> If you need something you would have got it already

Not necessarily, it’s common for people to wait for Black Friday for big purchases.

> Not necessarily, it’s common for people to wait for Black Friday for big purchases.

That's my point though - if you can and do wait you don't actually need it. Like unless you're in some financial hardship or other edge case...

E.g. would you wait 6 months without a TV so you can buy it on Black Friday? If you can do that you don't need it. It's a nice to have.

I’d guess that most big purchases are replacements for things people already have. E.g. the washing machine I bought earlier this month replaced my 20 year old washer that was starting to fail.

I probably could have kept the old machine working for a few more months so technically didn’t need a new washer, but if I’d waited until the old one actually died and then bought a replacement I’d likely have paid a lot more.

It seemed much more rational to just keep the old one until the next big sale and then replace it.

Depends. It can be something I need, but it makes sense to wait a few months to save a few hundred bucks. 20% on a nice TV can be 200-300€.

I see your point, but with your definition you never « need » anything except for food, water and healthcare, which is true to some extent but not a very useful definition for everyday use.