💎 Brilliant Cut No. 19:

Luxury Price Hikes, Gucci's Sandbox, Cavalli's Metaverse Mansion, RIMOWA's Cologne City Guides, Gen Z Hooked On Luxury, China To Be World's Largest Luxury Market, Breitling X Triumph, and More

Mar 1, 2022

Welcome to this edition of Brilliant Cut, a free monthly newsletter that helps you smartly navigate the most important luxury marketing stories and insights.

Issue #19 | March 1, 2022

Chanel tests purse lovers with $3,000 price hikes

(WSJ) Chanel SA’s small Classic Flap bag was always a luxury item, but after three price hikes last year, it is selling for $8,200. That is up from the $5,200 it cost in 2019. The French fashion house has been raising prices at a faster pace than other luxury brands, analysts say, prompting an outcry from some shoppers and testing their willingness to pay. Read more

LVMH, other luxury brands raise prices, betting wealthy customers won’t mind

(WSJ) The world’s luxury-goods giants are raising prices on handbags, clothes, shoes and jewelry—and facing little resistance so far from shoppers. Read more

Luxury brand Hermès plans new factories as handbag demand soars

(The Guardian) Hermès, the French luxury goods maker, is opening three new factories as it struggles to keep up with demand for its £5,000-plus Birkin and Kelly handbags. Read more

Scarcity and software set to power Mercedes-Benz through 2022

(US News) Mercedes-Benz will focus on its most luxurious vehicles and bring more software in-house to tackle higher costs and supply chain bottlenecks which are likely to continue to weigh on returns. Read more

Gucci Vault presents new brands with surreal, optical illusion campaign

(Designboom) The Gucci Vault is welcoming new products handpicked by its creative director, Alessandro Michele. already home to rare vintage finds alongside work by emerging designers, the experimental online space’s shelves will now showcase limited-edition capsule collections from a wider selection of brands. Read more

Choose your fighter: the fashion brands outfitting video gamers

(Wallpaper) Biking or battling, we think any digital gaming activity requires a winning ensemble. A host of luxury labels have stepped up their game, providing players’ online avatars with outfits and skins that have stylish silhouettes. Read more

Looking good in the metaverse. Fashion brands bet on digital clothing

(NPR) The fashion industry thinks it may have found its next pot of gold there. Already, customers can dress up their avatars for virtual worlds like Horizon Worlds and Decentraland. Read more

Paris Fashion Week: Next up, the metaverse

(Vogue Business) Paris Fashion Week is pushing ahead with support for the metaverse and Web 3.0, the next generation of the internet, through a partnership with French tech startup Stage 11. Read more

Gucci's new metaverse project invites you to play in the sandbox

(Highsnobiety) Expanding its roster of digital initiatives, the Italian house is partnering with The Sandbox, a game and metaverse world where players can buy, develop, and sell virtual real estate. Details on the collaboration remain largely under wraps, though a press release hints at what to expect. Read more

Jonathan Simkhai stages FW22 fashion show in virtual world Second Life

(Dezeen) Fashion editors and influencers assumed digital avatars to take up their front-row seats at Jonathan Simkhai's Fall/Winter 2022 runway show, which was presented in the virtual world of Second Life during New York Fashion Week. Read more

Kering’s Pinault says metaverse will be “disruptive phenomena”

(Vogue Business) Kering chairman François-Henri Pinault says the luxury group is ready and willing to experiment in the metaverse, while announcing a rebound in growth at Gucci, one of its leading digital innovators, after two years of underperformance. Read more

Roberto Cavalli debuted a collection in the virtual Cavalli Mansion

(Trend Hunter) The newest Roberto Cavalli collection was unveiled in the Cavalli Mansion, an immersive virtual destination that invites consumers to step into the world of the brand. Read more

Volvo's EV push around Super Bowl rolls away with 20M Twitter impressions

(Marketing Dive) This month's Super Bowl broadcast was notable for showcasing six commercials for electric cars, or almost a tenth of the ads shown during the big game. Volvo took a different tack to promote its electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles with a counterprogramming strategy on Twitter. Read more

Which luxury products do US shoppers buy in-store?

