Luxury consumers’ confidence drops 14 points

[Robbien]

Luxury consumers’ confidence plummeted during the second quarter 2006, dropping 14 points down to 99.2 from a high of 113.2 at the close of the first quarter, according to Unity Marketing’s Luxury Consumer Tracking Study. This follows two consecutive quarters of rising luxury consumer confidence.

“All values used to calculate the Luxury Consumption Index dropped sharply,” said Pam Danziger, president of Unity Marketing, Stevens, Pa., which does the survey. “How they feel about their personal financial health dropped. How they feel about their prospects over the next 12 months dropped. Their expectations about future spending on luxury dropped. But most significantly, luxury consumers' feelings about the financial health of the country declined the most. At the close of the second quarter, nearly half (47 percent) of luxury consumers believed the country was worse off compared to three months ago. Only 16 percent felt it had improved,” Danziger said.

The index is based upon a quarterly tracking survey of more than 1,000 luxury consumers (average income $147,900) conducted in July 2006.

. . .

With the exception of experiential luxuries, the luxury market declined in all categories in the second quarter. The market for home luxuries was down 5.7 percent to $48.3 billion. The personal luxury market, including fashion, jewelry, watches, pens and writing instruments, wine and spirits, declined 8.7 percent in the quarter to $29.9 billion and the market for luxury automobiles was down .9 percent to $60.8 billion. By contrast, the market for experiential luxuries grew in the second quarter 10.7 percent to reach $82.8 billion, with the market for luxury travel, dining, entertainment, home services, and spa/beauty services increasing during the quarter.

http://www.jckgroup.com/article/CA6363814.html?section=Retail+Roundup

[ClassWarrior]

1. Awwwww... pooooor babies...

NGU.

[Dora]

2. This is important, right?

It's my impression that this demographic has been pretty untouchable. If the Uber Wealthy Or Those Who Live Like They Are have curtailed their spending, then they're listening to the rumblings too.

I don't know. I'm no economist. But I want to know what this means in the context of the larger economic picture, especially in light of the recent reports of the real estate bubble deflating.

[Robbien]

5. These are not the uber-wealthy, just the wealthy class

I do not believe the uber-wealthy are polled. Bill Gates, Paris Hilton and the Walton family don't need to participate in polls to get their opinion heard.

[RawMaterials]

17. actually this is just middle class

this is probably the income adjusted for inflation salary of what middle class used to be.
at around 150k you can pay for your health care, your children to go to good schools, and you can have a house and a car. this is really a reflection on how bad its got when most people now look at a middle class family and think they are rich.

[havocmom]

3. Ah, the comfy class now has more than affluenza to worry about?

More proof that the economy is NOT hunky-dorey.

Only the ultra rich are doing OK and they are doing better than OK while ALL of the rest of America starts to crumble.

[nam78_two]

4. lol/nt

[redqueen]

6. Wow...

This is not a good sign at all.

[Dora]

10. That's my thought too. n/t

[dipsydoodle]

7. I don't eat

rich people so it don't affect me.

[AnneD]

8. OMG.....

we really ARE in a downturn NOW. The Haves and Have mores are experiencing some unhappiness. Mean while, on Main Street, we are hocking or selling everything we can get our hands on just to put gas in the tank to get to our 2nd or 3rd job. Well boofuckinghoo.

[azurnoir]

9. Could be a sign that

They know Dem's are going to win in November, possibly putting certain tax advantages "at risk"

[catmandu57]

11. It could be that they've ran out of room for their trinkets

Or that they're simply sated, how many diamond watches or luxury cars can one have? They need to put this crap somewhere.

[yorkiemommie1]

12. Tuff

:nopity:

[mnhtnbb]

13. Better give' em a tax break so they'll start spending again!

[tanyev]

14. Oh, no! The owners of our ownership society are losing confidence, too?

Is nothing sacred?

[Canuckistanian]

15. Have you seen the prices for '92 Moet & Chandon lately?

It's enough to make one consider buying (gasp) the Dom Perignon.

[Viva_La_Revolution]

16. so they stopped buying "stuff", and started buying more services...

I wonder why? interesting.

[maseman]

18. But But But

What about the trickle down economics??? I thought all of those tax cuts were to help the Have Mores so they would spend more and stimulate the economy. Gee, it is all looking so positive right now.

[The Anti-Neo Con]

19. Wow this is scary.

This tells you how bad the economy really is when the upper middle class id starting to feel the pinch.

[Trajan]

20. This is easy ....

They are worried the Gravy Train is about to stop, and, perhaps, hopefully, some sanity RE-introduced into our society .....