D.C. and Frisco Shop Until They Drop

Think the average consumer in Detroit, Mich. is likely to brown-bag it in light of the economic recession that’s literally hitting them close to home? Think again. According to a study of geographic consumer spending conducted by analytics firm Acxiom, the country’s big spenders and savers aren’t where you think they might be. Sixty-four percent of the people in Detroit’s metro area are likely to spend, shall we say, non-frugally. Around 1,500 data fields go into the equation that then determines which demographics spend, and how much. The cities with the highest proportion of spenders include San Francisco, Austin, Washington, D.C., Seattle, San Diego, Denver, Cincinnati, Norfolk, Salt Lake City and Jacksonville. Less-likely spenders typically reside in Pittsburgh, Nashville, Tampa, St. Louis, Indianapolis, Little Rock, Knoxville, Tulsa, Fresno and Mobile. So what’s the reason for the disconnect? One explanation could be numbers of middle-income urban families who are concerned about protecting their quality of life.