Nordstrom has a waiting list for a Chanel sequined tweed coat with a $9,010 price. Neiman Marcus has sold out in almost every size of Christian Louboutin “Bianca” platform pumps, at $775 a pair. Mercedes-Benz said it sold more cars last month in the United States than it had in any July in five years...The luxury category has posted 10 consecutive months of sales increases compared with the year earlier, even as overall consumer spending on categories like furniture and electronics has been tepid, according to the research service MasterCard Advisors SpendingPulse. In July, the luxury segment had an 11.6 percent increase, the biggest monthly gain in more than a year.
What changed? Mostly, the stock market, retailers and analysts said, as well as a good bit of shopping psychology. Even with the sharp drop in stocks over the last week, the Dow Jones is up about 80 percent from its low in March 2009. And with the overall economy nowhere near its recession lows, buying nice, expensive things is back in vogue for people who can afford it...
The recent earnings reports of some luxury goods retailers and automobile companies show just how much the high-end shopper has been willing to spend again.
Tiffany’s first-quarter sales were up 20 percent to $761 million. Last week LVMH, which owns expensive brands like Louis Vuitton and Givenchy, reported sales growth in the first half of 2011 of 13 percent to 10.3 billion euros, or $14.9 billion. Also last week, PPR, home to Gucci, Yves Saint Laurent and other brands, said its luxury segment’s sales gained 23 percent in the first half. Profits are also up by double digits for many of these companies.
BMW this week said it more than doubled its quarterly profit from a year ago as sales rose 16.5 percent; Porsche said its first-half profit rose 59 percent; and Mercedes-Benz said July sales of its high-end S-Class sedans — some of which cost more than $200,000 — jumped nearly 14 percent in the United States.How can this be, with overall consumer sentiment declining?
The Fed is printing money, but it is only going to a select few areas, Wall Street and Silicon Valley. It is starting to move to other sectors but this will only result in major price inflation. Crony capitalism is rigged against the average, hard-working, Joe.
It kinda smells like a "crack-up boom".
ReplyDeleteMore police brutality:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.inquisitr.com/130701/mentally-ill-homeless-man-beaten-to-death-by-police-fbi-called-in-to-investigate/
Free money to the elitists. Why don't Our Owners just increment everyones bank account by $1M? I think even the little government-loving beggars would want this.
ReplyDeleteWe can't put money in the hands of the little people because they won't spend it properly.
ReplyDelete-Global Central Banksters
The most likely, and rational, explanation for this phenomenon is the realization that the oncoming massive price inflation will cause the costs of luxury goods to soar, then become scarce.
ReplyDeleteUnderstanding that their cash is as valuable as it is likely to be for a very long time, people who have it are putting it into hard assets in numerous categories, where value will be preserved in comparison to paper currencies.