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This brings to mind a story...
One day a fisherman was relaxing on a beach after catching enough food for his family. A business man came by and queried why the fisherman was relaxing instead of catching more fish.
The fisherman asked why he would catch more when he had all that he needed. The business man replied "you could sell all the extra fish for money!".
The fisherman asked "what would I do with all that money?".
"Well you could sit back and enjoy life" the business man said. The fisherman smiled and said "And what do you think I'm doing right now?".
Time is the biggest luxury in the world, and I think Southern Culture recognizes this more so than others with our family focused events, rocking chairs and slower pace of life.
So from that perspective, the South, including NC is extremely luxurious.
Which is why I don't go to North Hills because I get $9 t-shirts at Target rather than $80 t-shirts at a shop I've never heard of.
I've never been a luxury kind of person so it doesn't bother me that there isn't much around. Which is good, because if I did want that, I probably should have moved somewhere else.
Wanting a good quality special occasion dress is something I can understand though, and I wouldn't have the slightest idea where to go for that. But that's because I haven't had a need since we've moved here.
I have one fancy suit, and it’s good for both funerals and weddings. Even though I look like I stepped straight out of the 1990s... it’s all paid for!
When I think of luxury I think of Chinese-made goods sold from big box stores at 30x the price of what they were manufactured at. Or maybe I can buy 4 different brands of high priced sunglasses that are all from Luxottica. I might even pick up a few high priced bottles of bourbon and rye that all come from MGP.
Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go grab lunch containing only the highest quality ingredients from Sysco, or I might stay at home and eat my lunch from the fanciest brands of Nestle.
No, most luxury clothing and bags are not made in China. They are still producing in places like Italy and France. That's part of the reason the prices are high. Maybe the sunglasses are from China.
There is very little high end shopping and dining. It seems to contradict the reputed strong local economy and population growth. Saks is here but it's scaled down and strangely misplaced in a bad area. Other than that there is nothing on that level except maybe in home furnishings; Arhaus and Ethan Allen.
I did see a discussion on this but it's about 7 years old and nothing much has changed.
You must of missed the thread where folks were going into conniptions over the number of lux automobiles appearing on the mean streets of Raleigh...
Location: Chapel Hill, NC, formerly NoVA and Phila
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Basically, this area is not as wealthy as other bigger "name" cities. Overall income is lower here than places like NYC, DC, SF, LA, Bos, Phila, etc. While the cost of living is lower, the price of high-end goods is virtually the same regardless of location. (i.e it is harder to afford a $100K car on a $50K income than it is on a $150K income). Also, this area doesn't attract many very high-end wealthy people like those other cities do (celebrities, foreign diplomats, big business CEOs, wealthy startup entrepreneurs, etc.).
Overall, this area is a mid-size city/cites with lots of middle class, upper-middle class, and working class folks. The stores it offers seem to fit its population demographic.
If I had any desire to purchase items from Saks or any of the other "luxury" stores that OP is missing; I do have the luxury of internet connection (we so fancy we even have google fiber here!)..where I would be able to order such luxuries online.
Location: Chapel Hill, NC, formerly NoVA and Phila
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Quote:
Originally Posted by brickandiron
I lived in an area where I could walk to a shopping center with Tiffany, Gucci and Louis Vuitton stores.
But that area doesn’t have our variety of upper-middle brands (Arhaus, Restoration Hardware, Crate and Barrel, West Elm, etc).
Given the choice, I prefer the latter.
Ha! I shop low-end. I prefer thrift stores.
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