Luxury Overview

A deck of all sector trends impacting the Luxury sector

Last updated: January 2017
Sector Trends: Luxury
Built to Lapse 4

Built to Last and Last 6

Gemini Brands 7

Local Luxury 8

Luxe Wishlisting 10

Luxury Next Door 12

Luxury on Demand? 13

2
Sector Trends: Luxury
Pop Culture 14

Premium Space 16

Quietly Conspicuous 18

The Democratisation of Personalisation 20

The Faberge Syndrome 21

The Premium Athlete 23

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Built to Lapse
Luxury has traditionally positioned itself
against the perceived disposability of mass
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consumer culture. But today we see some
luxury brands experimenting with combining
traditional luxury vectors - quality of design,
materials etc - with an emphasis on
transient experience.
This is not just a trend for products, but also
the contexts in which they appear. The
words pop-up and luxury are beginning to
seem less jarring side-by-side, as we see
creative endeavours which market the
exclusivity of luxury pop up installations. We The Lost Distilleries Blend is a selection of
see here an interesting use of the scarcity blended whiskies made with whiskies from
dynamic by the premium sector. renowned, but now closed, distilleries. A limited
Clearly, there are limitations here. batch of each blend is made and once they are
Disposability is not a desirable quality in a savoured, they can never be recreated. Much of the
Breitling watch. surviving stock from the now closed distilleries has
become legendary, with the makers calling the
endeavour a piece of liquid history. Each award-
winning blend retails for 350.
CONNECTED TRENDS
Brief Encounters

Source : FFonline Research Base : 1000-5000 online respondents per country aged 16-64 (Indonesia, Mexico & S. Africa 16-54), 2014 4
Built to Lapse
TREND IN ACTION
To mark Christmas 2015, Gwyneth Paltrow
announced she would be opening her first pop-
up boutique for her online lifestyle blog Goop.
Since then, the pop-up has toured American
cities selling exclusive capsule collections.
In a twist on the brands typical image,
McDonalds opened a luxury pop-up restaurant in
Tokyo for one night only in July 2015. The private
dining experience offered access to fresh versions
of the brands new summer range of burgers, a gelee
made with fresh vegetables, a french fry vichyssoise
soup and an Oreo McFlurry served in a glass bowl.
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Built to Last and Last rc e

h

Much luxury imagery draws on nostalgia for

the past - old-world, lasting quality in a
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world of disposable, mass manufacture.
Sustainability is built into luxury semiotics.
The challenge? To convey this message
while remaining modern, fresh and relevant.
We see examples of brands using vibrant
storytelling to draw upon their history and
allow consumers to experience the richness
of their heritage.
Too many good things from the past have disappeared |
% who agree strongly or agree
In a move that marries past and future, Dior
100% 2011 (Adjusted) 2015 (Adjusted) 2015 (Reported) announced in May 2016 that it would be restoring
80% Christian Diors original castle in Grasse, France as
60% well as setting up a new fragrance laboratory in the
40% citys centre. The region is famed for its perfume
20% production and many of Diors iconic fragrances
0% were first made there.
USA Sweden GB China Spain France Japan
Patek Philippes adverts say : You never actually
CONNECTED TRENDS own a Patek Philippe, you merely look after it for
Pursuit of Real the next generation.

