human
Well-known member
As I was messing with my latest thrift shop find yesterday--a rather pristine Kirby G6--the thought occurred to me that even though Kirby consistently depicts women using their machines in their owner's manuals and videos, the machines are actually designed to appeal more to men. At the risk of sounding misogynistic, which I am not at all trying to be, I even came up with a few reasons this would be true:
*They're heavy--Men prefer the term 'substantial'. It's a sign of quality and and often equated with power. Women are trained from birth to prefer things that are delicate and light weight, even if they're less powerful and less durable.
*They're made out of metal--Men see metal construction as a sign that a thing is well made and meant to last. Women often see metal construction as a sign that a thing is bulky, heavy, and hard to handle. Over time, they may also see it as ugly as the polished aluminum begins to oxidize.
*They have lots of parts--Men love gadgets, the more the better. The ability to turn a vacuum cleaner into a sander, for instance, represents added value. Many women will see this as needless complication.
*They can be configured in many different ways--Men love to take things apart and put them back together again. If you can put it together more than one way, so much the better. Women usually don't like this. That's why they like plastivacs with onboard tools.
*They're designed to be rebuilt--Men like the idea of buying something and making it last. It's a badge of honor to keep something running for 20, 30, 40 years or more. A large part of Kirby's value proposition--and high price tag--centers around the notion that one is making an investment for a lifetime (at least until the next model comes out). Women--and I know I'm likely stepping on some toes here--seem to have an innate tendency to purge. They love getting rid of old stuff to make room for new stuff, even if it's new, cheap plastic stuff. The odd thing--at least to me--is they don't see it as being wasteful.
So there you have it. Five reasons Kirby vacuum cleaners are actually designed more for males than females.
*They're heavy--Men prefer the term 'substantial'. It's a sign of quality and and often equated with power. Women are trained from birth to prefer things that are delicate and light weight, even if they're less powerful and less durable.
*They're made out of metal--Men see metal construction as a sign that a thing is well made and meant to last. Women often see metal construction as a sign that a thing is bulky, heavy, and hard to handle. Over time, they may also see it as ugly as the polished aluminum begins to oxidize.
*They have lots of parts--Men love gadgets, the more the better. The ability to turn a vacuum cleaner into a sander, for instance, represents added value. Many women will see this as needless complication.
*They can be configured in many different ways--Men love to take things apart and put them back together again. If you can put it together more than one way, so much the better. Women usually don't like this. That's why they like plastivacs with onboard tools.
*They're designed to be rebuilt--Men like the idea of buying something and making it last. It's a badge of honor to keep something running for 20, 30, 40 years or more. A large part of Kirby's value proposition--and high price tag--centers around the notion that one is making an investment for a lifetime (at least until the next model comes out). Women--and I know I'm likely stepping on some toes here--seem to have an innate tendency to purge. They love getting rid of old stuff to make room for new stuff, even if it's new, cheap plastic stuff. The odd thing--at least to me--is they don't see it as being wasteful.
So there you have it. Five reasons Kirby vacuum cleaners are actually designed more for males than females.
