1. Presented by:
Dr. Sandeep Solanki, Lecturer, Marketing
Management
At:
National Conference on ‘Emerging Practices
in Management’
Organized by:
JIET School of Management, Jodhpur

2. Contents of Presentation:
 Branding
 The Concept of Luxury
 Profiling the Luxury Brands
 Profiling the Luxury Consumer
 Luxury Value Dimensions
 Global Trends of Luxury Market
 Luxury Market Potentials in India
 Luxury Brands Exemplified

3. The Concept of Luxury:
1) Luxury is a term derived from luxurie meaning ‘lasciviousness, sinful,
self-indulgence.
2) Thorstein Bunde Veblen (July 30, 1857 – August 3, 1929) was an
American economist and sociologist of Norwegian origins and most
famous for his Theory of the Leisure Class (1899).
3) Self-worth, aggressive ostentation, and prestige are the few associated
words with conspicuous consumption of luxury goods.

4. 4) The increased prominence of the luxury product sector has seen increased
interest in academic circles since the 1990s (e.g. Dubois and Lautrent,
Dubois et al. Vigneron and Johnson), there is a dearth of research that
empirically investigates what motives consumers to consume luxury
products.
5) Vigneron and Johnson suggested the definition of luxury, as the highest level of
prestigious brands encompassing several physical and psychological values.
6) Most scholars agree that the perception of luxury concept takes on different
forms and depends on two main subjects: the context and the people
concerned.

5. Profiling the Luxury Brands:
Luxury branding is not about getting a consumer to choose a luxury brand over the
competition. Its about getting them to see the brand as the only solution to their
desire.
According to a global market study conducted by ATELIER - a division of Leo
Burnett the luxury brands has been categorized into:
1. Status 2. Extravagance
3. Connoisseurship 4. Seduction
5. Uber-premium 6. Ethical
7. Pampering 8. Altruism
9. Escapism 10. Actualisation
11. Achievement 12. Adventure
13. Cutting Edge 14. Creative

6. Profiling the Luxury Consumer:
As the consumer moves on and with more people joining the ‘ownership’ circle, just
owing a recognizable symbol is not enough – the new need to ‘differentiate’ sets in to
further confirm their social status and to stand-out among the equals.
‘Exclusivity is a luxury only a premium brand can deliver and I buy which elevate my
social status’ – says a luxury consumer.
Five typologies of consumers have been evolved:
1. The Connoisseur(like the brand with history & heritage)
2. The Status Seeker(driven by conspicuous consumption)
3. The creative (consume luxury as a means of self-expression and personal
discovery)
4. The altruist (appreciate brands which are socially responsible)
5. The splurger (consume luxury on occasional basis with little indulgence )

7. Another consumer typology as suggested by Sudio Sudarsan – consultant &
author, is:
1. Patrician (quietly signal high on wealth)
2. Proletarian (do not engage in signalling)
3. Parvenu (use loud signals to associate with Haves) and
4. Poseur (aspire to be haves that they mimic parvenus)
Circle of Luxury Consumers ranges from Anti, Unaware to Detached, Informed,
Convinced, Loyalist and Advocates.

8. Luxury Value Dimensions:
Weidman & Seibel developed a luxury value model consisting of three main
dimensions of luxury values:
1. Functional Value: Exclusive Uniqueness, Perceived Quality and Satisfying Usability
are the three deciding elements to affirm the functional value of the luxury
product.
2. Social Value: Social Value is described by two elements: Conspicuousness and
Prestige.
3. individual Value: Self-identity (belief of one’s ability and appearance), Materialistic
approach (happiness arising out of attachments and possessions) and Hedonic
(beauty, enjoyment and sensory pleasure) can be associated with this
dimension.

9. Associated Statements expressing value dimensions:
 I like, people knows the price of the goods that I have bought.
(Conspicuousness)
 Having luxury products is enjoyable. (Hedonic)
 The rate of people’s assets in society, shows the degree of success in life.
(Materialistic)
 In my opinion, people notice you are rich by using the most expensive brands.
(Prestige)
 I think the high price of luxury is for its quality. (Quality)
 Having luxury brands has an effect on my self-confidence. (Self-identity)
 I can spend lots of money for rare things. (Uniqueness)
 Using luxury products increase the quality of life. (Usability)

10. Conclusively, A Luxury Consumer might need:
A Bow-tie from Brioni,
A Footwear from Louis Philippe,
A Designer Clothing from Kiton,
A Handbags from Burberry,
A Jeans from Armani,
A Perfume from Dior,
A Wallet from Prada,
A Jackets from Zara,
A Sunglasses from Chopard De Rigo,
A Luggage from Serapian,
A Sling Bag from TUMI,
A Watches from Rolex,
A Pen from Visconti, and
A Lipsticks from M.A.C.