Recently I’ve read some chatter suggesting that the social acceptability of extravagant spending is on the decline. For instance, CBS news cites anecdotal evidence in a story “Is Cheap Now Chic?”, concluding
The new status…is not how much you spend, but how much you don’t.
A USAToday piece on teen spending reaches a similar conclusion:
It’s even becoming cool to be frugal.
Undoubtedly many consumers are cutting back on spending. Gas and food prices are up, the home equity ATM is drying up, and many people are up to their eyeballs in credit card debt.
But the question regarding this wave of frugality is, is it simply one of necessity? Or does it reflect a broader change in attitude toward spending?
I’m not yet convinced of the latter. In the near-term I don’t think you can tell–in a recessionary environment people aren’t spending because they don’t have a choice. Perhaps in the longer run, when the economic tide turns, we’ll have a better picture of whether or not people are consciously choosing to save rather than spend because its now “chic.”