We are a small shop with a short list, and people ask why the list is short. The honest answer is that most products do not survive three weeks of daily use.
The test
We buy one unit at retail, use it daily for three weeks, and then answer four questions:
- Did it break, fray, or leak? Any failure in three weeks is a failure in three months.
- Did we reach for it without thinking? If we had to remember to use it, so will you.
- Is there a cheaper version that is just as good? If yes, we do not stock it.
- Could we explain it in one sentence? If the pitch needs a diagram, the product is confused.
What fails most often
Not durability — fiddliness. Products that need a specific angle, a proprietary part, or an app. They work in a review and fail in a life.
Why we drop things
Two products left the shop this year. One because the supplier changed the zipper without telling us; one because the price crept up 30% and it stopped being a fair deal. We would rather have three good things than twelve average ones.
What we will not stock
- Anything we have not used ourselves
- Anything with a countdown timer on the product page
- Anything where the “sale” price is the real price
If you want something we do not carry
Write to us. Two of our current products came from customer emails, and one of them is now our best seller.