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Golden Globes Swag Ignores Recession
Tweet Share on Facebook January 12, 2009 Comment (1)Recession? What recession? The only mention of the economic downturn at last night's Golden Globes ceremony came from actor Sacha Baron Cohen, whose jokes about the recession elicited few laughs: "This recession is affecting everyone, even celebrities," said Cohen. "Even Madonna had to get rid of one of her personal assistants." Maybe it was the word recession that made the crowd nervous, or maybe the celebrities were just scared of Madonna's wrath.
Either way, you couldn't really tell if the Golden Globes show was affected by the economic slump, especially when you take into account the extravagant gift swag provided at suites around Beverly Hills.
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Why Luxury Brands Have a Difficult Time Online
Tweet Share on Facebook January 8, 2009 Comment (12)With 94 percent of the ultra affluent in the United States regularly buying products online, according to a 2008 Unity Marketing study, why do so few premium brands sell their goods online? It would appear to be a fruitful space for the luxury goods and services market to penetrate. So, why the reluctance?
Last month, I wrote about how it would behoove the luxury market to become more adept with online strategies and make websites the focal point of business. But I also failed to discuss why the luxury industry has been slow to embrace the Web and how consumers' intentions, expectations, and behavior are completely different at a brick-and-mortar store than when they are perusing a site online.
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9 Luxury Hotels in Manhattan Offer Third Night Free
Tweet Share on Facebook January 7, 2009 Comment (8)It's rare to see discounts or special promotions offered by luxury hotels in New York City. "Hotels in the Americas in particular have been feeling the effects of the wider global downturn for the past six to nine months, and we have seen extensive price cutting already," said David Roche, president of Hotels.com. "U.S. hoteliers may have to cut prices further to maintain occupancy in the months to come."
This is fortuitous news for you, because nine luxury hotels in New York City are offering a third night's stay free if you book and pay for two consecutive nights between January 9 and February 27. It's part of a promotion with the city's marketing, tourism, and partnership organization. The luxury hotels participating in this program are Jumeirah Essex House, Loews Regency, the London NYC, the Sherry-Netherland Hotel, Trump International Hotel & Tower, Waldorf Towers, the Plaza Hotel, the New York Palace, and the Carlyle, a Rosewood Hotel.
The average price for hotel rooms worldwide fell over the summer, according to the Hotels.com hotel price index. This is the first year-over-year decline in prices measured in any quarter since the HPI began in 2004. The decline in prices globally was driven by falls in room prices across North America, including New York hotels and Las Vegas hotels (where prices fell by 5 percent), Latin America (where prices were down 1 percent), and the Caribbean (prices down 4 percent), states the Hotels.com report. Prices in Asia remained flat.
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Manhattan Apartment Sales Drop for Fourth Straight Quarter
Tweet Share on Facebook January 6, 2009 Comment (1)Lehman. Merrill. Bear Stearns. AIG. Fannie. Freddie. Wachovia. Epic stories of failure revolved around these names and with them came thousands of layoffs. The turmoil on Wall Street has undoubtedly shaken the confidence of the local real estate market; those who've lost their jobs or that cushy bonus are uncertain about taking the plunge in terms of buying or selling.
According to Bloomberg: "Fourth-quarter transactions dropped 9.4 percent to 2,282 units from a year earlier, New York property appraiser Miller Samuel Inc. and broker Prudential Douglas Elliman Real Estate said in a report today. While the overall median sales price rose 5.9 percent, luxury prices dropped 3.9 percent and the median for all resale apartments slid 3.6 percent."
"You could say it started the second week of September when Lehman (Brothers) filed for bankruptcy," said Dottie Herman, chief executive of Prudential Douglas Elliman.
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The 8 Breakout Places to Travel in 2008
Tweet Share on Facebook January 5, 2009 CommentWhat were the breakout places to visit last year? Here's the list, courtesy of my favorite online travel site, TripAdvisor, which offers traveler reviews and opinions of hotels and vacations.
1. Dubai, UAE—Regularly swarmed in 2008 by celebrities—even Michael Jackson, who surfaced here in 2008. Beat the desert heat at Ski Dubai, an "engineering marvel" with 25-story-high indoor slopes.
