The necessity of quality in our everyday
Quality is never an accident.
It is always the result of high intention, sincere effort, intelligent direction and skilful execution. It represents the wise choice. ” W.A.Foster
The importance of quality, be it products or services, cannot be over-emphasised. The 21st century has been a bonanza for consumers who never had it so good with a bewildering array of choices. Few understand the true meaning of the word quality and fewer still are able, maybe willing, to put quality in its true perspective in the changing context of globalisation. In times past, quality had a simple definition - a product or service should fit the purpose for which it was intended. Is there anything more to it?
The quality of a product defines the values of our life and the standards we are setting in society. To support quality means not just choosing a branded product, with the brand representing the guarantor for quality. Quality holds an array of efforts such as research, time, knowledge and resources that have been invested in bringing the product to life. From the careful selection of raw materials to the labour hired, work conditions and salary ethics, all shape the result of the quality level the goods and services represent. Quality always contains knowledge and respect for the entire production cycle, preparing to bring a product to market.
The set up costs in the furniture industry are high and labour-intensive as the parts much have to be produced and assembled by hand. High end production requires high quality skills which come at a price and so they should. Just because a plywood chair looks similar to another, costs a fraction of the other, does not mean the more expensive one is overpriced. It merely means, the materials used, the components, details and mechanical construction are executed thoroughly and therefore offering a superior product, able to live significantly longer than a sub-standard version of similar looks.
Standards have to do with quality not just invested in the product in form of material choice and construction but also include the ethical elements such as sourcing of raw materials guaranteeing sustainability and of course the workmen/women hired and their working conditions. It is simply not acceptable any longer to treat people as disposable subjects where workers are expected to trail for long hours working endless shifts far away from their homes. Conditions of how we treat people are to be priced so humans are able to make a decent living, enabling their children to go to school, wherever that is in the world. It is simply not acceptable in civil society to believe someone on another continent has a lower value and therefore the goods from such regions should be cheaper to the consumer.
To buy locally offers a better insight and understanding in where the products are made and the story behind them, offering a more meaningful connection to once choice. Having said that, the world is moving and with it people, ever more today than in the past. We should all look out for one another, never taking the other and their contribution for granted but work on quality in all aspects, everyone included.
Celebrating the love for quality means seeking expansion, development, finding new grounds, building new worlds, extending our standards not just in goods produced but how we conduct ourselves and the values we adopt.
Someone seeking quality, whether these are, always celebrates the gifts of life , continuing the blue print this before us with heir skills and knowledge have left as heritage. Quality always wins in all aspects of the human experience, it celebrate life, enjoy!
