Savvy shoppers here to stay?

NEW YORK -- Across all income levels, the recession has led shoppers to re-evaluate their spending and adopt cost-saving strategies -- and people say those new habits will last even after the economy recovers.

A new survey commissioned by IBM found that 72 percent of respondents have made "significant spending cuts" because of the economy. While the hardest hit are people who earn $45,000 a year or less, as might be expected, 59 percent of those earning $100,000 or more say they've cut back, too.

The steps taken to save money most often involve shopping at more stores to get the best deal, by 49 percent of the people surveyed, and switching grocery stores, by 35 percent.

But while price is a major factor for 83 percent of respondents, 72 percent said that quality is also a top priority.

"It used to be much more about price and want. Now it's must more about value and need," said Guy Blissett, consumer products leader for IBM Institute for Business Value. "I think it's a much more sophisticated approach to shopping."

The survey used telephone interviews with 4,000 adults, and IBM plans to use the results to help its corporate customers in consumer product industries better understand the market and adapt, Blissett said.

"The consumer mindset has changed," Blissett said. "They've become used to being careful about what they buy and where they buy it."

And the answers in the survey indicate the changes will outlast the slump.

"There will be some slippage if and when things get better," Blissett said. "But people tell us these behaviors will stick."

For instance, 45 percent of the people involved said "better value" will remain among the most important features when shopping for food as the economy improves, and 36 percent said "lowest price overall" will stay on top. Just 8 percent said value will be less important, and 15 said lowest price will fade.

Bob Henze, a single Las Vegas man and state agent with the Gaming Control Board, has changed some of his habits because he must take a furlough day once a month and that represents a 4.2 percent cut in pay.

"I generally don't spend a lot of money," Henze said.

He still travels but he sleeps in a travel trailer in RV parks for $10 or $20 a night, rather than paying $50 to $100 or more for a hotel room.

Henze enjoys fine food but has started eating at less expensive restaurants than he once did.

At the grocery store, he often buys large quantities of food that's on sale to save money. But he has seen his bills on gasoline increase.

Not everyone has adjusted, though.

Woodrow Smith said he and his wife, Mary Alyce Smith, "have not changed our lifestyle at all."

The Las Vegas couple takes cruises twice yearly, using credit card points to reduce the cost. The Smiths spent $4,600 installing granite counter tops and making other improvements in their kitchen.

Woodrow Smith, a former financial adviser, retired from full-time work, but he works part-time teaching personal finance and business at the Community College of Southern Nevada and the Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. Mary Alyce often writes grant applications for extra income.

The couple always has watched their spending and avoided debt.

"We did not go into consumer debt," Woodrow Smith said. "To me, that was the key."

While they use credit cards, they pay the balance each month.

Another Las Vegan, Laura Fadgen, types and edits résumés, legal documents and books at her company, Beyond Words, and she also works at a restaurant.

While business is slow at Beyond Words and tips are smaller at the restaurant, she has not changed her spending habits much.

"I still gamble," she said. "I'm not a saver."

However, "I tend to shop a little bit less, and I tend to go where the prices are cheap," she said.

Because of the attractive prices, she shops at Target and Wal-Mart. She also clips coupons.

She and a friend recently stocked up on food when a Vons supermarket was conducting a close-out sale.

"That was fun," she said.

One reason experts think people will continue to spend smarter may be because just 15 percent of all respondents said they think it is "very likely" their household income will rise by 20 percent in the next five years. Meanwhile, 45 percent said income is "not at all likely" to rise by 20 percent by 2014.

Review-Journal writer John G. Edwards contributed to this report.