Consumers Riding Out The Recession In Style

The recession has hit and I've seen a slew of articles about fashion on a budget.  But have you cut back on the amount of money you spend on shopping?  

If you're already a consumer of designer goods, have you paused purchasing luxury items?  If search habits are any indicator, if you were into high-end goods before, odds are, you're still seeking out your beloved Burberry and going after the latest Gucci. 

Using Google Trends, I analyzed searches for various designers, including Marc Jacobs, 7 Jeans, Coach, and Manolo Blahnik.  I also compared a few stores that sell cheaper budget clothing like Forever 21 and Old Navy with retailers like Neiman Marcus and Saks. 

In general, the trend was that search volume for all of these retailers remained about the same. The only store that showed steady an upward trend was Forever 21.  I would imagine that H&M would be about the same if you could shop online in the U.S.  The Forever 21 trend is to buy more clothes for less money, even though the quality of the clothes are inferior.  Still, Forever 21 is still outpaced by GAP brand.  

So while recession fear is out there, it seems that consumers are still riding out the recession in style.

http://www.google.com/trends?q=forever+21