What Modern Luxury Consumers Want

Luxury product spending patterns are continually evolving due to the financial, structural and demographic changes affecting consumers around the world. Global luxury fashion brands (Giorgio Armani, Louis Vuitton, Prada) and specialty niche accessory players (Bottega Veneta, Miu Miu, Salvatore Ferragamo) react quickly to this environment with new product offerings, original advertising campagigns and glocal retail store formats. The 2008 international financial crisis and subsequent decrease in worldwide retail sales forced all brands to sharpen their strategies to better serve their customers. Consequently, luxury brands are now paying closer attention to their heritage and brand dna’s, while more efficiently directing investments that coherently streamline both online and offline retail sales experiences.

Many mass market brands (Adidas, Nokia) want to improve offerings with more innovative products targeting higher end consumers (especially since most have not decreased their post-crisis buying powers). But aside from expecting superior quality, design, craftsmanship and durability, modern luxury consumers are seeking more substance over style. These consumers seek something more meaningful than just an expensive item: he/she desires brands that live and breathe their values through the way they do business. A new set of more sophisticated and knowledgeable (or scrutinous) consumption patterns is emerging, permitting brands that truly represent more genuine or “special” values to substantiate higher price points. Modern, luxury consumers also have a stronger taste in product design and aesthetics, travel internationally and trust the opinion of flagship stores, official brand websites, their friends or magazines for pre-purchase information.

Generational shifts (for example, the new rich in developing markets like China and Brazil, or ageing consumers in developed markets like Europe and US) are rewriting the rules of how brands market to geographical areas. The Baby-boomer generation is retiring and ready to spend savings, while Generation Z (always connected) has specific shopping experience or retail-tainment needs to be met. This increased power of the modern consumer in selecting or cancelling this or that brand from their portfolio is forcing luxury players to be more nimble in their merchandise selection and enhance customer experiences offered to a diverse consumer base.

Online marketing or ecommerce business is an increasingly fundamental opportunity for brand web sites to exceed exclusivity experiences and features inside their flagship stores. Luxury brands are quickly realizing how all generations of consumers are spending more time (and money) while gathering information via the internet. Personalized online marketing campaigns and exclusive offerings are able to convey a high-end, luxury experience for the sophisticated, modern consumer.