“Are experiences relevant in a recession?” asks Jonathan Picoult.
The stock of Starbucks Coffee, long revered as a prime example of a consumer-focused, experience-oriented business, was down over 50 percent in 2008 (underperforming the S&P 500 Index during the same period). With one of the poster children for the “Experience Economy” performing so poorly during the current recession, some CEOs may be questioning the value of experience-oriented business investments, if not revisiting the entire concept of an experience-oriented business strategy.
What’s a CEO to do during a time like this, with the Experience Economy apparently showing that it is not impervious to recessionary environments?