Home > In Focus > Personal Finance News
Consumers, feeling bruised by a long recession, are taking small steps to achieve financial independence.
Nielsen data indicates that consumers are dining out less and choosing to prepare meals at home. The average restaurant guest check fell more than 8 percent in 2009 as diners went to grocery stores, supercenters and club stores for food. Forty-six percent of respondents to a Nielsen survey say they're dining out less frequently.
And, writes Nielsen Solutions Consulting vice president Jeffrey S. Gregori, prepared meals "are posting double digit [sales] increases in supermarkets, supercenters and club stores." Sixteen percent more people watched the Food Network during prime time in 2009, he adds, hinting that meal planning is growing in popularity.
A recent survey by training provider Tigrent found that 80 percent of people are "ready and willing to make sacrifices in the short-term in order to become financially independent in the long-run." Seventy-two percent would "reinvent themselves" to become more financially secure.
A Wall Street Journal survey released last week could explain consumers' desire to hunker down: 58 percent of respondents think the economy won't recover in the near future, a six-percentage-point increase from September.
Consumers try to save money, fearing a slow recovery
Consumers, feeling bruised by a long recession, are taking small steps to achieve financial independence.Nielsen data indicates that consumers are dining out less and choosing to prepare meals at home. The average restaurant guest check fell more than 8 percent in 2009 as diners went to grocery stores, supercenters and club stores for food. Forty-six percent of respondents to a Nielsen survey say they're dining out less frequently.
And, writes Nielsen Solutions Consulting vice president Jeffrey S. Gregori, prepared meals "are posting double digit [sales] increases in supermarkets, supercenters and club stores." Sixteen percent more people watched the Food Network during prime time in 2009, he adds, hinting that meal planning is growing in popularity.
A recent survey by training provider Tigrent found that 80 percent of people are "ready and willing to make sacrifices in the short-term in order to become financially independent in the long-run." Seventy-two percent would "reinvent themselves" to become more financially secure.
A Wall Street Journal survey released last week could explain consumers' desire to hunker down: 58 percent of respondents think the economy won't recover in the near future, a six-percentage-point increase from September.
