What a coalition Government may mean for UK consumers

May 12, 2010 - PRLog -- Online diamond jewellery retailer Diamondmanufacturers.co.uk analyses the outcome of coalition talks and its likely impact on retail diamond jewellery.

Will the Conservative Party back in office mean a return to the ostentatious spending of the 1980s – the ‘Greed is Good’ mantra made famous by Michael Douglas’ ruthless stockbroker character Gordon Gekko in the 1987 film Wall Street?  

Gekko has become a symbol in popular culture for unrestrained greed.  As such he embodied the 1980s, often referred to as the Decade of Greed.  

In Margaret Thatcher’s Britain, the 1980s were a time of undreamt wealth, rampant consumerism and champagne-fuelled opulence for some.  The self-confident brashness, lavish lifestyles and oversized mobile phones of the yuppy highflyers and barrow boys were best parodied by Harry Enfield’s comedy character Loadsamoney.

Adrie van der Luijt, Press Officer for DiamondManufacturers.co.uk, said:

“David Cameron is a very different person from Margaret Thatcher and the economic circumstances are very different.  We may well see a return to more focus on personal achievement and personal responsibility.”  

If that is the case, we expect that consumers will want to wear their success on their sleeve once again.  With iPads, laptops and iPhones widely accessible at a low cost, we probably won’t see a return of the latest gadgets as status symbols.”  

“Diamonds, with their unique and individual qualities, fit in perfectly with the new Zeitgeist, however, and we expect to see a new surge in their popularity.  Given the inevitable cuts in months or even years ahead as a result of the economic crisis, we expect that rampant consumerism will be tempered this time round.”  

“Consumers are likely to buy more understated diamond jewellery, but they will shop around online for the best possible deal rather than spend ‘Loadsamoney’ at high street jewellers – ‘frugal consumerism’ rather than ‘conspicuous consumption’.”

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NOTES TO EDITORS

About Diamond Manufacturers

Diamond Manufacturers is a leading online retail jeweller offering the internet's lowest prices on engagement rings, diamonds and fine jewellery.

Diamond Manufacturers’ wide range of products includes engagement rings, wedding bands, certified diamonds, anniversary rings, diamond earrings and diamond pendants.

Diamond Manufacturers revolutionises the way diamonds and jewellery are purchased over the internet by backing up every purchase with a 110% price guarantee, free shipping, free easy returns, no questions asked 30-day money back guarantee, and lifetime warranty.

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Diamond Manufacturers is a leading online retail jeweller offering the internet's lowest prices on engagement rings, wedding bands, certified diamonds, anniversary rings, diamond earrings and diamond pendants.