The luxury reset: Navigating a market in crisis

Luxury is in the middle of a dramatic recalibration. After years of what appeared to be easy and endless growth, cracks are showing. Clients are questioning value, younger generations are reshaping expectations, and the rules that once defined success no longer hold — I have elaborated on this in my recent columns here in Jing Daily. In this context, I recently had the privilege of leading a masterclass for one of the world’s most iconic luxury brands. Working with their senior leaders, we focused on preparing for the next generation of clients, a generation whose needs, behaviors, and values are dramatically different from those the industry grew up serving. Social media natives What is critical is that these shifts go deeper than surface trends. Social media has changed everything. The next generation of luxury clients are social-media natives who grew up with a camera in their hands and a public stage for their lives. They do not separate the physical from the digital. Every product, space, or experience is judged by how it looks, how it feels, and how it can be shared. Luxury that is not socially relevant loses its cultural impact. Don’t get me wrong: You still need exceptional products. And by exceptional I mean exceptional. But even this is not enough to guarantee success. This is why excellence in social media is now non-negotiable. It is where desire is built and where relevance is tested daily. Brands that fail to engage here, or that engage without authenticity, will struggle to connect with tomorrow’s most important clients. And to be successful, brands need to have clarity on their emotional brand story. Our research shows that many brands have significant fault lines here. Access is key At the same time, access has become as important as ownership. The next generation of clients is not satisfied with collecting objects alone. They want entry into circles that others cannot enter, experiences that cannot be replicated, and communities that make them feel they belong. Access has become the new status symbol, and brands that ignore this will fall behind. However, if human interaction falls short, even the best social media strategy and the most carefully curated access mean nothing. This is where many luxury brands remain vulnerable. I see this in every mystery shop all over the world and in training after training, even with very experienced sales managers. Too often, the frontline lacks the ability to deliver what clients crave most: to feel seen, understood, and genuinely valued. Luxury is pure emotion. It is about extreme value creation, and extreme value always begins with human connection. A client may be impressed by a product or a space, but what they remember is how you made them feel. When that feeling is one of being valued in an extraordinary way, you create loyalty and desire that no competitor can easily replicate. When that feeling is absent, you create frustration and risk losing the client permanently. Transparency era The new generation of clients will not forgive arrogance. They grew up in a transparent world. A single negative interaction can be amplified instantly, damaging a brand’s reputation far beyond a single moment. When Loro Piana was caught in a recent supply chain scandal in Italy, Instagram and TikTok were inundated with stories under headlines like, “If you can’t trust Loro Piana, who can you trust?” The inverse is also true. A single act of empathy or attentiveness can create a memory that is shared, celebrated, and multiplied. This is why holistic brand strategy and front-line training have never been more critical. Strategy masterclasses help leadership recalibrate to the new luxury paradigm, aligning vision to a market in flux. Sales masterclasses bring that vision to life at the frontline, where every interaction is a brand-defining moment. Without this dual focus, even the most brilliant strategies collapse at the point of execution. Three pillars The luxury market is at a crossroads. The days when heritage and scarcity alone could guarantee success are over. Brands need to excel across three interconnected dimensions: cultural relevance through social media, access that creates belonging, and human interaction that delivers extreme value creation. All based on exceptional products and services. This shows how high the stakes in the new game of luxury really are. The future of luxury will not reward hesitation. Now is the moment to recalibrate. Strengthen leadership with strategic clarity. Equip frontline teams to turn empathy and attentiveness into daily practice. The next generation of clients is already here, and they will favor the brands that make them feel valued in extreme ways while turning away from those that do not. Are you ready? This is an opinion piece by Daniel Langer, CEO of Équité, recognized as one of the “Global Top Five Luxury Key Opinion Leaders,” and advisor to some of the most iconic luxury brands in the world. He serves as an executive professor of luxury strategy and pricing at Pepperdine University in Malibu and as a professor of luxury at NYU, New York. Daniel has authored best-selling books on luxury management in English and Chinese, and is a respected global keynote speaker. Daniel conducts in-person masterclasses on various luxury topics across the world. As a luxury expert featured on Bloomberg TV, Forbes, The Economist, and others, Daniel holds an MBA and a Ph.D. in luxury management and has received education from Harvard Business School. Sign up for his online luxury masterclasses at the Jing Academy.

Sectors

Insights

Company

The luxury reset: Navigating a market in crisis