“‘I was in Miami Beach the other day, driving up I-95 to Palm Beach, and I saw this enormous Cartier billboard with huge rings, and my mouth just fell open.’” Via FT
There is an excellent article about luxury brand dilution in the FT this AM, Brands assess risks of extending global reach. Brands like Hermès, Louis Vuitton, Cartier, and Gucci are selling out brand exclusivity — “cheapening of the brand’s image” — in hopes that they can keep their elite clientelle with limited-edition “made-to-order” pieces. Mercedes has been able to do this with their AMG line so we’ll see if this will be effective branding.
It seems to come down to a war between the “listed” brands and the “private brands.” Publicly traded brands need to grow market share or perish.
“‘The listed brands have to please their shareholders. They have to raise their numbers every quarter,’ says Ms Thomas. ‘Because of this, luxury has gone from being an experience to being a classification for a business.’”
Chanel, on the other hand:
“One of the few brands to escape the accusation of cheapening itself is Chanel, a fully private company that derives the bulk of its profits from sales of the perfume Chanel No. 5. This allows it to avoid the pressures facing most of its peers, many of which are part of large luxury conglomerates composed of formerly family-run businesses.”
