What can be more prémicium than luxury?The experiences

And if the real luxury was to have space? "Thus he prayed an old Renault marketing campaign.That concept may have resonated with young people and people with low revenues overcrowded in small apartments during the wave of confinements.For the next generation of high -level consumers, luxury could take a new meaning beyond the Gucci bags and Cartier watches.

In Future Luxe: What's Ahead for the Business of Luxury (the future luxury: what is coming for the luxury business, Figure 1 Publishing), Erwan Rambourg, HSBC analyst who previously worked with Dior and Cartier, predicts a quietly largely great futureAnd brilliant for magnates like Bernard Arnault, from LVMH, and François-Henri Pinault, the Kering chief, who writes the prologue of the book.

Despite the commotion by Covid, luxury brands face a decade of incessant growth, which will be mainly driven by a growing army of first -time buyers, mostly women and Chinese, who have not yet experienced the joy of paying2,000 dollars for a Fendi bag and show off before his friends, explains the author.World sales of high -end personal goods have sunk because of the virus, but will be recovered up to 330,000 million euros by 2025, predicts bain.

All this is fine.But the most striking elements of the text refer to imminent challenges.The restrictions and confinements by the COVID have increased the value of well -being and experience in the eyes of consumers.What is a pair of Christian Louboutin leather boots of $ 1,500 if there is no party or disco where to attend?The crisis has shown that breathing fresh air and living healthily are luxuries in themselves.

Meanwhile, companies that do not belong to the traditional sphere of luxury, from Puma to Pernod Ricard, strive to improve their margins by raising their daily products and services at the level of pleasures, a trend known as premiumization."The problem that traditional luxury brands will face is that the next generation of consumers will divert their expense from conventional categories, such as watches or bags," says Rambourg.

See Starbucks.After earning money, selling cuffed coffee to the masses, it has splashed with elegant fashion cities like Milan and Shanghai.These dazzling meeting places create the illusion that a daily activity such as coffee consumption is a privilege in which it is worth investing time and money, explains the author.They also raise the general value of the Seattle giant brand.

A similar principle applies to the exclusive club of members Soho House, cited in the book.Your restaurants may, pools on the roofs and bars are closed or with reduced activity.But they were attracting a growing multitude of young and creative.As the Birkin bag manufacturer, Hermès, Soho House puts possible members on waiting lists, creating a sense of exclusivity.Investors seem to validate the author's confidence: the club attracted an assessment of 2,000 million dollars, the same as before the pandemic.

Rambourg convincingly argues that Prada or Moncler is still on a streak because their sales are mainly based on buyers who acquire their first and only high -end bag or expensive padded winter jacket.But once the luxury becomes a repeated purchase business, he warns, consumers will begin to divert their expenses towards unique experiences, services or products.

The list of possible extensions of the luxury concept is long.Hotels, high -end restaurants and luxury cars are already part of a more general market with a value of 1.3 billion euros.The figure does not include some new and rapid first quality leisure activities, such as online learning or even recreational cannabis.

The great current actors have not stayed still.The undisputed leader of the sector, LVMH, bought in 2018 the high -end hotel Belmond, for 3,000 million dollars including debt.He may seem inopportune looking with the lens of the Covid, but when exploiting the world of experiences, Arnault moves in the direction indicated by Rambourg.Once the virus decays, travelers will be more anxious to discover the world, and in style: "Luxury will have less to do with the ostentatious and more with feeling happy," writes the author.

Not all groups have resources or creativity to get out of their comfort zone.Monomarca companies such as the Italian Footwear and Leather Bags Salvatore Ferragamo, Brunello Cucinelli, specialized in Kashmir, or Burberry, of Gabardina, are probably too small to compete beyond their current areas.They can end up succumbing to larger rivals.Few brands beyond Chanel, Rolex and Hermes will remain independent, predicts Rambourg.

That said, diversification cannot continue forever.Only LVMH seems to have successfully immersed in a myriad of segments traditionally associated with exclusivity and good taste.

As the definition of what constitutes luxury and status, it changes, keep up with the new trends will be inevitably much more difficult.If Rambourg is right, luxury will be more about what you do about what you possess.