2. Las Vegas, Nevada—See Vegas; think bargains. 2008 made Sin City more affordable than ever, with deals everywhere on hotels, airfare, even show tickets. (Gambling—still pricey.)
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Obama Family Moves Into Hay-Adams
Tweet Share on Facebook January 2, 2009 Comment (2)Fresh from a 12-day holiday vacation in Hawaii, the Obama family returned to Illinois yesterday for a brief visit. The future first family will check into the Hay-Adams luxury hotel in Washington on Sunday, just in time for Malia, 10, and Sasha, 7, to commence classes at Sidwell Friends School on Monday. Whew!
Although the Obama family will be staying at the historic Hay-Adams for only two weeks—they'll be moving into Blair House, the official guest house of the president, on January 15—it's a splendid place to crash. Not to mention it's a stone's throw away from the White House.
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Jay-Z's J Hotels Construction on Hold
Tweet Share on Facebook December 31, 2008 Comment (8)Hip-hop mogul Jay-Z has been stung by the recession. The hit maker sank money into J Hotels, acquiring a $66 million plot to build a luxury hotel in New York City. The purchase included the property plus air rights. Construction on the venture has been halted because of a serious lack of funding. One of Jay-Z's partners, Charles Blaichman, told the New York Times, "Even the banks who want to give us money can't."
Jay-Z also recently sold his Rocawear clothing line to Iconix Brand Group for over $200 million.
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New Year's Resolutions for the Luxury Market
Tweet Share on Facebook December 30, 2008 Comment (10)When wealthy consumers feel the need to conceal their lavish purchases in plain paper bags and avoid public shame by attending underground shopping parties, it's obvious that all is not well for the luxury goods and services market. Once considered well insulated from economic downturns, the luxury market has received a brutal beating this year, with sales plunging 34.5 percent over last year. Here are some ways the ailing industry can resuscitate itself and land firmly on its feet:
1. Reduce inventory.
Smart luxury brands should dramatically reduce their production, says Bob Schwartz, interim CEO of Portero, an online auction-based marketplace for luxury merchandise. "The smart luxury brands have this approach built into their DNA; they know scarcity and brand protection is value," says Schwartz. "Selling more is not success. The ones who floated up with the market don't have this in their DNA, nor do they have a lasting brand to stand behind . . . they will thrash around offering deals and wither away."
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Luxury Sales See Huge Declines This Holiday Season
Tweet Share on Facebook December 29, 2008 CommentDespite retailers' attempts to attract shoppers with deep discounts, the final week of holiday shopping was pretty much a bust. The culprits: a dismal economy coupled with poor weather, according to MasterCard's SpendingPulse 2008 Holiday Wrap-Up Report. Retailers' sales fell as much as 4 percent during the holiday season. "It's probably one of the most challenging holiday seasons we've ever had in modern times," said Michael McNamara, vice president of Research and Analysis at MasterCard Advisors.
The luxury category—jewelry in particular—had the biggest year-over-year declines, with sales down by more than 34 percent over last year, according to the SpendingPulse report. Excluding jewelry, luxury sales declined more than 21 percent, says the report.
I shopped around Georgetown last Tuesday for some last-minute gifts. I braced myself for crowds but saw very few shoppers for this time of year and navigated my way through each store effortlessly. How much shopping did you do in the past week—if any?
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Yankees Hit With $26.9 Million Luxury Tax
Tweet Share on Facebook December 23, 2008 Comment (1)Not only did the New York Yankees fail to make the playoffs this season, they've been slapped with a $26.9 million luxury tax by the commissioner's office. The luxury tax is to be paid by January 31.
According to Major League Baseball: "Having exceeded the payroll ceiling for several years, the Yankees were taxed at the compounded rate of 40 percent over the $155 million.
By comparison, the Tigers, the only other team hit with a luxury tax liability, surpassed the threshold for the first time and were taxed at a rate of 22.5 percent.
This newest assessment brings the Yankees' luxury tax total to $148.3 million in the six seasons since it was implemented. That figure represents 90 percent of the total paid into the kitty—with the only other contributions having been made by the Red Sox (a total of $13.9 million in four seasons) and the Angels ($927,000 in 2004).
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