Quote:
Originally Posted by CorsiHockeyLeague
I mean, what people will tell a pollster on this subject and what they actually do voting with their wallet are different, wouldn't you say? I wouldn't dismiss the poll numbers outright but especially when people's money is involved, when push comes to shove I have little difficulty imagining that many will buy the cheaper item regardless of what they say their priorities are. I guess what I'm saying is, there has to be some delta there to account for people who are just virtue signaling in poll responses... I don't know how big a delta but this is one situation where you can look at spending habits in areas where there IS a clear choice to buy US made vs Chinese etc. made. It's not that tough to buy us made clothes, for example, but people don't..
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I agree on the validity of public opinion polls, yet, that's what we were discussing.
There is also concrete evidence in terms of sales figures. I am on the edges of the textile and apparel business and am aware of the shift.
For example, Karen Kane:
"Last year, Karen Kane dresses, blouses and jackets promoted with Made-in-USA posters at Dillard's department store posted 15% higher sales than similar non-promoted clothing, Michael Kane says."
Internal market research suggests customers are buying fewer clothing items than in previous years but are spending more money on the items they buy. It's corollary but speaks to generational shift that I see in our own business. Millennials are choosing to buy fewer, better quality items and that has an impact on the margins we choose to pursue.
As much as you can't rely on public opinion polls to show consumer trends, you also can't rely on sales figures to point to consumer trends. What Cliff is talking about in terms of the middle market disappearing just so happens to be happening as middle incomes are disappearing. Wal-Mart isn't successful because people only want cheap goods, Wal-Mart is successful because most people can't afford anything BUT cheap goods.
You can just as easily make the argument that when wages are down, consumer spending is down.
When Joe Blow gets a forced wage cut in Alberta and starts going to McDonalds instead of Earls, does that mean Joe Blow is choosing McDonalds over Earls? In a facile way, I guess he is, but the actual causes that determine his decision making don't reflect that outcome. Were it up to Joe Blow, he'd still be making the same wage and eating at Earls.