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Luxury Consumers Overwhelmingly Plan to Save or Invest -- rather than Spend -- their Rebate Checks

New Unity Marketing survey of affluent shoppers finds they will disappoint retailers when their tax rebates arrive

Stevens, PA April 15, 2008 -- If the luxury consumers are a guide, the 2008 Economic Stimulus Package rushed through Congress in order to jump start the economy will end up having little if any effect on spending, according to a new survey conducted by Unity Marketing. Among luxury consumers who expect to receive a tax rebate check, only 11 percent plan to go shopping to splurge on something special.

The vast majority of luxury consumers plan to save their rebate check (26 percent), to invest it (16 percent) or pay down debt (27 percent). Commenting on the results of the survey, Pam Danziger, president of Unity Marketing and author of Shopping: Why We Love It and How Retailers Can Create the Ultimate Customer Experience, said, "The affluent luxury consumers are the 'heavy-lifters' when it comes to consumer spending. The top 20 percent of households based upon income -- which corresponds to Unity's survey sample -- spends about twice as much the typical U.S. household across the board.

"When they choose to hold back on their spending, the effects are felt far and wide. Unfortunately, the tax rebate is unlikely to have much effect on retail spending among these shoppers. A far more meaningful economic stimulus for the American economy would result from reducing the price of gasoline and improving the value of the dollar against foreign currencies," Danziger advises.

Unity Marketing's latest survey was conducted April 7-11 among 1,258 luxury consumers with incomes of $100,000 or more. The average income of all those surveyed was $173,400 and average age 45.9 years. Among those surveyed, 60 percent expect to receive a tax rebate check.

Unity Marketing has prepared a white paper about predictions for the luxury market in 2008

Pam Danziger has prepared a white paper about predictions for the luxury market in 2008 based upon Unity Marketing's latest consumer research. Visit http://www.unitymarketingonline.com/cms_luxury/luxury/luxury3/Luxury_Tracking_3Q2007/Luxury_Index_White_Paper.php to download a copy.

For media: Charts, tables and graphs are available on request.

Coming Soon:

First quarter 2008 Luxury Consumption Index & Luxury Consumer Spending Trends
How the Affluent Will Vote in the Upcoming Presidential Election � The Gender Factor
The happiness of luxury consumers -- Money really does buy happiness, but not by much
Latest trends and directions in the giftware and home decorative accents market

About Pam Danziger and Unity Marketing
Pamela N. Danziger is an internationally recognized expert specializing in consumer insights, especially for marketers and retailers that sell luxury goods and experiences to the masses or the �classes.� She is president of Unity Marketing, a marketing consulting firm she founded in 1992.

Advising such clients as PPR, Diageo, Stearns & Foster, Waterford/Wedgwood, Lenox, Prudential Fine Homes, Ritz Carlton, Orient-Express Hotels, Marie Claire magazine, The World Gold Council, The Conference Board and American Express, Danziger taps consumer psychology to help clients navigate and master the changing luxury consumer marketplace.

In recognition of her ground-breaking work in the luxury consumer market, Pam received the Global Luxury Award presented by Harper's Bazaar for top luxury industry achievers in 2007.

Her latest book is Shopping: Why We Love It and How Retailers Can Create the Ultimate Customer Experience, published by Kaplan Publishing in October 2006. Her other books include Let Them Eat Cake: Marketing Luxury to the Masses�as well as the Classes, (Dearborn Trade Publishing, $27, hardcover) and Why People Buy Things They Don't Need: Understanding and Predicting Consumer Behavior (Chicago: Dearborn Trade Publishing, 2004).

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