Is cheap the new black?
You don’t usually hear the A-word bandied about in the city’s social circles. And by that I mean “affordable.”
But these are unusual times, so the Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation bills its April 17 gala as casual, fun and, yes, affordable.
The 25th annual Preservation Bash starts at 7 p.m. at Mason Murer Fine Art and features cocktails and hors d’œuvres, jazz and swing music, dinner, dancing and dessert. (Info: 404-885-7812, www.georgiatrust.org). Tickets are $125 per person for members, $150 for non-members (that ticket price includes membership) and $100 for guests under 35. Tix to last year’s gala, held at the Atlanta History Center, were $200. Organizers note that this year’s fete is a relative bargain.
Cheap, it seems, is the new black.
‘I’m on the young friends board of our hospital and we try to have our events based on networking and affordability,” said Beth Dunn, author of the Social Climbers, a novel about the upwardly aspirational.
Hmm. There’s that A-word again.
L.A.-based writer Jessica Gottlieb stepped forward with this confession.
“Last year I shopped at Barneys, this year I bought a cocktail dress at Sears,” she said. “From the sale rack.”
Speaking of recession-era threads, you might have read the recent New York Times piece, quoting a bevy of Atlanta’s usual social suspects about regulars about frugal frockery. Monica Hagedorn told the NYT she has dresses to last a decade, and that flaunting wealth these days seems untoward.
In an e-mail, upstate New Yorker Judy Lederman told us she feels the same way.
“No matter how cold it gets, these days I feel vulgar wearing my snuggly warm fur coat,” said Lederman, who’s unemployed at the moment. “I feel like I’m flaunting the money I once had. I would sell it but nobody could give me a good price for it these days.”
On the Atlanta gala circuit, you see the lousy economy on display every time a live auction begins. At the March 14 Candlelight Ball benefiting the Child Autism Foundation, the auctioneer joked that “any move at all, including change of facial expression,” would count as a bid. Timothy Tew, co-chair of this year’s Ballet Ball, told us that sponsorship dollars were down this year.
“Companies are simply cutting back,” he said. But the grand event, held Feb. 28 at the Piedmont Driving Club, did meet its goal of 350 guests, and enjoyed the support of more table hosts and patrons this year.
Meanwhile, Atlanta philanthropist Melanie Boltax capitalized on the recent shop-your-closet trend, hosting a trunk show at Chez Mel the other day to raise money for Camp Kudzu, which serves children with juvenile diabetes.
Are you having a hard time drumming up patrons or corporate dollars for charity events this year? Are you entertaining more casually to save money? Is your charitable giving down?
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18 comments Add your comment
Grant Parker
March 25th, 2009
4:33 pm
Dear SB, my entertainment budget, never flush, is pinched.These days, “entertainment” at the Parker household is signaled by the ffffssssst! of beer cans opening.
Dan
March 25th, 2009
6:02 pm
My company, Center’d (http://www.centerd.com), which helps people plan events, has seen a huge uptick in people making potluck plans – since Nov. ‘08, more than 1/3 of all plans made using our templates were for potlucks, which are a good way to save money when hosting a party. You can see our template here, which helps people coordinate who brings what: http://www.centerd.com/t/potluck-plan
Sarah Brand
March 25th, 2009
6:06 pm
Hi,
As a professional event planner who specializes in executive level events this is a very timely question. The simple answer is yes, it is more difficult and time consuming to secure sponsorships and to bring in the ‘big dollars’ at gala events these days. It is, however, happening. People are still giving and corporations are still sponsoring- thankfully more recently than in months past. I do think we are in some ways over the “hump” that was January and Feb and companies are beginning to realize that in a time when fewer are giving their sponsorships are even more valuable as they are able to negotiate “more bang for their buck” at events. I am certainly seeing lower sponsorship amounts equally more prominence in terms of event advertising and opportunities to be touted as a sponsor. These events are still very important and people do want to be seen as still being charitable; they are simply becoming more discerning in terms of where they want to give. I am not sure I would have presented the gala mentioned above as “affordable”, perhaps instead it could have been couched in slightly less blatant terms. I am all for giving people a break of seat costs and for lowering auction expectations privately but the face you put out to the crowd should be one of confidence in your event and in the ability of the guests to raise money for whatever worthy cause you are promoting. People are getting more original – the trunk show is a great example, and I hope to see more of this in the future- it is great to get out of the same old format event and I hope that her event was wildly successful!
