Are Luxury Brands Extreme-Teaming to Attract New Luxury Consumers ?
According to the Luxury Daily State of Luxury Report 2019, the rising affluent class who used to wear wealth proudly, are retreating into their cocoons, living behind walls and going increasingly inconspicuous to keep private and safe from uprisings similar to Paris. Also referred to as the millennial Henry's, they place a higher value on experiences than tangible luxury goods. Although this makes it harder for luxury brands to connect with them, a growing number are developing innovative cross- industry partnerships to capture their attention and trust!
From the Porsche Signature condo building that brings a car to your living-room condo privately,
Porsche Design Condo Tower, Miami
to the Armani Casa - Luxury Condo building in Miami with exclusive interiors by Armani Casa, a division of the Giorgio Armani Group. Buyers are greeted personally by the fashion icon, Giorgio Armani;
Armani-Casa Luxury Condo Building, Miami
Arlo Skye designing a new version of the Carry-On exclusively for Audi
Audi’s new loyalty program Audi Preferred Benefits and premium luggage company Arlo Skye
to the new limited luxury watch editions created by German camera maker, Leica who recently entered the watch game by partnering with Achim Heine, a German product designer who has developed multiple cameras and other optical devices for Leica and Lehmann Präzision, a company based in the Black Forest that makes both high-precision machinery (used in the watchmaking industry) and its own line of watches under the name Lehmann Schramberg.
Leica camera maker stepping into the world of luxury watches
But are Luxury Brands going far enough in providing a truly unique human experience? Wealthy individuals are no longer impressed by what they view as mundane luxury goods and services even if cross- sector brands partner with each other.
What the Wealthy Consumers are Looking For
Research conducted by The Luxury Institute found that the wealthiest consumers crave far out solutions and experiences and are intrigued by new categories of luxury such as life extension biotechnology, hyper-experiential home virtual reality devices, neuro-scientific performance enhancers, health care robotics, and a multitude of travel experiences that defy gravity.
4 Tips to Consider to Foster Extreme Teaming and Innovation Results
Authors Amy C. Edmondson & Jean-Francois Harvey of Extreme Teaming(2017), recommend that business leaders master four interdependent functions: building an engaging vision, cultivating psychological safety, developing shared mental models, and empowering agile execution. These functions in the Luxury market however have been lacking as its leaders have been more invested and focused on product and technology innovation efficiency to remain competitive rather than investing in employee creativity.
Why that Does Not Work?
All the investment in technology efficiency has had zero impact on the relationship building skills that drive effectiveness and lead to dramatic sales growth of a Luxury brand. Enlightened leaders need to see technology as the supporting tool that it is rather than a replacement to building engaging and trusting relationships with their customers.
Leaders to Watch for
Brands such as Moda Operandi, Fusion Academy, and Hello Alfred are leading the way in re-humanizing luxury across several goods and services categories by inviting clients to pre-order next-season’s looks straight from the runway, thinking in-store and out-of-store concierge services or re-imagining classroom learning with one-on-one teacher-student relations!
