Everything we purchase has a present value (what it cost when you bought it) and a fair-market value (FMV)—what it would fetch on the open market, assuming there's a willing buyer and seller.
Cars offer a common example of this principle. When you buy a new car from a dealership, it loses roughly 10-20% of its value the moment you drive it off the lot. The car experiences rapid depreciation due to a variety of factors.
But not everything depreciates when you buy it.
A Chanel Classic Flap Bag in medium would have cost you just under $5,000 ten years ago. Those same bags, kept in great condition, fetch more than double that today.
For a non-luxury example, consider the LEGO Disney Castle (Set #71040), which retailed for $350 a decade ago and sells "in box" for $650-800 today.
Granted, most things we buy—unless you're exclusively shopping ultra-luxury brands or braiding your clothes out of fine gold film—will depreciate over time.
But there's a chasm in how much they depreciate. Think of the difference between poorly made, inexpensive "fast fashion" items (from IKEA furniture to SHEIN tops) and consumer goods that are either well-made, from reputable brands with high resale demand, or have intrinsic value due to the materials they're composed of.
When we start buying fewer, better things, we're making two smart moves:
More Space = More Peace of Mind: Bringing less stuff into our homes means less clutter clogging up closets and storage units. This frees up not only physical space but also brings genuine peace of mind.
Buying Better = Resale Value: When you focus on buying things with solid resale demand, you can recoup some of the capital you invested in them.
Every time you make a purchase (outside of perishables and, you know—underwear), you're buying an asset. It's up to you to decide whether it'll be a rapidly depreciating one or something that holds some (or occasionally all) of its value.