By definition, a luxury brand is an outstanding brand, justifiably priced highly and destined, at least primarily, to a select group of the social-economic elite. Luxury is not about unattainability though. After all, you cannot profit from consumers that cannot buy your brand. However, luxury is about the consumer outstretching herself a bit to buy something extraordinary but rather expensive for her financial ability. When you are used to driving a BMW 760 (price tag: over 85,000 Euros), it is no longer a luxury for you, although you might be pleasantly aware that it is for many. Alternatively, paying 115,000 Euros for a Maserati Quattroporte Executive GT Automatic, will probably be more of luxury to you.
Before entering a deeper discussion of luxury I think it will be good to acknowledge two basic facts:
1. Luxury is relative. One man’s luxury is often another’s (usually richer) everyday lifestyle.
2. The standard of luxury is mutable. Today’s luxury is often tomorrow’s commonly expected standard. Luxury brands are under a constant pressure from non-luxury brands trying to offer a similar value for less, thus eroding the status of...