Lavish children’s parties are supposedly taking a hit.
Linda Kaye, a New York-based party planner for over 25 years, said that lately she’s seen parents — who had typically not batted an eyelash at $1,500 price tags for their kindergartener’s party — less willing to “go all out” on their tot’s celebrations.
“The last place people want to save money is when it comes to their children,” said Kaye. “But now they are just more sensitive to how they’re spending it.”
“Before [the economic crisis] they’d say, ‘Johnny wants Barney at the party, I don’t care how much it costs,’ and now they’re settling for Barney on their child’s birthday cake instead,” she said.
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Jessica Gottlieb, a mother of two from Los Angeles who contributes to the Silicon Valley Mom’s Blog, said she’s shown up at birthday parties and been “aghast” at what she’s seen.
“For one 2-year-old’s party, the parents brought in an entire theme park,” Gottlieb recalls. “They did pony rides and a little roller coaster and a carousel. And it was catered.
“It must have cost more than my wedding,” she said.
Joanne Jacobs writes–
I raised my daughter in affluent Palo Alto during the boom years. I never met anyone who spent that kind of money on a little kid’s party. It’s wasted: Kids don’t want catered food. They don’t need Dad to rent out a theme park for their party.
I agree with Joanne. Children want macaroni and chesse plus cookies and ice cream. What do they care about gourmet.
I find the article amusing because last night my wife, her sister, and their mother went to a the birthday party for an 18-year-old daughter of a friend of theirs. The celebration was held at a West Palm Beach hotel and had 250 guests. My wife said the food was mediocre and that the party probably cost a couple of thousand. I’d say.low five figures at least.
Don’t worry there are plenty of people still willing to go overboard for one day.
