Like you could quit now and look for another job. And actually everything would be okay. And your mental health is absolutely the biggest priority right now. You'd be like, oh, that takes the pressure off. It does. That really would. We're taking the pressure off ourselves. Yeah.

So anyway, we've talked about emergency funds before. I'm going to keep talking about them literally forever, but they're really sexy. Because they're important. Now, just coming back to the lipstick index. Oh, yes. Is that what this episode is about? Yeah, I actually forgot. I just have so much stuff that I want to give you guys this year that I'm like, let's pack it into this episode.

We really appreciate it. You were mentioning before, V, that it's easier to make little cheap superficial changes than costly ones when we're financially under pressure. Do you think there's like a deeper psychological reason behind what makes lipstick, cosmetics, other beauty products so popular at a time like this? Yeah, a hundred percent. So there was actually a study that was done in 2012. So a while ago, do you know 2012 was actually ages ago? It was more than 10 years ago. It doesn't feel that way though. It's 2023. Wild. Anyway, but this study done in 2012 found that the lipstick effect is deeply rooted in mating psychology. Yeah, sexy, right?

That's hot. Sorry, Sarah Hill, who was the person behind the study, found that during, quote, periods of scarcity, women see a decrease in the availability of quality mates. So Hill has said that because unemployment and low returns on investments occur at a higher rate during recessions, a recession may signal to women that financially secure men are becoming relatively scarce. And while this might seem really superficial, and from my perspective, I think that financial security in a partner, any partner is very sexy. Hill has conducted four separate experiments, not just one. Not just one. And all have said, yes, that effect

does exist. And that times of economic stress see an increase in women's desire to buy products like lipstick or designer jeans or high heeled boots and perfume. And they're just not interested in men as much or not interested in having a partner as much because they're like, man, they're not that financially secure. Get in the bin. I'm going to go make myself look chic and 10 out of 10. And I find it super, super interesting. And obviously, Bec, that's super heteronormative. Cannot relate. No, no. That's why I was like, probably not related to you. But on a base mating level, like if women are looking at men in general, something that women from a psychology perspective look for when they are looking for a male partner is a level of

security. So it kind of makes sense that this makes sense. I'd be interested to see if that experiment in 2023 could be pushed out because, you know, during this period of time, it's a recession, we could do the research again. And I would like to see it as a, if people in general are looking for a partner, what would that look like during a recession? Because I think that would actually be extra juicy. I mean, it's 2023. I feel like the results would be a little bit different. I just think in general, people would be like, oh, I don't want a partner. I don't want to have to pay for going on dates. You know, like, I don't think this has got anything to do with gender. You're like, I don't want to go on a date because I don't want to have to pay for it. And

like, what if I have to pay for the whole date? Hell no, let's just not do it. I'm going to buy myself a lipstick. Exactly. It's expensive dating. And that's why I'm still very much single. Ah, that's a suggestion to those in the community that might find back appealing. Yes, I can't afford anything. So V, can I ask, what's an affordable luxury to you? Ah, this is such a good question because I feel like so many, this is a trend on TikTok at the moment too. Is it?

All I'm doing is talking about TikTok because we've just come back from holidays and like I spent a lot of time on the internet. But for me, having thought about this over the break, I feel like an affordable luxury, obviously like fluffily enough is time but if I've got some time I want fresh sheets back like real crispy fresh sheets and a cup of tea in bed with a book and literally nowhere to be like like a Sunday morning like to me that's a really good affordable luxury where it's kind of like I'm enjoying my time like I'm snuggie I'm having a good day whereas to somebody else they'd be like I hate spending time in bed, Victoria. Like if I'm awake, I'm up and out. Like my business

