For decades, luxury has been (or was intended to be?) both inaccessible and desirable, in order to capture attention. And that was its great strength. As the years went by, so did the "social networking" years, with the arrival of Instagram in particular. Luxury hesitated, moved forward and then back. It also watched from afar how other accessible brands were doing on this network. Then luxury took the plunge. Not a small step. A big one! With the advertising investment that goes with it.
Opening up luxury brands to the general public?
Because, in reality, the general public was there all along. It's thanks to the general public that brands are making noise. Thanks to the power of viral communication: events, influencer relays and collabs with brands like H&M.
The strength of luxury has been to maintain an inaccessible or unaffordable posture while making marvelous use of digital tools. Reels, stories or, in the case of Balenciaga, the deletion of all posts. Digital strategies are at the cutting edge for these brands, which know how to address all their targets.
Social media, by or for luxury?
Take fashion and cosmetics, for example. And we mix them like a milkshake (the studio reference). The result is several targets that identify with the brand. By creating attachment to the different collections, the brand knows it will sell, even if the products are very premium. A handful of customers will buy the bags, and another part (the largest part, and the one who will become the brand's ambassador) will buy the more accessible cosmetics, in search of the logo and, above all, in search of belonging.
All targets are equally important to brands, because it's all targets that count when it comes to getting the word out about a brand. And the luxury sector has understood this.
So hello to metavers, virtual reality, TikTok content creators for luxury...
NFTs and the metaverse could thus account for 5 to 10% of the luxury goods market by 2030*, a trend driven by luxury houses.
Luxury is not a question of price. Luxury is the answer to a need. The need to feel listened to by a brand, to belong to a group, and above all to appropriate the brand in one's own way.
The title refers to brand attachment, not (monetary) price.
So here's to the good old days of luxury 🙂
Sonia, Strategy Director
* Source: Luxury 2022 report "Rerouting the Future".