(Insider Intelligence) Across almost all product categories, US luxury shoppers are far more likely to make purchases in-store than online. Physical retail has the widest lead in the food and beverage category, followed by watches and jewelry. Read more

Selfridges focuses on the ‘Self’ with upbeat campaign, store takeover

(WWD via Yahoo) Selfridges is tuning into the wellness and mental health zeitgeist with an in-store takeover campaign called Superself, part of the Superfutures creative theme for 2022. The focus of the campaign is on self-care, positivity and what the store is calling “feel-goodness.” Read more

LOUIS XIII: BELIEVE IN TIME

(The Rake) Louis XIII enters a new artistic expression of Time, this time a new interdisciplinary performance art film by Solange Knowles in collaboration with couture designer Guo Pei and film director Mati Diop. Read more

Gucci taps Snoop Dogg among list of celebs to debut modern Hollywood glam

(Marketing Interactive) From a catwalk protest in its Spring Summer 2020 show to "hacking" Balenciaga, Gucci has certainly turned consumers' heads to capture attention. Now, the luxury fashion house is showcasing old Hollywood glam with a modern take by featuring celebrities including Snoop Dogg, Jared Leto, Miley Cyrus and Squid Game actor Lee Jung-jae, among others, for its "Love Parade" campaign. Read more

RIMOWA pays tribute to its historic home with the Cologne city guide

(Designboom) German high-quality luggage manufacturer RIMOWA has unveiled an insider’s guide to its historic home of Cologne, Germany. founded in 1898 and widely known for its parallel aluminum grooves, it was only obvious the brand would unveil a travel guide. Read more

Why Prada chose a 38-year-old Chinese restaurant for its latest pop-up

(WSJ) The club’s seventh iteration was held in a slightly less likely locale. Genghis Cohen is a 38-year-old New York–style Chinese restaurant, located in West Hollywood strip mall on a stretch of Fairfax Avenue across the street from an urgent care center. Like the surrounding area, its tiled exterior looks fairly nondescript. Read more

The Deep Dive: Luxury Holds A Positive Outlook For Long-Term

(Luxury Society) More than 85 percent of respondents to Luxury Society's community survey answered that they felt optimistic about the long-term prospects of the luxury market, signaling hope from those within the industry that the rebound in growth seen in 2021 will continue to trend upwards. Read more

This is the one generation hooked on luxury goods

(MSN) A new report from Klarna, a Swedish buy now, pay later (BNPL) platform, reveals that 45% of consumers bought a luxury product in the past 12 months. And while baby boomers and Gen Xers accounted for the bulk of luxury shopping before the coronavirus pandemic, millennials and Gen Zers are now making purchases at far higher rates than their older counterparts. Read more

China expected to become world’s largest luxury market by 2025: Bain & Co.

Since the start of the pandemic, we’ve seen consumers around the globe shift much of their spending from services and experiences to goods, and consumers in China were no exception, according to a recent report by consultancy firm Bain & Co. Read more

What You Should Know About Luxury Watches and Jewelry in China

(NPD) Watches and jewelry were the two fastest-growing categories in China's luxury e-commerce market in 2021. We tracked the sales performance, seasonality, and consumer behaviors in these two segments. Uncover the hidden opportunities in these markets to grow your business. Download the infographic her

How a virtual human's artwork was both created and sold at a Hong Kong auction

(Campaign Asia) With AI pushing the boundaries of generative art, NFTs pushing the boundaries of digital IP and virtual influencers pushing... well, their validity in most cases, it was only a matter of time before we'd see a virtual artist create a data-led NFT and sell it at auction to someone looking to own a headline-grabbing digital creation that could conceivably appreciate over time. Read more

