Of course, the demographic that drives luxury cars is not lured merely by bargain prices. Today’s treasure hunters, including high-net-worth individuals, seek low prices and high quality. They are not willing to sacrifice product style and functionality just to save a few dollars; in that way they differ from the bargain shoppers of the past. Today we want premium products at a low (or lower) price, and companies that cannot deliver them are being squeezed.

Many wealthy entrepreneurs and investors succeeded by being savvy consumers—seeking out good deals where they could find them, and putting what they saved to good use. This allows them to occasionally splurge on a higher-end item and trade up to a better car, a bigger home or a nicer vacation. So, in a sense, the trend toward treasure hunting across all income groups is in reality an extension of a trait that many wealthier individuals have always displayed, even when they were building their wealth. But these contemporary treasure hunters—like people of all economic stripes—seek out bargains because it makes them feel good about themselves.

Bargain Booty
In a recent survey my colleagues and I conducted, 71 percent of respondents reported that "it makes me happy" when they purchase an item because it is a good value. Moreover, almost three out of five (59 percent) said it was "exciting" to do so. These results include high-income individuals. In fact, on average, the respondents who were most excited by treasure hunting were those in the highest income brackets.

More Dom Perignon is sold today through Costco than any other channel in the U.S.

Moreover—and this represents a significant shift from past consumer trends—more than 90 percent of the respondents said they tell people when they get a great deal, and how much they paid. Not so long ago, most of us were more likely to keep quiet about acquiring value items at a discount, letting people assume we had paid full price. Now we celebrate it.

During a recent Larry King episode, for example, Elizabeth Taylor showed off a pair of eyeglasses she had bought at The Dollar Store—this was during a segment in which she was promoting her own jewelry line and displaying her famous jewelry collection. She made a point of letting King know that she had paid only 99 cents for the glasses.

We seem to get an emotional kick when we perceive ourselves as smart shoppers. In fact, as our survey shows, the emotional payback of treasure hunting seems to transcend individuals’ financial needs and constraints. This is a good thing, because, sometimes, those needs and constraints can change very quickly.

Consider Jim and Anne Friedmans, a wealthy couple who experienced some financial reverses. They were the owners of a successful direct-mail processing company with huge clients, such as American Express, JCPenney, MBNA and Wal-Mart. They earned seven figures, owned three homes and never stinted on paying for things they considered important, like their children’s education. (They put all three of their children through private colleges—Harvard, Wheaton and Boston College—without loans.) Then, after 9/11, Jim lost his business. They sold their homes and bought a smaller one. But, in part because they know how to treasure hunt and accumulate savings, they have rebuilt their fortune.

Treasure hunting is increasingly part of the American lifestyle at all economic levels. As the Friedmans’ story demonstrates, that’s a good thing.

Michael Silverstein, author of Treasure Hunt: Inside the Mind of the New Consumer, is a senior vice president in the Boston Consulting Group’s Chicago office.