Denny's!

Hallie and her husband have built great success as owners of many designer clothing brands and manufacturing operations. They have a huge home in the hills above LA that they recently renovated top-to-bottom, and four luxury cars in the garage. When they built this house, they imagined it as the perfect place to retire and indulge in their passions for travel and collecting fine vintage wine.

But the recession has hit them hard. Since American consumers stopped spending on designer clothing, Hallie’s livelihood has virtually disappeared. Her husband had to shutter multiple clothing lines, and has begun manufacturing goods for mass retailers instead of his high-end designs in order to keep the business afloat.

Not only has this been a dramatic financial change for Hallie and her family, but it’s fundamentally changed the way she sees her spending. “When we were younger, and when we were doing well, we just didn’t pay attention to how we spent money. We weren’t reckless or irresponsible, we just didn’t pay attention. I think we assumed we could do that forever”

Since she’s watched her retirement savings disappear just a few years before her husband was planning to retire, Hallie has dramatically changed her lifestyle. She’s cancelled her family’s annual Christmas celebrations abroad and has stopped shopping for anything that isn’t a necessity. In fact, when I spoke with her, she had just returned from brunch with her husband at Denny’s. “Before all this, I never would have gone into Denny’s in a million years! It would have seemed totally ridiculous. But you know what? This morning I got to go out with my husband for fifteen dollars! We had a brunch date and did the crossword puzzle. It shocks me that I had a nice time, but I did.”

Consumers have shown a serious ability to adapt in this recession, and luxury consumers are no different. Now is the time to shock them… or help them shock themselves.