Source: FFonline Research | Base: 1000-2000 online respondents per country aged 16+ (China 16-64), 2015 September 6
Gemini Brands
Recent years have seen multiple
collaborations between high street and
luxury brands, and particularly so in the
fashion sector.
By making their brands accessible to
somewhat more mainstream, less affluent
and often younger consumers, luxury brands
are able to drive awareness among a
demographic that would otherwise be
unable to experience them (but may well do
in future as they progress up the socio-
economic ladder).
These lines frequently generate significant
hype and sell out quickly, limiting access to
those early few who managed to get there
first.
CONNECTED TRENDS
Early Bird Brands
Adidas is a serial luxury
collaborator, with partners
ranging from Diors
creative director Raf
Simons to cult high-end
favourite Rick Owens. The
brand even features its own
half-Gemini, half-diffusion
label Y-3 - a permanent
line with Japanese luxury
designer Yohji Yamamoto.
H&M is another regular
luxury collaborator - it
celebrated its 11th effort in
2015 with Balmain. The event
spawned its own hashtag -
#balmania. Though criticised
by some for its hefty price tags
far beyond H&Ms typical
prices (399 for a dress), the
line was still more affordable
than a Balmain piece.
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Local Luxury rc e
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Local luxury brands in emerging markets Products made abroad are usually of a better quality than
continue to challenge the traditional, and products produced in my country
% who agree strongly or agree
frequently Western, luxury brand stalwarts.
Nonetheless, it remains a difficult sector to 100% 2013 (Adjusted) 2015 (Adjusted)
enter; heritage, age and global recognition 2015 (Reported)
80%
being key to many luxury brands appeal.
More, many consumers in emerging markets 60%
still believe that higher quality products are
made abroad. 40%
While traditional luxury brands, from Chanel
to Rolls Royce, continue to (often subtly) 20%
reference their national identities, emerging
0%
brands are often happy to sit astride cultures China USA GB Japan Spain France Sweden
and global boundaries. Russian fashion
designer Ulyana Sergeenko for example,
shows her collection in Paris but draws Chinese people do get very excited
heavily on Russian folklore in her designs. and delighted to see global brands applying
Chinese elements to their products. It makes us
feel very proud, naturally. Previously when we didn't
enjoy the consumption power we do today we used
to look up to global brands and felt they were out of
CONNECTED TRENDS reach. Nowadays, things are changing.
Globalisation | Frugal Innovation Chinese Trendspotter

Source: FFonline Research | Base: 1000-2000 online respondents per country aged 16+ (China 16-64), 2015 September 8
Local Luxury
Local luxury brands are becoming global influences. Note how they are often happy to merge
local traditions with more global inspiration or crafts.

Russian jewellery Russian Ulyana

designer Alena Sergeenko
Gorchakova launched launched her
in 2010. Her flagship couture
store is in Moscow and collection in
all pieces crafted in 2012, in Paris.

H. Stern is a Geneva.
Jewellery line
founded 1945, Brazil,
now available in 32
countries.

Ochirly was
Luxury lifestyle founded in 1999
Boutique
brand Shang Xia is in Hong Kong.
department
backed by Hermes.
store Daslu
It opened its first
was
shop outside of
founded
China in Paris in
in1958 in
2013.
Brazil.
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Luxe Wishlisting
The pre-purchase online collection of
images and products is what we term
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wishlisting. Though many do this as part of Louis
their path to eventual purchase, for some Vuitton is the
this is a leisure pursuit in itself and does not most followed
lead to an eventual buy. luxury brand on
Instagram with
With this new behaviour comes a potential 10.6m
disruption to luxurys traditionally elite followers.
access. Luxury brands have no control over
who collects, re-pins or re-posts images of
their goods. Digital ownership is not
exclusive; it is open to all.
However, this presents an opportunity too,
and pre-purchase collection of beautiful Aston
images fits the aspirational nature of luxury Martin is one
shopping. More, it appeals to the target of the most
demographic; indeed, wishlisting is successful
particularly valued by those on higher luxury brands
incomes, a pattern we see across global on Pinterest,
markets, especially so in emerging markets. with 328.6k
followers.
CONNECTED TRENDS
Wishlisting

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Value of wishlisting rises with income rc e

h

How valuable are each of the following to you in terms of your overall entertainment? (10 is extremely
valuable, 1 is not at all) Sharing or collecting images online of things I like/things that represent my lifestyle |
% who say 7-10 & mean score | 2015

In almost all markets surveyed, the popularity of wishlisting rises with income suggesting it
may be a popular route to engagement for luxury brands to pursue.
Under $20,000 HH income $20,000 - $39,999 HH income $40,000+ HH income

100%

80%

60%

40%

20%

0%
Australia
South Korea
USA
Canada
ItalySpain
Netherlands
PolandG
Czech
B Ireland
RepFrance
Germany
Finland
Hungary
Denmark
Sweden
Indonesia
ChinaI ndia
Turkey
Mexico
Brazil
South Africa
Russia

Right-click on chart and select Edit Data for demographic data

Source: FFonline Research | Base: 1000-5000 online respondents per country aged 16-64 (Indonesia & S. Africa 16-54), 2015 February 11
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Luxury Next Door rc e

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The arrival of bloggers in the early to mid

