This recession is different. In recessions past, products and services positioned for the weathly were generally considered “recession proof”. However this time around, the wealthy are also suffering. Today, such industry stalwarts from Rolls Royce to Tiffany are experiencing a significant downtick in demand. Yes, this is a Without Warning Event of significant magnitude.
What’s underway?
Obviously, significant quantities of wealth were wiped out by schemes like Madoff and Stanford. Next, the financial sector, home to some of the best paid jobs in the world, has been hit hard, with well over 200,000 jobs lost. Third and maybe most important, stocks have lost over 50% of their value, most of that within the last 6-months. When you add these with other factors like housing into the equation, it’s not surprising that the wealthy are also feeling the pain.
What does this mean in the bigger picture?
The question I’m asking today is whether this is a short term event, or a long term trend. Is this a crucible moment, similar to the Great Depression, where consumers lose their appetite for the luxurious and retain their newfound mantra for the frugal? Or is this a brief downtrend, a place where individuals will simply resume where the left off once the financial crisis subsides and economies regain their footing.
Your thoughts…
Tags: Success & Failure, Uncategorized
