Keeping the Christmas spirit during the ’80s oil bust.
Editor’s note: This story originally appeared Saturday, Nov. 26, 1988, as Houston was digging itself out from an oil bust that had sent prices plunging below $10 a barrel. By this time, businesses were hiring again, oil prices were recovering and bankers were trying to unload billions of dollars worth of foreclosed properties. Watchful consumer spending among Houstonians was still a necessity.
There’s no pet rock for the Christmas of 1988.
No Hula-Hoop, no black lights, no Mood Ring.
Unlike the whimsical items popular in Christmases past, Christmas present is accented with practicality, area store managers report.
Clothes, health products, cosmetics, watches, jewelry, video games and dolls-thatdon’t-wet-on-their-owners are hot. Lava lamps are not.
“People are being careful with how they spend their money, and they want to spend it on something that makes sense,” said Kathy Heckman, a merchandising assistant for the nine Dillard Department Stores here. “It’s a continuation of the cocooning. People want more lounge wear. More entertainment. More things they can use at home.”
Shoppers tend to verify that analysis.
“I want something my family can use,” said Paula Buttrell, who traveled from Newton in East Texas to spend two days shopping in Houston. “We’ve made a promise in our family to buy fewer items, but we’re spending more on each item and getting gifts we can use.”
Dillard stores are selling a lot of foot massagers, whirlpools and Euromassagers, which vibrate and heat small portions of the body. One of the hottest-selling items is a lace table cloth made in China - an item that accentuates the home.
In clothes, leather is in. “Women want anything made out of leather - skirts, blouses, jackets,” Heckman said.
At Neiman Marcus in the Galleria, General Manager Edward Bodde said perfume is a big seller this year. Just prior to the Christmas season, the store expanded its cosmetic section by 2,000 square feet to take advantage of new marketing strategies for fine fragrances, he said.
In the past, a woman held an allegiance to one perfume — such as Chanel No. 5 or My Sin — and bought bottle after bottle. Now, hundreds of brands are available. Designers of clothes, such as Bill Blass, are developing perfumes and putting their name on the label.
“A woman needs a certain scent for home, a different one for playing tennis, a different one for work and a different one for entertaining,” Bodde said. “What has been developed is diversity.”
Neiman Marcus also has extravagant items this Christmas. Like matching his-and-her hot air balloons. Or his-and-her motorcycles. Or a $3,500 walking piano like the one made famous in the movie “Big.”
But cosmetics, clothes and accessories are getting the most business, Bodde said.
“People don’t mind spending a lot of money, now, but they want to get some quality for it,” he said. “They want no nonsense.”
At Toys R Us, inventory control manager Bill Capley said parents are returning to the basics when buying toys. Barbie dolls are in, as are Cabbage Patch dolls. Nintendo video games are booming for the second year in a row, and board games such as Mouse Trap and Operation sell well, he said.
“High-tech dolls are out this year,” Capley said. “Now, parents want just your basic doll.”
At J.C. Penney at Greenspoint Mall, clothes sell well. At Tiffany’s, all jewelry and crystal is hot. And at Auchon Hypermarket, “We’re selling bicycles out the wazoo,” said spokesman Monique Topper.
The only real trend in shopping will come just before Christmas.
That’s when tardy men, who have put off getting presents for their wives and girlfriends, head for the malls in search of a lastsecond gift.
Linda Radisi of Dillard’s says: “They’re panicked.”