structural changes
Yesterday I wrote about Bain’s analysis of prospects for global luxury goods sales in 2013. Today, I’m going to take a look at what the consulting company perceives as possible structural changes in the worldwide luxury goods market.
There are two big ones:
Asian tourists remaining closer to home
Japan: Twenty years + of economic stagnation had finally begun to take a toll on the seemingly insatiable Japanese demand for European luxury goods a few years ago. Recent sharp devaluation of the yen has depressed this appetite further. Skeptics (like me) of the ultimate success of Abenomics must believe that this is a permanent change. Given that, pre-devaluation, the price of luxury goods in Japan has typically been much higher than elsewhere, the negative effect of lower Japanese spending on the profits of luxury goods manufacturers will probably be disproportionately high.
China: Weakness of the renminbi vs. the euro is a mild negative. More important, Bain points out that Chinese luxury buyers are beginning to turn away from Europe toward Macau, Hong Kong and Australia as vacation destinations. On the surface, it shouldn’t make much difference whether Chinese customers on holiday buy in France or Cotai. However, the change in vacation travel venue may give a significant opportunity for budding Pacific-based luxury brands to take business away from European rivals. I think this is already happening.
the Baby Boom passing the baton
Bain characterizes the luxury goods preferences of different age groups as follows:
Baby Boomers (55+) want:
–a bricks and mortar store
–a one-to-one interaction with a salesperson who represents the brand ans who also knows them well
–high-priced scarce or one-of-a-kind items that they think confer status on them individually as people of unusual taste and means
–a formal buying ritual.
In contrast, Generation Y (20-35) and Generation Z (0-20)–i.e., the children of Baby Boomers–want:
–instant availability 24/7, whether through physical stores or online makes no difference
–to be defined by brand values, but to be able to influence those brand values as well
–unique or novel items, which are not necessarily the most expensive, but which are personalized and which identify them as members of a certain group
–to be entertained.
In a nutshell, this is the difference between buying statement jewelry in a private room and buying a handbag in an online flash sale. The branding, selling and infrastructure skills differ greatly from the first transaction to the second.
This difference in outlook is increasingly important, because the Baby Boom is retiring and its children are emerging as a new generation of luxury buyers. One might even argue–with how much validity I’m not sure–that the sudden drying up of demand for traditional high-end European luxury goods in Japan is mostly a function of an aging population and a shrinking workforce. If so, we may begin to see the same phenomenon in Continental Europe before this decade is out. Again if so, luxury goods companies that don’t refocus themselves to cater to the preferences of a younger generation of consumers will find themselves struggling to retain relevance.