affluence

Blogging From The American Express Publishing Luxury Summit: 5 Key Luxury Trends

Filed under: Wealth

What does the future of luxury look like? There's no one easy answer but the morning panels at Tuesday's sessions of the American Express Publishing Luxury Summit were dedicated to the fine art of prognostication. That's no easy task in a luxury world that's been consistently defined as uncertain. Trendwatchers say that while luxury is rising again any hint of major global turmoil could throw us all back off our feed again.

The rise of China: When it comes to predicting global growth the acronym has been BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India and China). That should be spelled with a really big C, says the fashionably attired Lisa Sun of McKinsey & Company who discussed the growing Chinese luxury market. The Chinese market is a growing but increasingly hard-to-define group. Chinese consumers are still new to luxury, generally young, ambitious and interested in Western brands. They are getting more concerned about social responsibility although generally at a slower rate than Western shoppers. They are on what might be defined as the early curve of the luxury education. What is also interesting is that a major part of China's luxury market isn't just clustered in the major cities. McKinsey & Company's data reveals that a full 43 percent of the Chinese luxury market comes from outside the tier one and tier two cities. Further along on the arc of luxury acquisition is the Japanese market where buyers are both older and more experienced in the luxury market and less fascinated with Western brands. Could the next big luxury brand come out of China? It is a definite possibility, the Chinese shoppers are a key part of defining the new luxury.

The "smart" shopper: I mentioned the discounts versus deals phenomenon a bit in my previous report from this summit. Today's affluent shoppers don't really want their merchandise discounted exactly but what they want to feel is that they got the best deal possible. There's a certain ego-stroking phenomenon involved here. A few years ago bragging about what you spent was appealing, these days people like to brag about what they save. No one wants to appear to be spending frivolously or inappropriately which is where the buzzwords of quality and authenticity from Monday's panels came back into play. The smart shopper is also well-connected and uses the internet and sale sites as part of their strategy. Social media isn't going anywhere but how to monetize it for social shopping remains a bit of a mystery. For the most part consumers don't want ads in their social media. For brands to enter this space they have to participate as people which leads to the next key point below.

Tags: affluence, american express publishing, consumers, luxury, luxury summit, shopping, trends

Continue reading “Blogging From The American Express Publishing Luxury Summit: 5 Key Luxury Trends”

Wall Street's Small Bonuses Could Put a Crimp in Luxury Spending

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Those who cater to the high-end luxury shoppers in New York don't just have the Christmas season to worry about. They are now waiting to see how the Wall Street bonuses will be spent. Bonuses seem to be down so far this year, a tough one in which many banks cut jobs as they dealt with losses caused by fallout from the subprime mortgage market. Reuters say that headhunters have reported that payouts for some of the most successful fixed income traders this year were flat to down 5 percent and some were down 10 percent to 20 percent.

This could be bad news for the real estate and art markets as well as luxury retailers including jewelers and auto dealers. Even those who did get a healthy bonus may not be in a shopping mood. Many in financial services are also fretting over job security and may put their bonus money into savings rather than celebratory spending.

Source

Tags: affluence, bonuses, luxury spending, spending, wall street, WallStreet

Wal-Mart Tries Out a New Upscale Store

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

We've been watching as super stores like Wal-Mart and Costco have inched their way toward the posh. Now Wal-Mart has taken a big step opening up a palace of luxe in Plano, Texas. The new store will offer high-end electronics, fine jewelry and gourmet food and wine. The Houston Chronicle quotes a study that says nearly half of American families shop at Wal-Mart at least once a week. With market saturation reaching its peak, the retail giant is hoping to court the upscale consumers. The store may also help Wal-Mart land vendors who have turned their up their noses at being associated with the brand. The new store is larger than the traditional Supercenter but the exterior is two-tone brick and inside their are wood floors and wide aisles with lower shelves. And no blue smocks! The first store is located in an area where there is also a SuperTarget and a Costco giving Wal-Mart a chance to try out the concept against their biggest competition.

Source

Tags: affluence, costco, shopping, texas, wal-mart