Sales of everything, from school satchels to air-conditioners, are at a trickle, and the newspapers are full of advertisements for zero-interest, no-deposit luxury flats.
With a pipeline of more than 30, 000 orders for satchels headed to consumers across the globe, Cambridge Satchel will continue to create more jobs and more opportunities.
The success of Proenza Schouler's luxe PS1 three years ago may have been a turning point, both for the brand and for satchels themselves, which gained "It bag" status.
Throughout the morning on Thursday men carried bags and boxes of gold and satchels of greenbacks from the federal vaults at the Subtreasury to the various banks approved by Cortelyou.