"In these recessionary times, people such as Seigrid Walker are no longer concerned about keeping up with the Joneses. Now the goal is to fall far behind them.
The 33-year-old lawyer from Mitchellville, Va., once regaled her friends with tales of shopping sprees at Nordstrom and circulated photos of Caribbean vacations with her husband. Now she tells her girlfriends about staying home for pizza night with the kids. (They watch "Madagascar." Over and over again.)
If people know that she can no longer afford to get her hair done every few weeks, who cares?
"If they notice, it's like, 'Phew, I'm not the only one,' " Walker said. "There's a certain camaraderie with everyone understanding that everything is tight."
The recession has changed the conversation in America. As the era of conspicuous consumption fades along with our 401(k)s, people are clamoring for caps on executive pay and recoiling at the idea of bosses cavorting at expensive spas. At play dates and happy hours, friends are swapping recipes instead of making restaurant reservations. Coupons have become a more popular search term than Britney Spears on Google.
Instead of feeling conscious about spending less, people are flaunting their frugality. Both those who have lost income, such as Walker, and those who simply fear they may become at risk are part of the new discourse.
"Something very deep has changed in the American psyche," said Dan Ariely, a professor of behavioral economics at Duke. "The recession basically woke us up."
Such large numbers have helped normalize a new, more thrifty pattern of consumer behavior, Ariely said. In other words, being cheap has become socially acceptable.
People now idolize women such as Stephanie Nelson, one of the new rock stars of the recession. Nicknamed The Coupon Mom, she retains a publicist and has appeared on "The Early Show," the "Today" show and "Oprah." Traffic to her Web site tripled in 2008 and is up 67 percent this year. At another popular Web site, The Coupon Clippers, members brag about their latest gets on a Facebook fan page and bulletin boards.
Coupon Clippers founder Rachael Woodard marvels at the change that has come over Americans as the era of spend-it-all has receded into the age of save-what-you can. Many of her new members are not financially imperiled. Some even report six-figure salaries, she said.
"You had to get around a certain crowd to talk about how much you saved or didn't spend because you would be called cheap," Woodard said. "Now it's OK to talk about it."
Why I am cool (cheap)
- I usually get my hair cut about twice a year
- I love a good sale
- coupons rock
- did someone say free
- I brake for yardsales
- I love to share a meal (half the price and half the calories, of course it also leaves room for dessert)
- just ask my kids
2 comments:
wow didn't know being cheap would put us in the in-crowd :) i love garage sales too
You are such a great example, I need to be more careful about money myself.
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