If you think that luxury is dead you got the wrong memo or maybe just listening to the wrong media sources. There are so many reporters who just want to do stories on the recession and simply adding the luxury market to the storyline.
However, I want to let the cat out of the bag! Luxury is VERY much alive and well! Today, the media is trying to make the rich feel bad about being able to purchase high-end luxury items! Why? The recession is BIG news and also even bigger business talking about. Those who can afford to buy luxury items are made to feel guilty and that is simply not fair.
Why should I be concerned? Well, I have a vested interest in the luxury market as my public relations firm specializes in Luxury PR. Are people still buying luxury? The answer is very much YES! Yes! Yes!!
Is the luxury market declining? Yes, for those who are not communicating and failing to let people know to buy their luxury products. Luxury is a true perception and you have to know how to identify your target audiences. People will always buy luxury that has publicity value, trust me this is what I do for a living.
So what is HOT in the luxury market? Well, you may have recently seen ALL the media reports about how jewelry sales are down big time. Don’t be fooled, while we may be in a recession the RICH will always buy jewelry every time. It is just one of those things that are just hard to resist for this target audience.
Here is a report that clearly exposes what I am talking about! An article distributed via Bloomberg News in the Salt Lake Tribune:
Bloomberg News – The world’s richest shoppers continue to seek out exotic-skin bags, fine jewelry and custom-made pieces such as this Bottega Veneta 18k yellow gold necklace.
Salt Lake Tribune – Ultra-rich clutch pricey trinkets for comfort
The black crocodile Birkin handbag displayed at Hermes SA’s Milan boutique in October was one of a kind, with a diamond-studded clasp and a 150,000-euro
($191,000) price tag. It had already been sold.
In Tampa, Fla., Gucci sold a pair of gold and topaz earrings for $73,000. Also in the U.S., Bottega Veneta sold a $75,000 crocodile Cabat handbag and a $61,000 gold-link necklace.
Some wealthy shoppers continue to splurge on exotic-skin bags, fine jewelry and custom-made pieces while the U.S., Japan and the 15 European nations using the euro slip into a recession. Their purchases may offer some consolation to the $221.5 billion luxury goods industry, which is bracing for the worst holiday shopping season since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
Most people worth at least $30 million “are not facing a personal liquidity crisis and expect to spend as much or more this holiday season than they did last year,” said Russ Prince, the president of Prince & Associates Inc. The private-wealth researcher surveyed 518 people, each of whom owns at least one jet.
“They aren’t cutting back because of some kind of moral rationale. They don’t feel guilty about spending.”
Sales of luxury goods at Milan showroom Winwood have grown 20 percent this year on repeat orders for items such as Nancy Gonzalez crocodile handbags, which start at 1,500 euros, said owner Morena Zabeni. “People with money either want Hermes or something that isn’t recognizable.”
Kathleen Beckett, who runs the personal shopping service Beckett’s Black Book in New York, said an Australian lawyer spent $100,000 this year on clothes. Last month, a Finnish lawyer spent $20,000 in four hours on clothes.
“Wealthy consumers will continue to buy luxury,” said Milton Pedraza, chief executive officer of the Luxury Institute, a New York-based research firm. “People who were worth $10 million now are worth $7 million. That’s a big drop, but they still have a significant amount of money.”
End
So for now all I have to say is buy, shop, and live luxury! You earned it! Don’t be ashamed of what you have every right in the world to do! Bravo’s The Real Housewives series have made fans because of their luxury lifestyle appeal. People will NOT hate the rich for being able to afford a luxury lifestyle.
President Elect Barack Obama is enjoying a luxury vacation and the world is happy for him!
Look if you got it don’t be too proud from shame to show it! Success can also inspire others to achieve greatness.