An era just ended ! That was the era where the average Joe could walk into a store, sign a piece of paper - and become the owner of expensive merchandise - without offering any sort of deposit and with years of interest free months to finally pay the bill.
The financial meltdown will see credit tighten. That word " deposit " will have new meaning and once again a person's " credit rating " will mean the difference between a transaction being approved or denied.
Economists will heave a sigh of relief. The lists of over committed people will shorten - and perhaps the days of multiple, maxed out credit cards are over. We are about to be forced to reign in our spending ways and out of control personal debt will be forcibly curbed.
But - there will be a price beyond the personal indignity of not being able to indulge our heart's desire by way of instant gratification.
Tight credit will mean a huge drop in retail sales, and there will be casualties amongst the plethora of shops competing for our custom. Many of these are based on high turnover - small profit, and when sales drop so does the bottom line.
As their ranks thin, expect to see a new school of thought on operating margins. Price rises seem inevitable as the survivors adjust to slower sales in comparison to fixed costs - and the benefit to consumers could be increased sales service.
To win custom retailers will need to offer more. We may see a return of free delivery - and items such as plasma TV sets may in future be both delivered and installed as part of the retail price.
It will be a new era and those without at least a small deposit and a good credit rating will be the losers.
The winner will be the national economy, long suffering under the credit binge and finally about to see a drop in the level of personal debt.
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