As we get ready to wind down 2009 and look forward to a fresh new decade, we know you’ve got a lot on your mind. In particular, you have a nagging suspicion that no one will ever buy anything ever again thanks to trends like the new austerity, the new frugality, and the new unemployedity. (Ok, we fudged that last one.)
We’ve got some good news: The Source is brewing up a list of trends that’ll help you make it through the muck, and we’ll be sharing them as soon as 2010 rolls around.
But, if you’re going to be doing some heavy thinking over the break, may we suggest that you read a brief piece by the fine folks at the Hartman group. In a number of articles over the last few months, the Hartman group has been critiquing the idea that “everything has changed” and that consumers will forever display the way we consume, even after the recession (hopefully) turns around.
Whether it’s showing off our savviness as shoppers (“I got such a good deal by buying bulk Cristal!”) or trying to downplay big expenditures (“My eighth vacation home is purely for the tax write-offs!”), the Hartman peeps argue that Americans have always presented a charade of frugality, in good times and bad (but especially pronounced in bad times). In Hartman’s opinion, the current environment is much of the same: a lot of talk about spending less and consuming less. They believe that as soon as things turn around, we’ll be back to the bling and the excess as if nothing ever happened (as we’ve done after a number of recessions before, according to Hartman).
It’s a compelling premise, and worthy of consideration even if you’re leaning the other way. All we know for sure is that 2010 is going to be one very interesting year.