2000s seriously disrupted the fashion
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industry with user-generated fashion shoots,
styles and opinions. The genre is now
professionalised, with influential vloggers
taking up the front rows of fashion shows.
However, it continues to evolve and
invigorate particularly the Fashion and
Beauty sectors by offering highly personal,
unfiltered content. Luxury vloggers now form
a sizeable online tribe of their own, with
unboxing videos particularly popular.
Unboxing videos on YouTube unveil luxury
% who have watched a video of a product being opened products, often lingering on their packaging.
or displayed out of its packaging online | 2015
100% In Chinese, the word wanghong
I have not done
80% this AND am means internet celebrity. A typical
60% NOT interested wanghong is a 20-year-old girl,
in doing it who often posts selfies showing
40%
I have not done her make-up looks, luxury
20% this, BUT am Henry
apparel, travels etc.
0% interested in CHINA
ChinaSpainUSA
SwedenGBFrance Japan doing it in the
future CONNECTED TRENDS
I have done this The Celebrity Next Door

Source: FFonline Research | Base: 1000-2000 online respondents per country aged 16+ (China 16-64), 2015 September
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Source: FFonline Qualitative Research, 2016
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Luxury on Demand? rc e
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Recent years have seen an explosion of Have used / are interested Have used / are interested
start-ups offers on-demand access to a in using a service to in using a delivery service
organise a beauty to get an item delivered to
range of services. Personal taxis,
appointment (manicure, a specific location in less
hairdressers, home-cooked meals - all haircut) to happen in less than 2 hours
available and delivered at the touch of a than 2 hours
button. We see here a clear incursion into 100%
luxury, concierge service territory.
This trend holds more potent disruption for 80%
established markets, where on-demand is
tech driven. Emerging markets, due to the 60%
cheaper cost of human labour, have always
had wider middle class access to a range of 40%
services, from maids and chefs to drivers.
20%
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0%
Costing $99, Packnada China
Spain
Japan
FranceGS
Bweden
USA
lets users leave luggage
behind after checking out
of their hotel. The
company then picks up the
clothes and has them Under $20,000 HH income
$40,000+ HH income
$20,000 - $39,999 HH income

cleaned so they are ready CONNECTED TRENDS

when the person returns.
Life on Demand

Source: FFonline Research | Base: 1000-2000 online respondents per country aged 16+ (China 16-64), 2015 September 13
Pop Culture
Luxury brands are playing with forms of
communication by: developing their own
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emojis and filters, and allowing consumers
to download branded emojis as well as
customise social media images with the
livery of luxury brands.
This allows brands to enter the natural
conversations of consumers while also
digitally developing and reinventing their
often cult icons and logos.
Typically free to download, they represent
surprisingly democratic access to aspects of
high-end brands. Anyone with a smartphone
is able to own a luxury brand.

Launched in February 2016, Versaces free

Emoji app allows users to create their own
messages branded with Versace emojis and filters.
The emoji is a rebrand of the fashionhouses iconic
Medusa logo. It coincided with a launch of $700 t-
CONNECTED TRENDS shirts bearing the brands emoji.
The Warming Web | Pursuit of Real

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Pop Culture
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In February 2016,
Bloomingdales created a range
of emojis in collaboration with
some of its designers to promote
collections which are exclusively
available at the store. Images
include a grosgrain ribbon chosen
by Sarah Jessica Parker to
represent the details she uses on
her shoe designs. The store also
created a special Snapchat geo-
filter which appears over users
photos when they are in or near a
store.

In 2014, Harpers
Bazaar launched a
collection of 36 emojis. The
app releases new emojis
each year in time for
fashion week.

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Premium Space rc e
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While the meaning of luxury for many

consumers is rigidly wedded to its classic,
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traditional definition of expensive, unique
material quality, we note that intensity and
quality of experience is becoming valued by
consumers too.
In sectors ranging from Travel to Retail,
Luxury is responding to this interest in the
experiential by providing more interactive,
enriched environments for their customers
as well as opportunities to learn about or
interact with their products.
Entertainment should be about learning new things as
much as simply having fun | % who agree

Adjusted Reported
BMW World in Munich is part museum of the
brands history, part consumer experience centre
and part exhibition of new cars. Events scheduled
for 2016 included a jazz festival, golf event and an
exhibition to mark the 100 year anniversary of the
Canada
USA
Australia
SouthJapan
Korea
Poland
Czech
France
Rep
Italy
Spain
Germany
Ireland
Denmark
GB
Netherlands
Sweden
Finland
Russia
Mexico
Indonesia
South
Turkey
Brazil
Malaysia
Africa
China
India
Thailand BMW Group.

