Luxury Branding (Pt. 01) — What Is It and What Values Define It?

Though each brand and client we work with has an individual set of needs, the idea of “luxury branding” is a common thread and desire for many of our clients, so I did a deep dive into what that means, and how I would define it. Because of how relevant this feels to my process and how integral to how many of our brands wish to be perceived — I’ve also started working it into our strategy template.

So what is luxury branding?

It’s a feeling, a belief, a mindset and a lifestyle. There’s a sense of desirability that sets luxury products, experiences and services apart, not for the sake of ownership — but for meaning. It’s how a brand connects with its customers, and the link between the brand’s dedication to its values and quality, aligning with the customer’s individual values and aspirations. People who seek out luxury brands wish to be seen as someone who embodies what the luxury brand stands for. What owning that luxury item says about them and what they deem important. What a luxury experience portrays about their lifestyle and their priorities. What investing in a luxury service communicates.

Luxury brands need to be built on reality and authenticity — beyond the buzz words and rooted in truth and a passion for what they do and how they do it. They’re dedicated to better materials, better results, better experiences, better service… real, tangible qualities that we can see, feel and engage with.

Though we often think of luxury brands as those who sell a high ticket, hard to get ahold of, coveted item (think a Birkin bag) and that definitely can be the case, it’s not always, and we believe the principles of luxury branding can apply to all brands who define themselves by a few key values associated with luxury brands.

What Values Define a Luxury Brand

Every brand must interpret and express its luxury distinctly and in a way that is authentic to itself, resonating in the minds of the customers. And then they must maintain this commitment to each of its brand values, at every touchpoint and through every detail — which of course is where branding comes in.

If you’re trying to build a luxury brand you obviously need to start with a luxury offering (what you do and how you do it), but then the entirety of the brand experience also needs to encapsulate these values, from the way an item is packaged, to what it feels like to walk into a space, to the people you hire as your brand ambassadors.

No. 1

Exclusivity and Value

Luxury brands have a way of making customers feel special and unique by offering something that is more rare, or difficult to own. Less common, less accessible. They’re expensive, but not overpriced — the value is there because the brand offers more.

They’re not for everyone, and not because they’re trying to exclude people, but because they’ve narrowed in on exactly who their offering is for. Which is something that we should all be doing, not trying to be for everyone (because that’s impossible). By doing this, they’re able to talk directly to those people and tailor everything — their products, services, messaging, visuals, experiences, etc. — to them. Their customers and followers feel part of an exclusive community that is linked by shared values and ideals.

No. 2

Meaning

Luxury brands offer something that is relevant to their customer’s lives and lifestyle, making it bespoke and special to the individual through the brand story or positioning. Customers believe in what the brand stands for, again allowing them to form that personal tie so that they feel like the brand is speaking directly to them, that they can’t find elsewhere. Luxury brands reflect dreams, desires and an individual’s need for recognition.

No. 3

Creative Expression

Luxury brands exhibit a spark of creative artistry as interpreted through the eyes of a designer or visionary that is closely associated with the brand. Art and luxury have always had an intimate relationship, and an alignment between the two when it comes to branding simply makes sense. We tend to have a fascination with talented and exceptional creative types, including artists, and luxury brands have the opportunity to align themselves with this, adding to the rarity and perceived value of artistic works and the one-of-a-kind nature.

No. 4

Sophistication and Design Aesthetic

Alignment with luxury brands show an appreciation of the customers’ sophistication celebrated through the brand’s design aesthetic and premium offerings — it tells us something about who you are, your sophisticated tastes and acts as an indicator of taste.

When it comes to the look, or design aesthetic, of luxury brands, we want to see that it exists in a different realm from more common items and brands — it’s more rare, it’s unique, and the underlying quality is often communicated through a sophistication that is harder to achieve and often exhibits a ‘less, but better’ mentality through the design.

No. 5

Experience

Luxury brands offer a promise of higher touch, and more personalization through a signature, one-of-a-kind experience and inimitable service. What does the whole experience of finding, communicating with, purchasing, interacting with and owning, or implementing the luxury brand/item/service feel like? It should feel seamless and premium, forging a close relationship between the customer and the brand — you paid more, you gained exclusive access, and so you should get more, at every touchpoint.

Luxury customers invest in and spare no expense to lavish, and demand that the brands they support do the same.

No. 6

Excellence

Luxury Brands offer the highest quality, craftsmanship and standards that are innovative and inimitable. They’re at the top of their class and in the best in their fields, due to authentic craftsmanship performed by top professionals with premium materials to the highest quality and standards.

This artistry and craftsmanship appeal to their customers by marking them as connoisseurs and indicating that they have taste and a knowledge, or at least an interest in, the creative process.

It’s essential that this is recognizable and showcased (which is where branding and marketing comes in, offering the brand an opportunity to tell and show this), helping to justify the price and communicating the value.