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Tracking the Economy By Looking at Underwear

by Flexo on May 27, 2009

in Consumer, Economy, Frugality

According to Alan Greenspan, this is of the first types of spending that consumers give up when a recession is felt personally. When men come to the point at which they need to save more money than usual and decide to cut bank their spending, underwear is at the top of the list of possible reductions. Because underwear is invisible to the public, man apparently have no shame in letting the fabric deteriorate more than they would when a flush bank account would allow them to replace tattered undergarments when necessary.

Furthermore, an increase in underwear purchases could signal the beginning of a recovery. If this is true, it’s bad news for the economy in the next few years. Underwear industry experts are predicting no growth in sales until 2013.

I have not noticed any decline in my own undergarment purchases. My overall spending on clothing has remained strong as I have been replacing some of the clothing I’ve owned for ten years or more, some of which no longer fits anyway. My underwear doesn’t necessarily last as long before I replace the old clothing with something new.

Tracking the economy by looking at underwear

Purchases of women’s underwear does not correlate to the recession. Any time is a good time for buying lingerie.

Have you reduced your clothing purchases, particularly underwear, to save money this past year?

If you can’t answer this question because you don’t know how much you spend on clothing, consider tracking your expenses for a period of time. You might find you have some opportunities to save money across your entire budget.

How your undies track the recession, Michael Brush, MSN Money, May 27, 2009
Photo credit: williamnyk

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About the Author

Flexo, the owner and creator of Consumerism Commentary, has been blogging and writing for the internet since 1995 and has been building online communities since 1991. Find out more about him and follow him on Twitter.

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  • Dave_N
    But hasn't the need to purchase new underwear been increased by looking at recent 401K statements? As in "Oh ....!"
  • LOL - I never met a man to whom buying underwear was a priority. Feast or famine, their underwear is in tatters!
  • I have reduced purchases of general clothing but I think I am about the same on underwear.

    This is interesting to note though, because I think some other friends of mine have changed their underwear spending habits.
  • That's funny. I haven't had to cut the underwear budget yet.
  • Mike
    Also according to Greenspan, the Federal Reserve had nothing to do with this failing economy. So I don't believe anything he, or anyone from there, says.

    There may be some truth to the whole underwear thing. Either way, he's just (successfully) diverting attention away from themselves. After all, we're talking about underwear sales instead of the Fed's role in this fiasco.
  • Mike
    It also really makes you wonder how a man can become head of the Federal Reserve if he uses underwear sales to track the economy.

    ...WOW!

    Am I the only one scared to death of people like this, given these kinds of positions of power?
  • Eric
    LOL. This made my day..
  • I'm no longer a clothes horse, but I've actually spent more this year on clothing, because I lost 20 pounds. Even my shoes felt too loose! I usually buy new stuff when my old stuff has seen better days. My wife keeps me from dressing too shabby.
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