Warm Regards,
Sarah Brand
SKB Solutions, LLC
Tiffany (livingasmom)
March 25th, 2009
6:10 pm
Hi Jennifer! I found you through the Peter Shankman, I’m a local Atlanta mom who found broke then found frugal! I guess times have changed! I was hoping I could contribute to your story, but I don’t think I’m what you are looking for at this time. However, I have discovered that no matter what your income or status in life has been, we are all feeling the pinch.
Enjoy your day! ~tiffany
Lisa C. Decker (Miss Money Matters)
March 25th, 2009
6:35 pm
I also found you through HARO today and am a metro Atlanta professional helping clients in all matters of money, especially divorce issues. These are tough times for all income levels and I am seeing more high income people do things they never would have imagined before…like shopping for clothes at thrift and consignment shops. It seems to me that the new “in” is what’s “out”….out of someone else’s closet that is!
Lisa C. Decker, CDFA
Miss Money Matters
http://www.DivorceMoneyMatters.com
Diane Bates
March 25th, 2009
7:16 pm
Two or three times a month, a six couples in our neighborhood get together for a Recession Party. Each couple brings a bottle of wine that costs less than $10 along with an appetizer or dessert to share. We do tastings to determine who found the best testing bargain wine, talk about ways to cut costs, share shopping secrets, but more importantly offer support to those in our group who are facing tough times.
Jeff Salzgeber
March 25th, 2009
7:45 pm
Hi there. I represent Etcetera (www.etcetera.com), an upscale women’s clothing line which is sold via direct sales through private, one-on-one appointments in consultants’ homes.
Our “trunk show” business model enables us to keep prices on our clothes significantly lower than they would be in traditional stores or boutiques. We’re finding that our business model is proving to be quite relevant to women wanting to shop wisely for upscale clothing without breaking the bank, and with a wardrobe consultant/stylist devoted to them, season after season!
I know your readers would enjoy hearing about both Etcetera as well as the direct sales fashion industry, which is growing despite (and in many ways, because of) the economy declining. Indeed, as brick-and-mortar stores go by the wayside, direct sales fashion – estimated to be a $30.8 billion industry by the Direct Selling Association – is experiencing a renaissance, with further growth expected. By comparison, Britt Beemer, chairman of America’s Research Group, recently forecasted that, “by the end of 2009, the number of retail players will be down by at least 25%.”
Please let me know if you are interested in including us in your story. We have wardrobe consultants in Atlanta who will be showing the Etcetera Summer collection, one week at a time, beginning April 1st. If any of your readers are interested in setting up a day and time to view the new collection, they should send an e-mail to
myconsultant@etcetera.com.
Dee Stewart
March 25th, 2009
8:14 pm
I’m a lit publicist here in Atlanta and represent authors nationwide. This year I received more invitations from charity organization to host book events as fundraisers alongside bookstores. What I am finding is that charities and the publishing industry are working together to find a creative way to drive more traffic to the stores and reach down to possible donors who don’t have deep pockets.
Jennifer Shields
March 25th, 2009
8:53 pm
Hi Jennifer – responding to your HARO query:
As the owner of an upscale event planning company that specializes in parties for children, I have seen less the pinch (folks find the money for their children by cutting elsewhere). That being said, several clients and potential clients have mentioned “the economy” lately and have requested packages that only contain what they need and cut out “the fluff”. Many of our clients are concerned about appearing too over the top when folks around them are struggling. We have responded with a “Posh Stimulus Package” that only provides the basics and requires the customers facilitate their parties themselves. Cheap may be the new posh…at least for now!
