Asian consumers and luxury: From status to hedonism

China’s economy is slowing down, Japan is recovering from 25 years of deflation, Singapore is welcoming more and more luxury brands responding to consumer demand, South Korea confirms its interest in cosmetics. In short, Asia is moving on and evolving: each country follows its path in its relationship to luxury. Without real root in China, Korea and Singapore, luxury is perceived very differently in these countries than Japan, more traditionally a Western luxury loving country. As a result, industry players are questioning how luxury is viewed by Asian consumers, the main driver of luxury growth worldwide.

By Dr. Evelyne Resnick

Luxury, synonymous with social marker and differentiation

According to the WLT report titled Rebounding & Refounding of Luxury Values by IPSOS, luxury is considered as a social marker for 79% of consumers in 5 countries of the “Great East” (China, Hong Kong, South Korea, Japan and Russia). It is also a power tool for women (+10 pts in the area compared to the previous generation). The novelty of recent years is mostly the rise of women in Asia who seek to assert themselves not only by the purchase of Louis Vuitton bags but also, for example, beautiful Maserati cars. The female buyers account for 40% of luxury car sales in China. In Singapore, their taste is mostly for Porsche or BMW. […]