A blog on personal finance (banking, saving, budgeting and investing) and personal entrepreneurship.
July 3 28 Comments latest by velemeny
It was my birthday last week and my friends bought me a gift certificate to Thomas Pink. Then they took me shopping there and I bought a tie. I almost had a heart attack–it is the most expensive tie I have ever bought. Also, the third one. Now all I want to do is walk around with bodyguards and people holding those soft packing peanuts all around me.
More to come later.
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I'm a recent graduate of Stanford, where I studied technology and psychology. Now I'm the co-founder & VP of Marketing for PBwiki, a wiki startup in Silicon Valley.
I speak at companies and schools on personal finance and entrepreneurship.
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COMMENTS
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Mia
July 3rd, 2006
It looks to be about $70 for a tie, while this is a touch expensive for a tie $30-60 is department store average, it is a statement piece, as handbags or shoes can be for women. I take it you have never spent $600 on a good Brooks Brothers suit? Look at it this way: a nice tie can really help an inexpensive but well fitting suit. If you aren't willing to pop $500+ for a suit that will look great for years, then $70 is a decent investment to snazz up a so-so suit. The key though is to wear a suit that actually fits. My mother always said you can wear a cheap dress without looking the part if your hand bag and shoes are good quality and in good condition. While a college student may not care about "looking the part" ie being well dressed beyond club wear, there are times when it counts: beyond the obvious career related events consider you new tie fair game for summer weddings, dates, and graduations etc. Though a tie is probably not a long lasting part of your attire as a watch might be, a statement piece or two a season can transform a borrrrring wardrobe.
Although I am sure others will argue that we all shouldn't care how we look when we could be investing those extra pennies, I have found a few decent clothes to be essential in distinguishing myself from the other slobs in grad school on specific occasions (conferences mainly).
Euan
July 3rd, 2006
yeah ties are extremely expensive.
What really bugs me is, you try not to get anything on them and eventually you always end up with a random stain the dry cleaners cant remove.
Sri
July 3rd, 2006
I went to the website and it looks like the ties are $100....wow...that is an expensive tie.
Julie Isserman
July 4th, 2006
Happy Birthday! I hope you had a great time celebrating :)
Jason C
July 4th, 2006
Those ARE great ties!
steve
July 4th, 2006
let's see a picture of this pricey accessory.
ryan
July 4th, 2006
wow, how stimulating...ramit bought a tie. in other news, i woke up this morning and had some cereal for breakfast. ramit, any idea on when you'll be finishing up some of the topics you've been talking about for ages? you know, the ones that kind of fit with the title of your blog?
Ramit Sethi
July 4th, 2006
Thanks, Julie!
Ryan...gee, sorry I'm not writing fast enough for you. I'll post some longer articles when I get some time.
ryan
July 4th, 2006
I know you have a life outside of your blog, but it is really disappointing to check out your blog and see these posts that really offer nothing of substance. I enjoy the "longer articles" because they make me think about things in my own life (I would imagine it does the same for your other readers), as opposed to "I bought a tie". Very deep, indeed. Do you plan on finishing the personal finance series you started? How about the stuff that your readers asked for when you invited them to make some suggestions on topics for you to write about? As I said, I know you have a life outside of your blog, and you don't owe anything to anyone who reads your blog. I understand that. But if you are going to say you'll do something, you should probably make good on that. Just my two cents.
Chris Yeh
July 4th, 2006
Try shopping at the Off 5th outlet in Milpitas. There's no need to pay $100 for a designer tie!
Independent George
July 5th, 2006
I got my favorite tie at a thrift store for $3. It was an antique - a beautifully designed and stitched tie, manufactured in the pre-depression NYC garment district. Unfortunately, that also meant it wasn't long for the world, and it started to unravel after about a year or two (I bought it in college, before I fully appreciated what I owned). I still miss that tie.
But to build on Mia's point, a good tie should last you several suits. And one really good suit/tie/shirt/shoes combo is an investment, not an expense. Even if the office is business casual, client meetings are an entirely different animal.
John
July 5th, 2006
Awesome, thanks for sharing this information!
In other news I ate a pie today, I was thinking about eating a peach pie but I ate a cherry one instead. The pie was very good and I am happy that I made the right choice by going with the cherry one. This topic is so interesting you should make a post about it and other worthless information about your/my life! Keep up the great work of spreading worthless information, I will be waiting until I can read more post like this about what you bought today!
Brad
July 6th, 2006
I just can't wait to find out in the next enthralling post what that crazy Ramit will buy next! Talk about suspense!
But seriously... Happy birthday! Hope you had a great day.
