Economy seems to do little to hamper New Year's festivities

While everyone continues cutting back on virtually everything heading into 2009, at least one tradition — the New Year’s Eve party — appears to remain recession-proof.

It seems “people just need to get out, even if they don’t have a lot of money,” April Payne, assistant manager at the Meadville Days Inn, said as she recently picked up part of the hotel’s liquor order for its upcoming New Year’s Eve bash.

“In fact, we’re pretty much full at this point,” she said of reservations for the party.

Payne said attending parties like the one the hotel is throwing offer people a sense of getting away while still remaining close to home — a mini-vacation that’s not too hard on the pocketbook.

That kind of scaled-back approach is also apparent in the way people appear to be spending for celebrations at home, according to Conneaut Cellars Winery Winemaster Joal E. Wolf.

Wolf said he hasn’t seen any major downturns recently in his number of customers, but many are being more cautious in their spending and not buying in large volumes. “We’re pretty much in line with the rest” of the retail economy across the nation, he said. “This year, overall, people are taking a re-look at a lot of things.”

Park Avenue Plaza Wine and Spirits store Manager Tim Rogers said that cautious consumerism has actually proved to be a boon to business at the state-run store. “The Asti (Champagne) is going fast,” he said recently. While some are opting to head out for the night on New Year’s Eve, others “are staying home as opposed to going out as much,” he added.

In general, Rogers said sales at the store have remained typical throughout the holiday season, and may even prove to have been slightly up from last year after 2008 figures are compiled next month.

Wolf also said it won’t be entirely clear where Conneaut Cellars’ sales stand until the end of the holiday season.

Looking up in ‘09?

While vast majorities of adults in the five largest European countries are expressing pessimism about their countries’ general economic situations heading into the new year, only a slight majority of average Americans — 52 percent — still feel the same way, according to results from a survey conducted online by Harris Interactive.

Still, with Wall Street continuing to stare down the barrel of record losses for the year, it’s little wonder why investors are all too happy to close the books on 2008. Analysts are already looking toward January as a crucial period for the market as it tries to recover some of the $7.3 trillion wiped from the Dow Jones Wilshire 5000 index, the broadest measure of U.S. stocks.

And, according to Harris Interactive, many analysts are already jumping past this week and focusing on next month, especially with Barack Obama set to be sworn in as president on Jan. 20. There is hope that the new administration will deliver another stimulus package, which, along with December’s interest rate cuts, might help quell the financial crisis.