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What Should a Luxury Brand Stand For?

RICHARD PANDISCIO President & Creative Director, Pandiscio Co. Recent Posts

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January 27, 2011

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As a small business choosing to operate in the luxury market, you are up against a big challenge. Namely, that your luxury good is not a necessity. Your product or service is not a "need." That said, a luxury product or service radiates prestige and glamour. Your clientele wants to possess your jewelry, your charter plane service, your leather goods. That desire to possess can ultimately feel, indeed, like a "need." For others, your service is an aspiration. When customers buy a luxury item, they are buying a desire. Your brand needs to convey that desire and radiate certain brand values.

Here are some of the values a luxury brand should stand for: 

 1. Leadership. Leading the market is the foundation of a luxury brand. Steve Jobs has built a career and a company on creating new devices that, seemingly instantly, people can't live without.

2. Quality. Customers will always appreciate a brand that stands for the highest quality, regardless of price. Quality products and services can command a staunch consumer loyalty that is not affected by trends.

3. Passion. Customers love to find niche products that speak to their personal passion be it leather goods, technology, or jewelry. Luxury means being able to explore your customer’s passion to the fullest while providing added value and service.

4. Uniqueness. The clientele of luxury brands are not looking to fill basic needs, rather they are looking for something that stands out, is unique, expertly crafted or one-of-a-kind.

5. Refinement. Customers look to luxury goods to radiate their own values. Your brand should speak to your clientele's keen eye, refinement, and prestige.

6. Delight. Build long-lasting brand loyalty by creating products that resonate with your customers on an emotional level. If your brand is founded on some of these core values, customers will know the brand stands for luxury and will aspire to radiate these values by owning your product.

This article is part of our Project RE:Brand web series s in which small businesses undergo brand makeovers from design experts.   

Please leave your branding questions as comments below and check back for responses from our experts. (Note - this feature is currently not available on mobile devices.)  

Richard Pandiscio is the Principal at Pandiscio Co., a leading brand creative and boutique design agency specializing in luxury real estate branding, marketing design, and advertising based in NYC.
Watch Richard Pandiscio give first-hand branding advice to an OPEN Cardmember in our special web series, Project RE:Brand.

View the business profile for Pandiscio Co. in the OPEN Forum Connectodex.