Consumers Buy – On the Cheap
Retailers are struggling to turn out consumers. It seems like they are only willing to spend money when they think are getting a good deal – imagine that.
On Saturday, I was unwittingly part of such a consumer response myself. My wife had strategically placed me in line at Old Navy with shirts (not men’s shirts) that were on sale for two dollars each. The store was flooded with shoppers of $2 flipflops and $2 shirts. The 5 per-person per-item limit necessitated my position in line.
I was pretty impressed by the number of shoppers who turned out for the sale. With 8 checkout counters going, the line wrapped around the store. You can see a small portion of the line here:
In the same vein, Starbucks announced free wi-fi beginning next month in their stores – in an attempt to lure consumers. This really makes a lot of sense, as Starbucks’s current system is simply a hassle. With so many consumers using PDA and cell phones to connect, it’s definitely a hindrance to use the AT&T login system, and it’s not very intuitive.
So far the trend for consumers remains intact. They’ll readily accept “cash for clunkers” and the homebuyer tax credit – and they’re happy to go out of their way to purchase if there is a truly good deal to be had. But the old days of spending freely seem to be gone, and rightly so. When will the government follow suit?