CONNECTED TRENDS
The Romantic Minimalist | Story-Seekers

Source: FFonline Research Base: 1000-5000 online respondents per country aged 16-64 (Indonesia & S. Africa 16-54), 2016 February 16
Premium Space
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The first major unveiling in
Selfridge's 300m 5-year
redevelopment was the launch of
The Body Studio, a space
stocking lingerie, swimwear, and
sports-wear. It will feature a caf
run by superfoodie sisters
Hemsley and Hemsley, a
Daniel Galvin hair salon, two
beauty rooms and a private VIP
area. To launch the space,
Selfridges is running events,
talks and even spin classes.
Heathrow Airport launched
a month-long Whisky festival in
Spring 2016. The event
features tastings to allow
travellers to learn more about
the distilling process of the
spirits on offer. The event also
features a collaboration with
British Fashion designer Giles
deacon to design a range of
limited edition handcrafted
whisky stones, which are an
alternative to ice cubes.
Le Labo, a perfume brand
embeds experience into the buying
process for its customers. Every
perfume that is bought is hand-
blended and created in front of the
customer, dated and named. The
consumer must then marinate the
fragrance in the fridge for a week
before using. The purchase
becomes a ritual-filled experience
in itself with the craftmanship of the
brand at the centre.
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Quietly Conspicuous rc e
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Luxury is experimenting with no logo I like other people to be able to recognise the
branding in an attempt to attract those brands I wear % who disagree or disagree
consumers for whom overt, flashy strongly, adjusted data (see notes)
expressions of luxury become somewhat Disagree Disagree strongly
100%
distasteful and crude.
If we turn to our research, the desire for 80%
quieter, understated luxury would appear to
be higher in established markets (see right), 60%
but even in emerging markets this attitude is
growing, and especially so among younger
40%
consumers.
20%
In 2013 Louis Vuitton ran
an ad campaign in China -
which has seen a slowdown 0%
Australia
USA
South
CanadaFinland
Czech
Korea
Sweden
Netherlands
Rep
Hungary
Denmark
France
Germany
GB
Ireland
Italy
Spain
Poland
Slovakia
SouthBrazil
Africa
Mexico
Turkey
Russia
Malaysia
Indonesia
India
Thailand
China
in its voracious consumption
of high-end labels - that
carried no branding at all.
The message: true luxury
doesnt need to draw CONNECTED TRENDS
attention to itself.
The Romantic Minimalist | Power of Quiet | Performative
Perfection

Source: FFonline Research Base: 1000-5000 online respondents per country aged 16+ (Russia, Slovakia & Turkey 16-64), 2014 18
Quietly Conspicuous
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Founded in 2004, Common
Projects is a now Global luxury
footwear brand. Its designs are
purposely minimal that aim to
deconstruct and simplify trainer
design, removing logos and
creating monochromatic designs
made with high quality leather.
The only branding to appear on
the shoes is a gold 10 digit serial
number on one shoe, which
represents the model number,
size and colour.
Launched in London in late
2015, Sekford is a new luxury
watch brand. The design
favours quiet design inspired by
the clarity of the traditional
English pocket watch.
American designer Billy Reid
said his A/W 16 collection was
focused on an overall vibe of
uncomplicated luxury. The
collection featured items with a
relaxed fit and design without
distracting details, Its about being
you - the best you, he claims.

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The Democratisation of Personalisation rc e

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The Big Data revolution has made

personalisation more cheaply and
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abundantly available for all. Dutch airline KLMs
Mass market
KLMs how happiness
Personalised service was once provided spreads campaign
only in the most elite stores. Now loyalty randomly surprised
schemes and data on past purchases and travellers with gifts as
preferences can be leveraged to offer they waited to board
personalised recommendations in everyday their planes. The gifts
commercial interactions. The invitation to were personalised
luxury providers? To elevate their own based on information the
personalised services ever higher. passengers had shared
% interested in a service that provided surprise
on social media.
recommendations based on my lifestyle habits
Adjusted Reported In early 2014, Virgin Atlantic
Luxury
trialled giving Google Glass to
concierge staff in the Upper Class response
lounge at London Heathrow. The
SouthCanada
Korea
USA
Australia
Czech
France
Rep
Germany
ItalyNetherlands
Spain
Ireland
Sweden
GB
Finland
Denmark
Hungary
Poland
Turkey
China
Indonesia
IndiaMexico
South
Brazil
Russia
Africa technology allowed staff to identify a
customer by name as well as see
their flight details and refreshment
preferences. So far the trial has not
led to a full-scale roll-out of the
CONNECTED TRENDS
technology.
The Me Me World

