Britannica.com

consumer discretionary sector

By
Jayanthi Gopalakrishnan
Jayanthi GopalakrishnanFinancial Writer

Jayanthi Gopalakrishnan has spent more than two decades as a financial writer and managing editor, including 17 years as the editor for Technical Analysis of Stocks & Commodities magazine, as well as her current role as director of site content at Stockcharts.com. Her topics of expertise include futures and options trading strategies, stock analysis, and personal finance. 

Fact-checked by
Doug Ashburn
Doug AshburnExecutive Editor, Britannica Money

Doug is a Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst who spent more than 20 years as a derivatives market maker and asset manager before “reincarnating” as a financial media professional a decade ago.

Before joining Britannica, Doug spent nearly six years managing content marketing projects for a dozen clients, including The Ticker Tape, TD Ameritrade’s market news and financial education site for retail investors. He has been a CAIA charter holder since 2006, and also held a Series 3 license during his years as a derivatives specialist.

Doug previously served as Regional Director for the Chicago region of PRMIA, the Professional Risk Managers’ International Association, and he also served as editor of Intelligent Risk, PRMIA’s quarterly member newsletter. He holds a BS from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and an MBA from Illinois Institute of Technology, Stuart School of Business.

This sector includes products and services people buy that aren’t strictly necessary but are nice to have, such as cars, travel, and entertainment. Some of the big companies in this sector include Ford (F), Disney (DIS), Marriott (MAR), Macy’s (M), Nike (NKE), Home Depot (HD), Tesla (TSLA), McDonald’s (MCD), and Delta Air Lines (DAL).