Some comments on the "I am what I own" phenomena:
1) The price of many items is an integral part of their value - for example a Timex keeps the same time as a Rolex since both are quartz, these days. This is worth remembering if you sell anything related to art, especially - cheaper may be less attractive to your target universe !
2) Many consumer products are basically designed not so much to do a job as to sell to a target audience. Reviews for example of the new Corvette discuss attributes that (though quite real) are totally irrelevant to 99% of the potential purchasers. It's mechanical characteristics are basically intended to sell it, not to be used.
(For any car nuts - imho the C5 and the newest version are among the very best touring cars ever produced; I would love to have one. I held an SCCA national licens for 25 years. But I spent my money on open wheel Lotuses rather than street cars...)
3) As a middle aged person (75) one of the most irritating things about this culture is the increasing tendency to stratify sales targets by age groups. There is an "approved" living style, including homes, cars, exercise, recreation, women, etc - if you are in your 40s, 50s, 60s, etc.
4) One last rant - every day, many times a day, you see people who have spent many, many thousands on their cameras (who can't make decent images), on their cars (who cannot even drive safely), and on their homes - who are themselves morbidly obese.
I fear that the culture of "things" has produced a displacement of how people regard their own worth into a concept of "I am valuable if I own a lot of valuable stuff" - what I weigh, how I behave, and what I know and do are not important.
(Again, I love things, have cameras, cars, etc - but try not to confuse what I own with who I am).
best wishes - willie408