In their November HNWI & Luxury Trends newsletter, Ledbury Research talks about the trend of ‘accessible luxury’ that they believe reflects fundamental societal strategies:
At the heart of “accessible luxury” is the positioning of a given brand as having nearly all of the attributes of a luxury brand – high production quality, design-led, premium materials, a strong emotional engagement with the customer etc. – but with a price point that is slightly lower, and an acceptance that its target market is now perhaps the top 20% of consumers rather than the top 2%, hence re-defining ‘exclusivity’.
By way of example, take Coach. Their products are very well made, have a distinctive design, and are highly desired in US and Japan, in particular. Their average price-point, however is about 50% less than their European luxury brand competitors, but still with entry level handbags in the £100-£200/$200-$300 category. According to the company, they focus on the top 20% of consumers – approximately 25 million people in the US.
The key drivers, they say, are:
- More people are aware and appreciative of luxury
- More people can afford to buy luxury
- More people want luxury
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