I have a confession. I used to be terrible with impulse purchases.
Not the dramatic, max-out-your-credit-card kind. More like the "oh that's cool, add to cart, checkout, regret about it in two weeks" kind. Clothes I thought were cool. Gadgets that collected dust. Stuff that felt urgent in the moment and completely irrelevant after a month.
Sound familiar? Apparently it should — studies show that nearly 90% of shoppers have a history of impulse buying, and over 60% end up regretting at least one of those purchases.
I was solidly in that majority.
The buyer's remorse that finally broke the pattern
The worst part wasn't the money — it was the pattern. I'd see something, feel the pull, buy it, and then wonder why I bought it. Over and over. Classic buyer's remorse, except I wasn't learning from it. I kept choosing things I didn't actually care about.
I'd heard of the 30 day rule — the idea that you wait 30 days before making any non-essential purchase to see if you still want it. The concept made sense, but 30 days felt too long for me. I didn't need a month. I just needed enough time for the dopamine to wear off and for me to think clearly.
So at some point I got fed up with myself and did what any normal person would do: I made a spreadsheet.
The Notion template that killed my impulse buying
Well, a Notion template. I called it The Splurge Buster. Dead simple concept — every time I wanted to get something, I'd add it to the list instead of buying it. Name, price, link, date added. Then I'd wait.
No fixed rule at first. I just wanted to see what would happen if I forced a waiting period between "I want this" and "I'm buying this."
What happened was surprising. Most things? I stopped caring about them within a couple of days. The desire just... faded. And the stuff I still wanted after waiting? Those purchases felt good. No guilt. No purchase regret. Just a clear-headed "yeah, I actually want this."
Turns out, the gap between wanting and buying is where the real decision happens. Research backs this up — around 70% of impulse urges fade within the first 24 hours alone. Give it a few more days, and most of what felt urgent becomes completely forgettable.
From spreadsheet to intentional spending app
I used The Splurge Buster for months. Showed it to a few friends. They started using it too. Same result — the wait killed most impulse buys naturally, without willpower or budgets or any of that.
Up to until vibe-coding was a thing, I thought: what if this was an actual app? Not a budgeting tool. Not another finance app telling you you're spending too much. Not a no-spend challenge that makes you feel deprived. Just a simple, clean place to park all the things you want — and let time do its thing.
So I built Marinate.
The concept is simple: when you want to buy something, you add it to Marinate. The app holds it for 14 days (my version of the 30 day rule), shortened to the sweet spot where most impulse desires have already faded but you haven't forgotten what you genuinely want. When the time's up, you decide — buy it intentionally, or let it go.
That's it. No judgement. No guilt. Just a question: do you still want this?
Why "Marinate"?
Because that's literally what you're doing. You're letting a purchase decision sit. Giving it time to develop — or lose its flavour entirely. Some ideas get better with time. Most impulse buys don't.
The name stuck because it captured exactly what the app does without taking itself too seriously. You're not "budgeting." You're not "restricting." You're not doing a no-buy challenge. You're just... marinating.
How it actually works — a wishlist with a waiting period
You find something you want. Instead of buying it, you paste the link to Marinate. Marinate then grabs the product details — name, price, image — and starts a 14-day timer.
During those 14 days, you can see your list (or, add new things you think about getting). Watch the timers tick down. Some items you'll completely forget about. Others you'll keep thinking about — and that tells you something.
When the timer's up, the app asks: "Still want this?" If yes, you buy it — guilt-free, because you made a conscious choice. If not, you pass. You win either way, you're in control.
Over time, you start seeing a pattern. What you actually cared about and how much you almost spent. It's not about spending less — it's about mindful spending. Intentional purchases instead of impulsive ones.
This is still day one
I launched Marinate on March 23, 2026. It's early. Really early. I'm the cofounder, the designer, the support team, and the most active user — all at once.
But here's why I'm excited: the core idea works. Someone marinated (and ended up delaying) buying a US$1,699 MacBook Pro. The waiting period genuinely changes how you relate to the things you want to buy.
If you've ever looked at a purchase a week later and thought "why did I buy that?" — if you've felt that familiar sting of buyer's remorse — Marinate is for you. It's not going to tell you what to do. It's just going to ask you to wait, and then decide.