Time has a fascinating article this week about what we buy, and don’t buy, in a recession. The results are both revealing and, at times, perplexing.
Some of the best-performing product categories so far this year:
- Canning supplies (up 11.5%)
- Wine (8.1%)
- Fresh meat (7.3%)
- Baking mixes (3.3%)
- Liquor (2.6%)
- Family planning (e.g., condoms) (1.5%)
According to the article, family planning products were “up 10.2% for the first two months of this year. Unit sales were up 1.5%, which indicates that consumers are willing to pay higher prices today to prevent crib expenses tomorrow.”
Some of the worst-performing:
- Magazines (down 17.1%)
- Diet aids (-13.4%)
- Feminine hygiene (-12.6%)
- Bottled water (-11.0%)
- Baby needs (-10.7%)
- Lawn and garden (-9.8%)
- Cookies and ice cream cones (-9.7%)
Here’s a question: How discretionary are expenses for feminine hygiene and baby needs? Recession or no recession, it seems like the demand would be fairly inelastic.