Ultimate Buying Guide
All things haute and desirable
LUXURY 2.0: CIRCA 2020, WHAT NEXT?
Where do we go from here, that is a question that the luxury industry asks itself periodically? The beginning of a decade is a good time to take stock of worldwide trends to figure out how they will affect consumer buying.
Today’s millennials are different from the luxury consumer of yore. They care about the environment, sustainability, fair trade, and last mile provenance. There is a rejection of mainstream brands in favour of authenticity. For example, in the beauty segment, leading brands such as MAC and Color Plus witnessed a major decline. In contrast, Huda Beauty, founded by Iraqi-American blogger and makeup artist, Huda Kattan, has quickly become a multi billion dollar business.
Sustainability is a welcome trend and continues to be a huge influence. For instance, luxury carpets have been growing in single digits but ethical carpets are up 35 to 40 per cent. Makaibari tea is another example of a brand that is built on sustainability.
Asia is finally rising to create its own brands like Gentle Monster. In this respect, fitness and wellness brands are poised to succeed. Ayurveda, if handled well, could become a brand force to reckon with. Further, with families shrinking, there is a trend toward humanisation of pets. Therefore brands that cater to pets of all kinds will rise.
The rise of heritage brands such as RM Williams will also reflect a heads-up. Even large corporations are portraying themselves as niche brands such as Canada goose which markets itself as “the warmest jacket from the coldest country.“
The Internet plays facilitator, allowing evolved consumers to seek and find brands that align with their core values. In India, for example, online brands such as Gaatha and Okhai showcase artisans like Laxmiben Karamta who make a stunning array of handcrafted objects. Talk about provenance and putting a face to the product that you own!
We feel that evolved Indian consumers should go further. They should seek and find niche brands that have been working with local communities for decades such as Shrujan. These may not have an online presence but are authentic to the land they belong to. True luxury is a very particular aesthetic and style that is linked to an understanding of the climate, land and culture. In India, we have authentic age-old crafts that need patronage. So why not buy a few artisanal pieces from Indian crafts people as well? That really is our message to the new consumer today—find brands that align with your values and be a patron of authenticity and craft.