Not Close at Hand

Not Close at Hand

In a CNBC interview, "Consumers Are on 'Tenterhooks': Lauder," a senior executive of a business that sells products which have, historically at least, been somewhat recession-proof, doesn't exactly sound like he believes the recovery in spending that economists, "strategists," policymakers, politicians, and investors have been counting on is close at hand.

American consumers are on "tenterhooks," said William Lauder, executive chairman of cosmetics maker Estee Lauder.

"The consumer is back with a certain level of confidence...but if (consumers are) given an excuse, (they'll) pull back," Lauder told CNBC.

According to Lauder, American consumers are "more binary" than consumers in other countries. They tend to be either "in" or "out."

Long lines of people camping out to buy Apple's latest iPhone show that consumers are willing to buy the items that they want, but Lauder expects retailers have to make the products worth it for them.