What Do iPhones and Designer Jeans Have in Common?

April 24, 2009 — -- Some things just defy gravity. Sales of the Apple iPhone are as hot as ever, recession or not. McDonald's is doing well too. So is Internet access.

Why, in down times, are some things still going up? Why do some things remain as can't-live-without necessities, even while they cut back on luxuries?

Make no mistake: there are not a lot of success stories. A survey just out from the Pew Research Center shows that "Americans are paring down the list of familiar household appliances they say they can't live without" -- so sharply that a microwave oven, labeled a necessity by 68 percent of those polled back in 2006, has now dropped to 47 percent. Air conditioners (down by 16 percentage points) and dryers (down 17) took a hit, too.

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Cars remain a necessity to 88 percent of those surveyed by Pew, though people obviously are keeping their old clunkers going instead of buying new ones.

But look at this list of things that are holding their own:

The iPhone

Designer jeans

Wal-Mart and Costco

McDonald's

Internet access

High-definition TV sets

At first, the list seems to make no sense. Sure, fast food and big-box discount stores would do better than four-star restaurants and pricey boutiques. And one can see how a night at home would seem a better bargain than a day at the mall.

But why is the iPhone doing well, when it was widely seen as a geeky status symbol just a few years ago? Why is the BlackBerry, gradually spreading from business users to the broader consumer market, holding up, too?

The difference, say market analysts, is that when the value of their nest eggs goes down, people look for value in what they buy.