It’s a major rebound from the depths of the recession when annual revenues in the luxury sector fell by double digits. Last month, Saks reported some of the strongest gains by all retailers - sales at shops open at least a year soared 9.3 percent compared with the same period last year. Sales at upscale department store chain Nordstrom, which mostly shunned Black Friday price discounts, rose 5.6 percent. Meanwhile, some lower-end chains generated disappointing numbers last month. Kohl’s, for example, recorded a 6.2 percent drop in sales at stores open at least a year.
“It’s been the tale of two consumers,’’ said Tom McCrorey, a partner in retail and consumer products with consultancy Deloitte & Touche, and merchants favored by the well-off are reaping the benefits.
A Deloitte & Touche survey showed that US households with incomes under $100,000 anticipate spending $844, or 12 percent less this holiday season than in 2010. But households with incomes exceeding $100,000 expect to dole out $2,142, about 3.5 percent more than last year.
“There’s been increases in the luxury sales each year since the recession, and we think it will pick up even more this year to prerecession levels,’’ McCrorey said. “For this group, it’s psyche versus cash power. They have the ability to spend what they want on holiday goods. It’s really about how are they feeling. It’s ‘are they willing to spend?’ And they are.’’
In the dressing room at Neiman Marcus in Natick on a recent morning, Debbie Lurie tried on designer dresses and sweaters. Lurie said her outlook on the economy has improved this year, so she’s spending more freely. Already that day, she had purchased a pair of Cole Haan boots and an Alice + Olivia winter coat.
“Our portfolio is doing better this year, my husband tells me,’’ said Lurie, who was visiting from Baltimore.
