Choice is a Cost · Royce Hayneslinkedin.com/@roycehaynes<br>hackernews/@roycehaynes<br>twitter/@roycehaynes<br>instagram/@roycelhaynes<br>mailto:roycehaynes

There’s a story about a very successful shoe salesman. It goes like this.

A salesman owned several women’s shoe stores that were wildly successful. His name was Ben Prober. A journalist asked Ben one day what was his secret. He said offer two not three.

What did he mean?

Well, one day a lady came into one of his shoe stores. She saw a pair she liked and asked to try them on. Ben got her shoe size and grabbed the first pair. While he was grabbing the first pair, she saw another pair she liked.

So, he gave her the first pair and went to the back to fetch the second. She then went on to ask for another pair.

“Can I see that pair of shoes?” Ben replied, “Which of the first two pairs would you like me to take away?”

What he found was when a person had a choice of 3 they bought none. When they had a choice of 2 they bought 1.

The moral of the story is too much choice is overwhelming. And two choices force a decision.

This is something I do with my kids, where they have to make a decision between two options. Whenever they throw in a third option, I ask which one they want to take away.

What I’ve observed is that they fear losing an option more than they value gaining one.

And I think the same is true in business.

Today’s product leaders can learn from Ben.

PublishedAug 14, 2026