The signs seem to be everywhere: We are becoming a more frugal nation that needs to be fed deals and discounts as we plow through increasingly difficult financial times.

According to a new report by the Associated Press, frugality is the now the new norm in America and it stems from necessity. We are working less and earning less while the costs of food, schooling and housing remain pressing obligations we struggle to meet. So everyone seems to be cutting back across the board – white collar, blue collar, …

Tags: auto sales , baby boomers , budget , economy , fashion , hard times , recession , retail , saving , spending , taxes , unemployment

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Only three weeks left of summer and the ads to stock up and save on school gear are invading our space. Grrrr!

Anxious kids sense the clock is ticking as they try to prolong the inevitable. Meantime, I refuse to listen, look or buy when it comes to the ads for “must have” clothes and supplies for fall.

I can’t stand it when the Christmas ads and music start playing after Halloween. I cringe when the Easter cards appear once Valentine’s Day cards are cleaned off the shelves, or when …

Tags: Conserve , consumption , fall , kids , parents , recession , recycle , retail , reuse , sales , school , summer , sustainable

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Shop till You Drop, a dead end job mystery is a humorous detective novel about a woman who uncovers crimes while employed at an ultra-exclusive boutique in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. But there is much truth to the title of this fiction. It is also the real-life saga of more and more women during the recession.

Conspicuous consumption seems to be the remedy for what ails many money-strapped UK women, as found in a new survey by researchers at the University of Hertfordshire.

Some 700 women were asked about their emotional responses to their …

Tags: affluenza , anxiety , depression , fashion , recession and shopping , retail , shopaholics , women

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Remember the naysayers in the 80s? (Apologies if you were knee-high at the time). They told us green was a fad, that sustainability was unsustainable and that customers wanted low prices, not high principles. Strident words – and wrong, because today, the key to retail success is going green.

If the rise of greenwashing wasn’t a clear enough indicator of the way the wind is blowing, we now have the results of a survey of 20,000 customers across 10 countries undertaken by Havas Media. They found that:…

Tags: finance , retail , shopping , sustainable

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Do you have your email set up for Google alerts? I do. One of them is for “eco-fashion” (go figure, right?).

A few days ago I got an email talking about Oxfam Great Britain’s secondhand and ethically-produced clothing you can buy online and was flabbergasted by how great the pieces were in both sections.

I’m ashamed to say I never knew the same Oxfam has over 700 shops, including specialist shops for books, clothes and music all over the world, which sell many fair-trade items and clothing. This all started in 1948.

According to …

Tags: eco fashion , ecommerce , oxfam , retail , reuse , shopping , vintage , web

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Oh, the places Pottery Barn Kids will go to expand its green line of bedding. It has now traveled to the super silly and wonderful world of Dr. Seuss in offering organic bedding for spring. Drawings from Horton Hears a Whoâ„¢, The Cat in the Hatâ„¢, Fox in Socksâ„¢ and Green Eggs and Hamâ„¢, among others are printed in rich, layered colors on a white cotton percale ground. Made from 100% organic cotton fiber and pre-washed for premium softness, the collection is Oeko-Tex certified.

Ham …

Tags: bedroom , cotton , green , kids , organic , retail , sheets

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The nation’s retailers will tell you his message of change seems to make good cents. Americans are commemorating Barack Obama’s inauguration the American way, buying up feel-good items with the new leader’s image and slogans to show support.

The supply of Obama buttons, ball caps and Victory Plates peddled online and in city streets is barely meeting the demand, giving a boost to vendors who suffered a dreary holiday retail season.

One Washington lawyer who bought a T-shirt from the Presidential Inaugural Committee store told the New York Times, “America …

Tags: Barack Obama , collecting , event , fashion , politics , retail , spending , toy

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