Because consumers have come to believe that brand stands in for quality, meanwhile luxury brands have sought out larger markets, meaning making some of their stuff more affordable, which helps to lower the quality as they seek to mass produce more of their product lines… Hence, less distinction between quality vs. quantity… plus more stuff is made in cheaper factories in places (the runaway factory model) with little to no protections for workers, who are desperate to make a wage to care for their families. As quality in even luxury goods decline, but prices keep going on, corporations are reaping larger profits from which to compensate their already overpaid CEOs, etc…
Of course, Sir Terry was writing his theory back in the 90s, when this was not quite so bad a difference.