Lee
July 6th, 2006
I like to evaluate all clothing purchases on a cost per wear basis. So for example, a high quality $70 tie that lasts for 5 years and I can wear 50 times is a better value then a $35 tie that looks lousy after 2 years and worn only 15 times. Hence, the cost per wear : Good Tie $70 / 50 = $1.40 cost per wear. Lousy Tie $35 / 15 $2.33 CPW. I use the same logic when I’m tempted to buy something on sale. Will a $30 sweater that I’ll probably wear once be a better value than some of my more expensive sweaters that I’ve worn dozens of times?
Carol
July 8th, 2006
Lee, where's your website/blog?!
George, I'm with you. I've got a closet full of designer clothes that cost me avg. $1.50 each. So anyone that can afford to buy this expensive stuff, barely use it and then donate it, THANKS from the bottom of my wallet!
Happy birthday Ramit, don't worry, enjoy the gift.
Kirubakaran
July 8th, 2006
Check this out:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2jW_PTT4Ac8
[yes, it is relevant]
Jinal Shah
July 9th, 2006
Belated Happy birhtday!
Maxwell
July 10th, 2006
Unfortunately, Thomas Pink clothing and accessories are expensive but not well made at all. I have several garments from them that started to wear out after being cleaned just 4-5 times. That's downright poor.
Ramit, I wish you a happy birthday, and I wish your friends the wisdom to get you a gift certificate to Charvet next year.
sarre9
July 11th, 2006
This is my first visit and all I get is a stinking tie? Where is the "I will teach you to be Rich.." ? Are you sure this isn't the "How to buy an overpriced piece of fabric for hanging around your neck." blog?
I've spent too many years staying as far away from ties as possible. They don't really do anything except reinforce the idea of "Conformity". Of course, "Conformity" is one rode that can lead to wealth. In some cases a tie can actually help you become rich (think the first Fuller Brush Salesman). - I think he paid a nickle for his.
More often then not, the innovative person, the one that steps outside the bounds of confromity is the one that attracts wealth. Ties may not make you a non-conformist, but it is one more noose around the neck of innovation.
Give me a write up about your purchase of a sari. That may not make you wealthy but it is definately a better deal...on a square inch / $ basis, of course.
annoyed
July 13th, 2006
Ramit...this msg is for you...not for the site:
We miss you at your old home(things I hate blog)....pass the torch to someone who will take better care of us. Obviously you have other obligations and have moved on but we havent. I personally miss the site.
And yes...this is my was of stalking you!
Kevin Sweeney
August 17th, 2006
Way to go Ramit. I clicked on the post the obviously had nothing to do with your site and after reading the title AND the first sentence, I still decided to continue reading.
THANKS FOR WASTING 87 SECONDS OF MY LIFE, ASSHOLE!
How dare you hand out all this wonderful free information and then have the audacity to put in a personal post (which is still related to the topic purchasing).
You are a terrible human being, and I'm telling all my friends not to come here or pay absolutely nothing for your services.
C Fox
August 22nd, 2006
I'LL TEACH YOU TO BE RICH: Don't spend your hard earned money or your precious time choosing a colorful silk ribbon to adorn yourself with. A "tie" is the epitome of a created need. Its like putting a bow a on a present,... society is such a joke.
1800yolk
November 30th, 2006
Wow! To the angry people, this is his blog, and he'll do whatever the fuck he wants to with it! I'm not complaining.
Chris Sells
December 27th, 2006
Ramit, it's your site. Don't let the assholes get you down. If they don't like your posts, they can find themselves something else to read. Better yet, they can start their own blogs...
Esha
April 1st, 2007
Haha hillarious comments....Ramit, good on you for pampering yourself! I hope you're still enjoying your tie :)
eric b
April 12th, 2007
Haha! Hilarious!
Found the blog recently, re-reading the old material. Couldn't resist a post. :)
All these people don't understand that a great tie in the business world means money. A good tie can help get a foot in the door and move you up the ladder, just as a cheap tie can hold you back. Apparently all these idiots have either never had a powerful position, or simply never had the experience of owning and using a powerful piece of attire. Screw you losers! :D
I know I'm late to the game, but I hope you had a happy birthday anyway, Ramit. I hope you're still enjoying the tie, and I hope you've made good use of it in business and other settings. Congratulations.
josh b
October 9th, 2007
in response to the first comment from mia on 7/3/2006...a brooks brothers suit is absolutely NOT a good suit...fyi mia, in 2007 dollars (which are not much different from 2006 dollars) a decent suit should really be pushing $2000 at least...and please...no double breasted jackets or pleated pants...
velemeny
November 16th, 2008
I'd prefer Ralph Lauren ties. Same price, higher quality :)
Tiehttp://www.velemeny.com