partner, Kate, like I cannot imagine her lying in bed and enjoying it. But what about you? What's an affordable luxury? Well, yours sounds actually very wholesome and mine won't sound very wholesome. That's okay. We are who we are, Bec. Are you going to say hair bleach? I think so. I knew you would, but I think that's good. An affordable luxury to me would be going to the pub with mates, just sitting around in the beer garden. And I usually get a soda water, believe it or not, fee. So it's Aja. I do. You're a smart woman. Thank you. Sometimes they're free too. Sometimes they're free. They're either free or max $2. Yeah, yeah, yeah. That's an affordable luxury. It's an affordable luxury. But I also

think it really depends on who you are and what that looks like. Because we were talking about this before the show and I was like, oh, like another thing that I really like is a good coffee. Like, and I think that's an affordable luxury that fits into my budget. And to me, that's one thing that I won't remove from my budget. So like Steve and I go for a walk every morning with our dog Lucy and we go to the cafe and we get a coffee and you could say, oh, but you'd save so much money if you made the coffee at home. And I'm like, oh, but that's like a luxury to me. Like that's something, yeah, like we love the experience. I love a good coffee. And I think it's to me that makes sense. But then there are other people that would be like, oh, I cut coffee out

of my budget and I save $1,200 a year. And like, that makes sense because that might not be worth it to you. So I think this concept of affordable luxuries is really personal. And I think that's really good. But the thing that then overlays on that is to me, and this might sound really fluffy, but it's she's on the money. So bear with me, is a level of gratitude as well. So to think about affordable luxuries, you actually have to put your gratitude hat on and go, oh, like, what am I grateful for? That's maybe not, you know, a flat screen TV or going to Europe or like something really big. Like what are the little things in life that are affordable to me that make my life better or make my life good? And I've got a million of them. I'm going to

make TikTok series on like my favorite affordable luxuries because I have heaps of them. Do you know what another one of my favorite affordable luxuries is? Oh my gosh, it's so lame. Are you ready? Please don't laugh. I'm kind of ready. Okay, I'll try. So when I travel, like one thing that I really like is the face washers. So like, you know, like a fresh, clean face washer. God, yeah. Anyway, so I went to Kmart and I bought like 10 of them because they're like a dollar at Kmart and I roll them up and I have a little tray in my bathroom. Yeah. And every time I get in the shower, I have a brand new face washer. And I know that like maybe that's normal to some people. And

I know some people because growing up, I had a face washer and I just like left it hanging in the bathroom and I just use the same one. But I then like hang it over the side of the shower and chuck it in the washing basket and like it just goes through with the normal load. Sure. But that, those 10 face washers cost me 10 bucks and I feel so luxe when I use them. I like grab my rolled up thing and I'm like ready and I use my nice face wash and I do that. Anyway, it's really lame. But to me, that makes me feel good. So affordable luxuries could literally be anything. Like it's the way I'm washing my face back that I think is a little bit luxe.

Ooh la la. But like, how can you incorporate more things into your life that make you feel good about the processes that you're going through? And if me spending 10 bucks on 10 little face washers from Kmart made me feel good, 100% great affordable luxury. And they'll last a lifetime. Well, I don't know. I don't know.

I did get them from Kmart and Co-Brand. Yeah, right. And Co-Brand. We don't know how long they're going to last. They'll last a month. But they definitely will be worth the 10 bucks I paid for them. Oh, for sure. 100%.

Actually, you really talked me into it. How about, let's leave it here then. I'm going to head off and go buy myself 10 $1 face washes. Yeah. And we'll meet back here soon. I love it. All right, guys, I am done for today. But as always, we would love it if you joined our Facebook group

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beck congratulations on the end of your first ever deep dive thank you so much fee that was a lot of fun i'm so excited about this i am so excited i'm so excited for 2023 let's let's do it smash it out the park all right see you on friday guys see you on friday the advice shared on she's on the money is general in nature and does not consider your individual circumstances she's on the money exists purely for educational purposes and should not be relied upon to make an investment or financial decision if you do choose to buy a financial product read the pds tmd and obtain appropriate financial advice tailored towards your needs. Victoria Devine and She's On The Money are authorised representatives of Money

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