This book offers a unique analysis of how our definitions of luxury have changed over the ages, and with that the role and actions of both suppliers and buyers of luxury products. It traces the way luxury was seen as avarice and emblematic of morally corrosive behavior in past societies, to being viewed in more virtuous terms as the inevitable outcome of structural changes that legitimize the acquisition and display of wealth. It examines the origins of the shift from criticism to acceptance, and traces these changes to fundamentally different notions of what constitutes the basis for social order. Whereas pre-industrial hierarchies cloaked inequality in various secular and sacred guises to mitigate its presence, capitalism justified and reified inequality as a measure of individual success and initiative through interdependent market behavior. The result of this transformation is that status markers have become aspirational tools as hierarchies became porous and self-identity less ascriptive. Correspondingly, as demand for luxury became legitimized, the supply side underwent dramatic changes. Such changes are explored fully in the sectors of fashion, art and wine. As demand for high priced and scarce goods in each of these sectors has increased, in each case key actors have manipulated markets to purposefully either consolidate their pre-eminence or manufacture the requisite scarcity that affords them canonical status. The demand for and supply of luxury goods is now global; consumers seeking validation and affirmation of their status whilst producers engineer scarcity. Luxury is seen not only as good; it is virtuous, its demand possibly insatiable and extremely profitable.

A thorough, comprehensive guide to the luxury goods industry for executives, entrepreneurs, and students interested to know about the luxury business As key new luxury markets like Asia, Latin America and Africa continue to expand, The Road to Luxury: The Evolution, Markets and Strategies of Luxury Brand Management gives professionals interested in the industry a holistic understanding of luxury market dynamics around the world using stories, experiences, relevant data and statistics on current market trends. For investors, the book offers valuable insight on where the industry is headed. For industry insiders and executives, it presents valuable data with which to craft successful business strategies. The definitive insider's guide to the luxury sector by leading figures in the field Includes rigorous academic data, including information on the business attractiveness and appropriateness of various country markets Examines strategies and success factors of key players, and insight into the systems and operations, retail, distribution and e-commerce, emerging markets and emerging brands, as well as management styles For professionals in the luxury industry, as well as those studying it or investing in it, The Road to Luxury presents a complete and information-packed resource covering virtually every aspect of this growing sector.

This book is an invaluable repository of knowledge that brings clarity to key issues and trends for practitioners, academics and students of luxury brands. It sets out to decode the luxury markets in the primary emerging markets (BRICs) and provide a rich resume of the key factors that influence the effectiveness of luxury brand strategies.

In recent times, the advent of new technologies, the concerns about sustainability, and the new tastes of the youngest generations of luxury consumers have affected the traditional dynamics of the luxury goods markets. These emerging issues have caused significant changes in the marketing of luxury goods. Sustainable development is not a new practice in the luxury market but is of increasing importance. The real challenge is for luxury companies to overcome the residual corporate social responsibility perspective to embrace a real integration of environmental, ethical, and social concerns into the corporate strategy. Integrated output and sustainable processes, the introduction of non-financial reporting as operational practice, and a new orientation to circular economy practices are emerging issues that still today request for a deeper exploration both on the academic and managerial point of view. Digitalization is another relevant issue that is reshaping the business model of luxury companies. Big data, blockchain, omnichannel experience, and digital customer experience represent the main digital challenges that luxury brand companies are facing nowadays. Luxury brands must keep up with these digital demands and sustainability concerns to maintain their position in the global market. Developing Successful Global Strategies for Marketing Luxury Brands upgrades the most relevant theoretical frameworks and empirical research about the marketing of luxury goods. This book is focused on contemporary issues affecting luxury industries such as digital transformation (blockchain, big data, analytics, innovation processes), sustainable development, changes in luxury consumers’ behavior, integration between physical and online channels, and the development of social media marketing strategies. Chapters will cover areas of marketing, management, buyer behavior, and international business, creating a multidisciplinary approach for this book. This book is ideal for scholars, local government agencies and public bodies, managers, luxury business owners, along with practitioners, stakeholders, researchers, academicians, and students who are interested in emerging issues affecting the luxury market, such as sustainability and digital transformation.

Using various research methodologies, such as reviews, case studies, analytical modeling and empirical studies, this book investigates luxury fashion retail management and provides relevant insights, which are beneficial to both industrialists and academics. Readers gain an understanding of luxury fashion retailing, including proper operations and strategic management, which now are the most crucial items on the luxury fashion industry’s senior management agenda.

Discover the secrets to successful luxury brand management with this bestselling guide written by two of the world's leading experts on luxury branding, Jean-Noël Kapferer and Vincent Bastien, providing a unique blueprint for luxury brands and companies. Having established itself as the definitive work on the essence of a luxury brand strategy, this book defines the differences between premium and luxury brands and products, analyzing the nature of true luxury brands and turning established marketing 'rules' upside-down. Written by two world experts on luxury branding, The Luxury Strategy provides the first rigorous blueprint for the effective management of luxury brands and companies at the highest level. This fully revised second edition of The Luxury Strategy explores the diversity of meanings of 'luxury' across different markets. It rationalizes those business models that have achieved profitability and unveils the original methods that were used to transform small family businesses such as Ferrari, Louis Vuitton, Cartier, Chanel, Armani, Gucci, and Ralph Lauren into profitable global brands. Now with a new section on marketing and selling luxury goods online and the impact of social networks and digital developments, this book has truly cemented its position as the authority on luxury strategy.

Offering an original contribution to the field of luxury and fashion studies, this edited collection takes a philosophical perspective, addressing the idea that humans need luxury. From this framework it delves deep into two particular dimensions of luxury, emotions and society, and concludes with cases of brand building in order to illustrate the two dimensions at work. Comparative analysis between countries is brought together with an emphasis on China. Chapters address the ongoing growth in the market, as well as the significant changes in the sector brought about by fast international expansion and an increased focus on ethical supply and sustainability, making the book an insightful read for scholars of fashion business, luxury and branding.