Penny Journal

Money, dopamine,
and the psychology of buying.

Short essays from the team building Penny. On impulse, design, and the small moves that help.

• Jul 14, 2026 · 3 min read

  Ellen Krohn Aasgaard

  Why you buy things you don't need

  The average impulse purchase takes less than 3 seconds. That's shorter than unlocking your phone.

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• Jul 10, 2026 · 4 min read

  Tahani Aasgaard

  The dopamine hits behind the Zara app

  Every red badge, every countdown, every haptic buzz — engineered to bypass your prefrontal cortex.

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• Jul 1, 2026 · 3 min read

  Ellen & Tahani

  Meet Penny — a note from the founders

  We built Penny because we were both, at different points, the person crying over a Klarna invoice.

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