Global luxury market outlook 2013

Bain & Company, an Italian luxury consulting company, have researched and published the key drivers for the luxury goods industry for 2013, in association with Fondazione Altagamma. The research states the slowdown of touristic flows

undermining European growth while there is robust organic growth in US and also South America.

Luxury tourists are changing consumption habits with new rising destinations and more savvy shopping.

HENRYs (High Earnings Not Rich Yet) are the fuel of mature markets: lower spending threshold, but they outnumber ultra- affluent households by 10X.

Rise of the middle class in emerging countries is polarizing the competitive arena, and they could become the new "baby boomer" generation.

In Japan, luxury brands are struggling to capture changing consumer behaviour, especially of younger generations. There is increasing interest in customized and personalized products. Digital and social media now rule the game for luxury companies in Japan.

E-commerce sees double digit growth in Chinah

In China high single-digit expected growth for domestic luxury sales. E-commerce growing at double digits, but there is a polarization of consumers’ attitudes. High-end and sophisticated luxury is booming however there is a fatigue of logo-businesses. Aspirational consumers shifting to more accessible luxury/premium brands, benefitting from rise of new middle class.

The Middle East continues to be a growing region, characterized by a strong tradition in local luxury and an appetite of both younger generations and mature consumers for global luxury brands. Dubai lies at the center, with the Dubai Mall taking a 50 percent share of UAE luxury goods.

For 2013, the market outlook is positive despite economic uncertainty and luxury fundamentals will remain strong in the medium term.

The Altagamma World Wide Markets Monitor analyses the consumption of high-end products in world markets, which has become a reference point for leading companies in the luxury segment. Founded on the basis of an analysis of the financial statements of 200 high-end brands of all nationalities and of approximately 500 companies that manage them, this study - drafted together with Bain&Co - is presented each year during the Altagamma Observatory, with an update in the first half of the following year.

Image: Louis Vuitton SS13