As the experts weigh in, it's become clear to me. We are in a recession, and it's going to be a deep one.

Today, I received in the mail a marketing piece from Coach. They addressed me as a preferred Coach customer. Now, that's a pretty huge stretch. I don't think I have bought a full retail Coach item since I purchased a briefcase in 1995 in London. I have bought a few items from the outlet stores, but that doesn't add up to being a preferred customer in my book.

But, back to the mailing. They are offering me a 25% discount on my total purchases during their Early summer event days (notice, there is no mention of an actual sale!) at their Coach Full Price stores.

Yep, definitely, a deep recession. Even the Bush tax cut winners must be struggling!

Gillian Parrillo
SacWomen