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Our series on the key shifts happening in everyday luxury continues with shifts 6 and 7:

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Everyday Luxury: Key Cultural Shifts 6 & 7

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From Elite & Exclusive to Democratic & Inclusive

Dominantly, everyday luxury is defined by access to exclusive perks and services, with offers based on income or spend level.

Dominant examples:

NikePlus memberships feature early access to new launches and invites to exclusive events and experiences

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Beauty Pie’s ‘buyers club’ membership scheme claims ‘members have access to luxury products, from the world's leading beauty labs’

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More emergently, new flat-structure service models now present everyday luxury as inclusive and accessible, with VIP access framed as old- fashioned and unnecessary – introducing a more democratized form of everyday luxury.

Emergent examples:

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Public Goods recently launched a range of low-priced, high quality food products designed with an eye on wellness (organic, non-GMO, etc), available to anyone with a $59/month membership.

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A. N. Other perfumes claim they have ‘stripped away the extravagant costs of vanity, and pass all the money saved on marketing gimmicks and other nonsense to you’

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From Attentive & Personal to Automated & Streamlined

Dominant examples of everyday luxury often involve close, personal service from human attendants, whether in high-end retail locations, at restaurants or in luxury hotels.

Dominant examples:

John Lewis is among many modern department stores that seek to combat online retailers by providing luxury personal styling services.

In an ironic take on attentive, personal service, Feng Sushi launched a food pop up named Hands Off, inspired by a Bangkok tradition of honouring guests, in which service staff hand-fed diners.

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In more emergent contexts, streamlined automation is beginning to replace attentive human service. Here, the benefits that come from personal attention are instead facilitated in a more streamlined (often digital) fashion, linking everyday luxury with technological innovation.

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Emergent examples:

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Paris J’Adore hotel, launching in December 2019, reproduces traditional detail-oriented French luxury with automation, with a seamlessly slow wakeup experience using automated curtains, lighting, music and a running bath, and a button-controlled waiter service to eliminate the ‘hovering server’ for a more romantic experience.

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Journy is part of a new breed of concierge style apps that marry the expertise of a concierge/travel advisor with the convenience of an app, making travel planning easier at an accessible $25 a day.

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Key Shifts in Everyday Luxury, parts 6 and 7: From Elite & Exclusive to Democratic & Inclusive and From Attentive & Personal to Automated & Streamlined

We are a cultural insight and innovation consultancy.

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