You must have been living under a rock for the past few years if you haven't noticed the affect the current economic slump has had on the luxury goods industry. High end retailers have been hosting sale after sale and continue to work on strategies to pull consumers onto the shop floors. Department stores, in particular, have felt the brunt as the ultra rich have scaled back on their spending - but not anymore it seems. According to The New York Times, the rich aren't shy to spend again.

Need evidence? The Olsen's crocodile backpack priced at a whopping $39,000 has already receieved orders and a Chanel coat retailing at $9,010 has sold out at Nordstrom with a major waiting list. And ithey're not just spending on clothes. Mercedes Benz recently revealed that they sold more cars in the US last month than they did in the last five years.

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As part of McKinsey's three-month examination of Conde Nast's financial operations (the evaluations end next week), a selection of magazines have been asked to cut budgets by about 25 percent, according to the New York Observer. Teen Vogue is believed to be in that group, the Observer's report continues, but it's unknown if Vogue or W are.

Although top executives have not come out with specifics on any cuts, sources say that money could be tightened by lessening expenses, eliminating freelance work, laying off employees or putting out less issues a year. Conde Nast CEO Chuck Townsend has said there are no plans to fold more magazines.

The masthead at Teen Vogue already seems to be changing, though. Senior fashion editor Aya Kanai has become West Coast contributing fashion editor, and Taylor Tomasi, formerly accessories director, has transtioned to Marie Claire as style and accessories director. Teen Vogue's Joanna Hillman, senior fashion market editor, has moved to Harper's Bazaar and was seen with the Bazaar crew all through New York Fashion Week, according to Fashionologie. Are anymore changes in the wind?

Before the recession hit, Ugly Betty’s wardrobe department had an unlimited budget. Now, however, Wilhelmina Slater’s outfits have to be carefully considered in terms of their price.

“With the economic situation what it is, we scaled down in terms of the type of clothing that we’re getting,” said Vanessa Williams, the actress who plays Wilhelmina Slater. “There was a Naeem Khan dress that went for £1,500 and they watched it and watched and by the time we got it, it was, like, £450. So we are being mindful of the budget and waiting for markdowns on Ugly Betty,” she added.

Although, with Williams recently wearing Rachel Roy, Giambattista Valli, Dolce & Gabbana and vintage Thierry Mugler, things don’t look too bad.

The economic downturn must be hitting home right now for Derek Lam, who has reportedly been losing $1 million a month, and expects his label to have lost between $12 million and $15 million by the end of this year.

A 'fashion industry insider' told Page Six, "It's only propped up by money coming from Italian investors". The Chinese American designer started his career at Michael Kors before setting up his own label, Derek Lam in 2003. According to the source, not only is Lam coming across hard times with his finances, but his CEO, Jan Schlottman is rumoured to have only turned up to work three times throughout August - something he strongly denies. "Everyone has had difficulty this year, but the actual [monthly] figure is far less than that." He claims that he only had ten vacation days that month, and had his laptop with him at all times. Lam won the CFDA Perry Ellis Swarovski Award for New Designers in 2005, so lets hope for his sake that he doesn't have the bad luck that Peter Som experienced with label Bill Blass back in 2008.

Peter Som - Spring 09

In the weeks of January leading up to Fashion Week, Peter Som, whose shows lured in the likes of Anna Wintour and André Leon Talley, cancelled his autumn 2009 catwalk show, due to financial backing from Creative Design Studios falling through. This subsequently led to Som resigning later that year.

The American designer, who describes his aesthetic as one of “effortless elegance and refined sexiness”, is now, months later, in a very different position. Som, who signed a licensing deal with an Italian company this May, is now able to produce and manufacture his line. We’ll look forward to his spring 2010 collection in a presentation at Milk Studios.

Although Som has managed to keep his label intact throughout the downturn, he ponders over the economic challenges the fashion industry still faces in an interview with The Cut: “For fall that was the depths of the recession, where there was no visibility for anybody — I don’t care who you are. Stores were going out of business left and right, no one was shopping,” Som says. “Hopefully we’ll get back to some semblance of normalcy. Nothing’s normal anymore.”

Leonard Lauder, Estee Lauder's chairman of the board, came up with the term "lipstick index" during the early-2000s recession to describe increased sales of the product during hard financial times. (Granted, it hasn't held true for this recession, but moving on.) Now, do we need to talk about the BS index? Maybe. And that stands for "beauty school", of course.

Beauty schools are reporting increases in applications, according to the New York Daily News, and the "personal appearance field" is expected to expand by 14 percent between now and 2016. Perhaps that's because cosmetology schools tend to charge less than graduate schools, and top-level hairstylists can rake in about $100,000 annually.

Would you start a new career like this during the recession?

So maybe this is happening because people are crying over losing their jobs, or because people are going on more dates (online dating has gone way up during the recession), or maybe just because people want their DiorShow. But anyway, sales of mascara have boosted by 8.5 percent at supermarkets and drugstores over the past year. More than $260 million has been spent on eye makeup during that time.

Meanwhile, lipstick sales - which usually rise during hard times - have dropped by 5.8 percent. What's happening here?

Sephora Favorites Lashstash Mascara Deluxe Sampler

$39.00 at Sephora

Sephora Favorites Splashstash Waterproof Deluxe Sampler

$36.00 at Sephora

Like many people, I became conscious of which labels were on my jeans pockets and what tag was in the back of my coat during my teenage years - when it became uncool to shop at certain stores because your family always did, or because a sale flyer came in the post. OK, I lie: It happened when I was 10, but thankfully the attitude dropped off a few years later. And if it wasn't dead by the time I was 18, seeing someone in trainers spattered with the Coach 'C' at university really did that concept in.

For many teenagers now, or so says the New York Times, finding a better deal at the mall trumps getting the latest fashion from name-y stores. While teenage spending is off 14 percent for the season, Abercrombie & Fitch seems to be having particular trouble. "Labels are becoming less and less of a priority for people throughout my school," says Chelsea Orcutt, a 17-year-old senior at a New York school. "Labels and designer purses — I'm not seeing them as frequently."