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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Yes money provides so much.

Where does it fall on your list of priorities?  If you have money is it important that you let other people know by material things? Do you assume people are jealous of you?

It seems like many responses point to money money money being the driving factor. [/quote]

Money is very high on my list because I come from a poor family. I'm the first one in my family to go to college.
I have escaped poverty and I now consider myself UMC. 
I have experienced growing up that rich people are treated with more respect. The poor are ignored and disrespected. 
[b]I buy expensive things to let other people know that I have money. Everywhere I go, I'm more respected and I'm getting better services because of it.[/b]
[/quote]

Are you a minority? Because I'm a waspy looking white woman and I do NOT buy expensive things (although I maintain a very neat and tidy appearance) and do not find I am lacking respect or services. [/quote]

Not PP, but I do think minorities, especially Latinos and African Americans, wouldn’t have the same customer service experience across the board that you take for granted. I think sometimes minorities are racially profiled as shoplifting risks, etc. if it doesn’t appear like they are wealthy. [/quote]

Yes, I’m AA and I an always deliberate about looking put together and stealth wealth signaling so that I get better/acceptable treatment. And it’s true, I’ve had (white) people go from not acknowledging me to asking me out to eat once they see a Bottega Veneta purse, or learning where I went to school, etc. it’s gross that it makes a difference, but it does.[/quote]

Curious, how do you practice stealth wealth [u]and[/u] look put together / wear a Bottega Veneta purse -- which I assume is expensive since you're mentioning the name. Sounds like a contradiction. [/quote]

They're not the same thing, and can readily be done at the same time.

Looking put together is about grooming, and about wearing the right clothing for the environment. It's dressing business casual at the doctors office rather than wearing ripped jeans and an oversized, free t-shirt because you don't have to be in the office that day, or wearing a suit to court to contest your speeding ticket (because literally everyone else will be in pajamas). It's about not wearing visible labels on clothing, or having your clothes tailored so that it fits your body. Looking put together is about having my hair proactively styled - no bedhead or sloppy buns. You can look put together regardless of your socio economic class and the amount of money you spend on clothes and accessories. Looking put together gets you better treatment everywhere.

Stealth wealth is really just class signaling, just upper class signals specifically. It's stuff that is recognizable to a certain class but aren't known/don't stick out to people who aren't. One of the things that I learned from attending fancy private schools is that there are lots of small (and big) things that signal class. A lot of it is recognizable to people who can also afford it and know about it, but won't stick out to people who don't. Bottega Veneta is just an example of a heritage brand that has very distinctive designs that are obvious to anyone who knows about it, but it's not like a Louis Vuitton bag that is so mainstream that it's 100% recognizable to everyone. (Though this is changing, because Bottega Veneta has become so trendy in the last 5-10 years - though their trendy designs are a departure from their historical designs, so there's a difference there.) I distinctly remember a college friend of mine going out and buying a 2K Bottega Veneta purse on a random Tuesday. It was ridiculous, while I had spent the better part of the school year in my workstudy job trying to save up money to buy myself a laptop so I wouldn't have to write my papers in the computer lab in the basement. But the signal also doesn't have to be super expensive, even as it suggests something expensive. For example, boat shoes. They can cost $75, and be widely purchased by a lot of people, but in the right context, they suggest you have routine access to a boat and need specific shoes that are grippy but don't leave marks. I literally never saw a pair of boat shoes before going to private school. There are middle class signals too (think the heyday of the GAP or J.CREW or modern day Madewell). I just personally choose upper class signals because I get better treatment when I travel in upper class circles (and if you know what you're looking for, a lot of it is actually better made too). [/quote]

I’ve never thought that dressing better would get you better treatment. Is this really a thing or primarily if you are AA? Can you give some examples? I’m Asian and go to the doctors office looking sloppy and never thought it would make a difference.[/quote]

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