50% of China’s luxury shoppers are new to the market

(Retail Touchpoints) The explosive growth of China’s luxury fashion sector is being driven by a major influx of new shoppers: 50% of customers entered the market just in the past 12 months, and this group is expected to drive 80% of its growth, according to a survey by Oliver Wyman. That growth potential is massive; sales increased 40% to $41.6 billion in 2021. Read more

All Eyes on China: Key takeaways from the 2022 Luxury Symposium

(Jing Daily) On February 22, the sixth installment of the Luxury Symposium, hosted by the French Chamber in Hong Kong, went virtual with over 20 expert speakers joining in from Hong Kong, Europe, and a live studio in Shanghai. Read more

Meet the young luxury watch collectors driving Hong Kong’s NFT frenzy

(South China Morning Post) Gen Z and millennial luxury watch collectors in Hong Kong follow the lead of social media influencers betting big on NFTs. Read more

Tiffany & Co. and Daniel Arsham release second collab to mark NBA All-Stars

(WWD via Yahoo) The jeweler and Arsham collaborated on a Tiffany blue Wilson basketball that is specially textured with the artist’s signature crystal diamond pattern. Arsham, a Cleveland native, has also designed an experiential retail concept to open in Cleveland on Friday that will feature a half court for play rendered in his signature aesthetic. Read more

Supreme’s 22-foot Airstream Trailer may cost more than your entire house

(Input) Supreme has unveiled its lookbook and preview for its Spring/Summer 2022 collection, and as always our eyes have gone straight to the accessory section. Read more

Breitling collaborates with Triumph in watch and motorcycle collection

(Designboom) Swiss luxury watchmaker Breitling has collaborated with Triumph motorcycles — the largest UK-owned motorcycle manufacturer — in the top time watches and spin twin motorcycle. inspired by 1960s café-racer culture, and celebrating the heritage of both brands, the collaboration brings style and craftsmanship together. Read more

Chloé wants to improve fashion’s social impacts. It’s a big ask

(Vogue Business) Chloé’s new tool for measuring sustainability will focus on improving conditions for workers across fashion’s supply chains. It aims to raise the bar from minimum legal compliance to yielding positive impacts on people’s lives, a tall order for an industry where transparency is lacking and progress on labour standards has languished for decades. Read more

Inside the luxury fashion industry’s big sustainability push

(Vogue) As sustainable practices become the norm for many designers, Dana Thomas from Vogue explores how easy it is being green. Read more

What is vegan leather, anyway? 4 types to know

(WSJ) Luxury brands like Louis Vuitton and Hermès are trading traditional leather with animal-friendly alternatives, and what these new hides are made of might surprise you. Read more

The Luxury Item is podcast is the #1 podcast on the business of luxury. Listen to my recent interviews with Stefano Canali (CANALI) and Miah Sullivan (HUGO BOSS):

🧵 Stefano Canali, president and CEO at Italian luxury menswear brand CANALI, talks about how the company is shaping its future with new investments and innovations. Listen: Apple / Spotify / YouTube

🧥 Miah Sullivan, SVP, global marketing & brand communications at HUGO BOSS discusses the recent launch of its major rebranding effort and new star-studded global campaigns. Listen: Apple / Spotify / YouTube

Mixed Gems: Featured writers on luxury, fashion, and culture

✨ How this historically Black yacht club learned to thrive by centering on community (By Diane M Byrne from Robb Report). Read it here

✨ Why Francis Bourgeois’ Gucci gig shows brands should subvert their core pillars on social (by Lore Oxford from Campaign Magazine) Read it here

✨ Brands in the metaverse will fight old battles on new ground (by Stuart Irvin in Bloomberg) Read it here

Thank you for reading this issue. - Scott

If you know someone that would enjoy Brilliant Cut, please share this with them.

Share Brilliant Cut

Comments or questions? E-mail me: scott@silvertoneconsulting.com

Find me: Twitter | LinkedIn | Instagram