How It's Used

“When Credit Suisse First Boston senior bankers gathered at the Hilton Rye Town in Rye Brook, N.Y., this past summer, the retreat’s main dinner was a brown-bag affair.  To cut costs, the big securities firm asked two executives at each table to bring the wine at their own expense.”

—Anita Raghavan, “Nickel and Dime: Wall Street Sweats the Small Stuff: Markets and Profits Are Up, But Bye-Bye, Limousines; ‘Perks Are Gone Forever,’” The Wall Street Journal, October 27, 2003, p. A1.

“At least it was for people who gave rudimentary advice on how to be a millionaire. Give up that pack-a-day smoking habit, they said, and in 40 years you will have saved almost $250,000 in today's dollars, assuming a conservative 4 percent annual return. Brown-bag your lunch, drop HBO and pay off your mortgage early and gradually, over a lifetime, you will accumulate $1 million in assets. Back then, all you had to do was live below your means and save, save, save.”

—Damon Darlin, “Get Rich Quick, Write a Millionaire Book,” The New York Times, 12 November 12, 2005.

Links

Related on eAlmanac
Bloomingdale's Brown Bags

Beyond eAlmanac
Wikipedia article on Packed Lunches