Source: FFonline Research Base: 1000-5000 online respondents per country aged 16-64 (Indonesia & S. Africa 16-54), 2016 February 20
The Faberge Syndrome
Virtually every category of goods available
on the market today includes an upscale
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subset of similar products whose luxury
credentials are signalled by expensive, high-
quality components and materials, solid
construction, ornate aesthetics, better
performance and advanced features (in
some cases), and so on.
The Faberge-isation of even the most
everyday of objects might be considered a
direct response to the widespread
premiumisation efforts of the mass market;
in a bid to differentiate, the only way is up.
The extent to which consumers will welcome
the wholesale the arrival of Faberge
alternatives to familiar products is
questionable; without serious functional Louboutin hit the headlines when it launched a
improvements (in addition to the aesthetic $50 nail polish range featuring a tall spiked lid
overhauls), we suspect few will feel the itch design which replicated the brands classic stiletto
to upgrade. heel. However, its limited edition shade, released
for Christmas 2014 was premiumised further with
CONNECTED TRENDS 1,500 hand-applied strass crystals and a black
Everyday Exceptional lacquer display box. It retailed for $675.

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The Faberge Syndrome
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Tatcha, a Japanese inspired Beauty brand,
offers a 24 carat gold leaf face massager. The
brand claims that wrapping gold leaf around a
crystal core allows the massager to be heated
or cooled to the optimum temperature for facial
massage.

Alexander McQueens sneakers

reimagine the humble sneaker by using
black ostrich leather. They retail for
1274.
Beverley Hills 90H20
sells a $100,000 water
experience, which
features two bottles of
water served in a glass
bottle with a diamond Vertu is a luxury smartphone manufacturer. Its Signature
encrusted lid. According Touch model costs between $9,000 and $20,000. The
to the brand, the water is phones are handcrafted and use leather, gold and diamond.
silky smooth, alkaline It also features wireless charging everywhere and access to
and electrolyte rich. the brands fabled CONCIERGE service.

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The Premium Athlete rc e

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Fitness has become a prized asset; showing % who are very interested or quite interested in An app
off an athletic physique demonstrates you that sent me an exercise challenge to complete every
week
have the time, energy and money to devote
to your physical wellbeing. 100%
Adjusted Reported
80%
At the same time, however, access to
personal fitness advice is becoming 60%
democratised, as online fitness tutorials rise 40%
and affordable tracking devices deliver
20%
personalised insights to all.
0%
Luxury brands are responding by producing USA
Canada
South
Australia
Korea
Japan
Netherlands
Spain
France
Italy
Poland
Ireland
Denmark
Sweden
Germany
GBFinland
Czech
Mexico
Rep
Brazil
Malaysia
SouthRussia
Africa
India
Turkey
Thailand
China
Indonesia
their own semi-professional fitness products,
while new companies are entering the Rising with income : Howxx important are the following
market with branded fitness regimes at to your sense of identity? | The sports / exercise I do
premium price points. 100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
Under $20,000 HH
$20,000
income- $39,999 HH income
$40,000+ HH income
CONNECTED TRENDS
The Everyday Athlete | Society of Sobriety

Source: FFonline Research | Base: 1000-5000 online respondents per country aged 16-64 (Indonesia & S. Africa 16-54), 2016 February
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Source: FFonline Research | Base: 1000-2000 online respondents per country aged 16+ (China 16-64), 2015 September
The Premium Athlete
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Combining one of the citys most

impressive skyscrapers with
exercise, Yogashere runs exclusive
morning and evening yoga classes at
the top of the Shard in London.

Ralph Lauren s smart shirt, Boutique fitness classes,

made in collaboration with many originating from the States,
start-up OmSignal, has silver range from Soul Cycle, an
South Kensington Health Club
fibres woven into the fabric and experiential exercise bike class,
features Russian banyas, Turkish
a small sensor box. It can track AKT, dance cardio and SLT, a
hammams, a saltwater Watsu pool
steps taken, heart rate, cardio/pilates mash up designed
and a library alongside its fitness
breathing depth and energy to strengthen, lengthen and tone.
equipment. For the adventurous, it
exertion. The mens shirt is on Many classes have avid celebrity
also offers a Voyager Programme of
sale for $295 with plans for a advocates and class sizes are
fitness adventures and expeditions
womens version underway. kept small to maintain exclusivity.
led by arctic explorer Christina
Franco.

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