Jennifer Shields
http://www.poshtotevents.com
Lynn Epstein
March 26th, 2009
9:07 am
Good morning, Jennifer.
This economy has turned being frugal into a status symbol. “The” topic of conversation is how much you saved, what you did without and your special techniques to save, conserve and stretch your dollar, time and resources. One trend we are excited to see is the increase in the number of people cooking at home. We recently published a recipe collection to help new cooks find their way in the kitchen – Mama Says, “No More Frozen Pizza!”.
It’s an idea gift for recent college graduates, newlyweds, or anytime. It is hip, practical, and can help twenty-something or thirty+ yr olds feed themselves, wow their friends, attract a mate, and learn the value of self reliance.
Cheap is the new Black. Frugal is so in-style.
Lynn Epstein and Iris Feinberg
http://www.mamasays.us
The Coupon Diva
March 26th, 2009
9:57 am
Jennifer,
I am sory but 150 is not cheap. I personally run a blog called The Coupon Diva (www.thecoupondiva.com). I can get a shopping cart full of stuff for 30.00 or less most times. I show others how to do it.
Anon
March 26th, 2009
12:43 pm
Oh Sweet Jesus, can you please do a post about netiquette?
Apparently there are a half dozen desperate commenters leaving their URLS and email addresses in the body of their comments. It’s really not a good way to drum up business, it’s akin to putting a *going out of business* sign in your storefront.
Yikes.
Fed Up
March 26th, 2009
1:10 pm
I agree with Anon. Shame on “Dan” and Lisa Decker” for plugging their businesses here. Tacky, tacky, tacky.
Jennifer Brett
March 26th, 2009
1:58 pm
Now, now, Anon and Fed Up: let’s not pile on Dan and Lisa for their clever enterprising. But thanks to you both for bringing up the idea of “netiquette.” I have written a new post in your honor:
http://blogs.ajc.com/social-butterfly-blog/2009/03/26/twittered-out-fed-up-with-facebook
Oh my. I suppose that was tacky.
Melanie Boltax
March 26th, 2009
3:49 pm
Dear Jennifer, Where would Atlanta small based charities be without you? Small charities that provide something very needed to a small group of people have “small” budgets, and advertising budgets are nonexistant. That you put so much effort into writing so creatively about all these “little engines that could” is more appreciated than you could ever know. I give you a heartfelt and very sincere THANK YOU.
The Broke Socialite
March 26th, 2009
3:53 pm
FINALLY…The BROKE Socialite can weigh in over here on what I do best: live a fun, full and fabulous lifestyle on a dime.
A few short weeks ago I declared that frugal was, indeed, the new black. I do see from my fellow commenters that great minds think alike. My commitment to austerity is a way of life and I’m proud of it.
It boils down to this for me: the basics. When I welcome my friends and family in my home, I choose not to break the bank. Entertaining has begun to take on a different spin because, let’s face it, we are living in different times. I’m steadily pulling dinner party ideas from this publication or that one or trying to replicate some of the menus that I see on channels such as Fine Living TV. At the end of the day, it’s not about the money spent but, instead, the fellowship shared. I’ve had everyone come over with their fave bottle ‘Under $20′ red wine and provided flatbread and pizza…one of the best times ever.
As far as my two cents on shopping these days, I do enjoy shopping for bargains, it has become a sport of sorts. Whether my coup are a pair of reduced Manolos or a half-priced Lalique, I choose what makes me happiest (and what’s on clearance). Talk about great icebreakers when you’re met with: “Where’d you get THAT?” Reporting on great sales is a budget shopaholic raconteur’s (that’d be me) dream.
Say what you’d like, but I’ve been living this way for years and am happy that frugality is trending toward the norm. I further predict that budgetary living(and this economy) will prove to be one of the greatest equalizers of all.
Thank you, dear cousin, Social Butterfly, for properly inviting us to participate in this discussion. Your hospitality is most appreciated. (insert curtsy here)
Beth Dunn
March 26th, 2009
6:49 pm
Everyone’s points are so true. I heard charitable donations are down 30%! At least we can volunteer our time–that’s free. Great site!
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