Frugal Forward

The way I shop, and WHERE I shop, is going to be changing. From now on, I will be making informed decisions. Before now there were very few places I refused to spend my money. (I’m looking at you, Hobby Lobby and Home Depot.) Now? All bets are off.

We Bought Our Appliances From Lowe’s

When we bought our refrigerator (and washer and dryer) before moving into our new home, I purposely went to Lowe’s, since it was my understanding that they did not support the Felon. I know it’s too late, since the deal is done, but I did a little research on Lowe’s anyway.

I double checked with Open Secrets, which showed that Lowe’s does contribute to political candidates via individuals and PACs.

In the 2024 election cycle, Lowe’s contributions leaned in favor of Congressional democratic candidates.

They contributed more to Democratic Senate candidates.

They contributed more to democrats in both 2024 and 2022.

I also discovered an app called Goods Unite Us. Their app is very user friendly and also incorporates a campaign finance reform score. The Goods Unite Us information is different from the information on Open Secrets. Their section on vetting doesn’t go into too much detail, but I did learn (from social media, but I can’t find the post now) that their results include donations by top management employees in their individual capacities, so this may account for the difference.

Here’s what Goods Unite Us had to say about Lowe’s:

They recently added a campaign finance reform score which is supposed to reflect how likely a purchase from that company or brand will lead to meaningful campaign finance reform. So, this score is disappointing, but I’m really not sure what the methodology for calculating this score is.

The Appliance Manufacturers: LG and Samsung

At the time of our purchase, it didn’t occur to me to drill down into who manufactured the appliances we bought. So, I held my breath and did the research.

The Refrigerator: LG Electronics

While the purchase of the appliances has already happened, we will need to replace the refrigerator’s water filter in the future.

Fortunately, the manufacturer of my refrigerator, LG Electronics, does not make corporate political contributions. According to Open Secrets. they did have some employees who contributed to certain candidates, but almost 80% of the donations were to democratic candidates. Phew!

According to Goods Unite Us, LG Electronics is a “safe” place to shop. Also, they have a good campaign finance reform score.

The Washer and Dryer: Samsung

In researching Samsung, I learned that the organization itself doesn’t make contributions, rather contributions are made through its PAC Samsung Electronics America 2024.

I took a look at their PAC’s contributions. They favor democratic candidates.

Finally, I checked the Goods Unite Us app and found confirmation:

Conclusion

I’m not going to lie. Doing research before purchasing stuff, at least in the beginning, is going to feel like a pain in the ass. I’m sure I’ll screw up and forget, falling into prior habits. But, I’m going to get better. Because I’m committed.

Have you changed the way you shop? Where do you get your information about companies and products?

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