Economic snapshot: Where did the customers go?

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Conventional wisdom continues to say the high end of L.A. real estate is doing fine, and won’t get hit very hard by the credit squeeze that has left other housing markets in shambles. If that’s your belief, you should read this item: High-end clothing boutiques in L.A. are having a terrible year.

‘It was like a vacuum cleaner had sucked up all our customers,’ said Michelle Dalton Tyree, who co-owns a boutique called Iconology. Tracey Ross, whose store is popular among actors and socialites, said that in her 17 years in business she’s never experienced such a dark retail period and has had to cut back on her sales staff hours to compensate.

Analysis: We all know the economy is slowing, the question is whether it is going to stall. Anecdotes like this tell us the weakness that started with sub-prime borrowers and high gas prices is spreading to higher-income consumers.

Your thoughts? Your own personal economic analysis based on things you see in real life? E-mail story tips to peter.viles@latimes.com.
Photo Credit: L.A. Times