Retail Diary: Book Club - Deluxe: How Luxury Lost its Luster
Explore the roots and evolution of luxury in Dana Thomas's Deluxe: How Luxury Lost Its Luster. From craftsmanship to conglomerates, unravel the shifts in the luxury fashion industry.
Deluxe: How Luxury Lost Its Luster by Dana Thomas
Order your own copy from Bookshop.org, pick up at a local book store or reserve from your Library. I ordered mine used from eBay.
Overview:
Deluxe explores the roots of luxury industry, how it grew, the business deals behind it and the major players. Dana Thomas travels across the globe, behind the scenes of every aspect of luxury businesses, shares the insider stories, consumer drive and interest in luxury products.
Luxury, once only available to the ultimate Upper Crust society (extremely select few), became a big business with mass appeal and over proliferated via licensing deals. The luxury fashion business appealed to global corporations and building large conglomerates owning multiple fashion houses, beauty brands, beverages, accessories etc. The push and pull between growing profits and over-saturation of luxury products (in the interest of still being considered “luxury” if available to too many) has continued on for many decades after luxury business grew exponentially in the early and mid 20th Century.
Image via Barney’s NY Facebook
Highlights:
“Dior understood that the middle market was the future of luxury fashion, and sold not only his ideas but also his name to companies that could spread the Dior gospel to those who could not afford a mead-to-measure frock.” the paragraph ends with “Dior hoisery was born, as was the notion of licensing of fashion as a viable business option.” (page 32)
Reading about the start of LVMH, Kering, Richemont etc. and the politics behind all of the conglomerates.
Reading about the start of Net-a-Porter along with the launch of eLuxury and LuxLook and what made NAP succeed and the others fail. (pages 252-259)
Reading about Brazilian department store Daslu (wow!)
Additional Thoughts:
The allure of luxury has long been intricately tied to the power of a brand's logo, shaping consumer desire for the product. However, a shift is emerging, as a new generation of luxury brands such as The Row and Khaite embraces a subtler approach, relying on style and the 'IYKYK' (If You Know, You Know) factor over ostentatious labels. (You can also read Miuccia Prada’s quote on logos on page 272)
This book was published in 2007. I went in knowing that and would really love to read a 2024 version of this book. I started to think of what *new* chapters or ideas I’d include.
Image of the Paris Dior Boutique via Elle Decor
New Ideas for Chapters:
Sustainability Challenges: Exploring how the luxury fashion industry is addressing environmental concerns and integrating sustainable practices.
Similarly, Rise of Conscious Consumerism: Investigating how consumers' increasing awareness of ethical issues is shaping their preferences and influencing luxury brands to adopt more responsible practices. Should also explore consignment/resale (The RealReal, Vestiaire, Poshmark etc.) and the impact to the industry.
Digital Transformation: Examining the impact of technology on luxury, such as e-commerce trends, virtual fashion shows, and the growing importance of digital presence. The iPhone launched in 2007 - the same year this book was published. I’d love to explore how luxury shopping and the industry changed with the iPhone. I also think as we move forward (maybe the version in 2030) can explore AI and luxury.
Marketing and Social Media: Explore the impact on what seeing a sponsored ad in your Instagram feed, for example, does to the “exclusivity” of a luxury brand. Influencers and the impact. Could also explore “dupes” vs counterfeits.
Inclusivity and Diversity: Analyzing efforts by luxury brands to embrace diversity and inclusivity, both in their marketing strategies and behind the scenes. Body image can also be explored more in here and the sizes available (or rather not available.)
Global Luxury Market Shifts: Examining how geopolitical and economic changes impact the global landscape of luxury fashion, including emerging markets and shifts in consumer behavior. Again, a lot has changed since 2007.
Image via Net-a-porter.com
Content YMAL (You Might Also Like):
I was inspired to read this book after reading
’s newsletter “The Biggest Fashion Story of 2023” In this post she interviews author . Thomas also has her own Substack which is worth a follow and subscribing to if you are interested in luxury fashion.Did you know Dana Thomas has a podcast, The Green Dream? It hasn’t published anything new since April 2023 but I’ve enjoyed listening. (For RHOBH fans she has an interview with Sutton Stracke!)
I found myself researching Daslu after and found this wikipedia entry.
Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris. Have you watched it? I loved it!
The House of Gucci movie for another wild story. Some of this is also discussed in the book.
Reminded myself how much I enjoyed the show Mr. Selfridge - especially the first season.
Big Takeaway:
The Rise of Luxury Conglomerates makes this a really interesting read. The consolidation of luxury brands under large conglomerates, such as LVMH and Kering. Thomas discusses how this corporate structure affected decision-making, branding strategies, and the overall direction of luxury fashion as well as the major players behind these decisions.
Shift to Mass Production as luxury brands moved away from their artisanal roots, becoming part of large corporations focused on mass production. The emphasis shifted from craftsmanship to profit margins, with the industry sacrificing quality for quantity. (Note, I love that Chanel, and other companies, are looking to retain and support the artisanal crafts that work on couture.)
Loss of Exclusivity: the democratization of luxury, as brands aimed to reach a broader consumer base, resulted in a loss of exclusivity. Items once considered rare and prestigious became more widely accessible, challenging the traditional allure of luxury. The pendulum seems to always be swinging and again brands/retailers are looking to open newer VIP only stores etc. to regain exclusivity. Globalization of Luxury was another impact to losing the exclusivity of luxury brands.
The impact from Fashion’s Seasonal Calendar and the need for newness constantly. Supply, demand, managing inventory and growth certainly impacted the loss of exclusivity and the specialness of merchandise.
Related Luxury Books:
I remember hearing Paco Underhill speak when I was a student at Syracuse University (the Genet Lecture Series was one of the reasons I chose to study at SU.) His book Why We Buy: The Science of Shopping--Updated and Revised for the Internet, the Global Consumer, and Beyond is another wonderful read on consumerism. I especially appreciate my former boss/CEO of Bloomingdale’s, Michael Gould’s blurb "Why We Buy is a funny and insightful book for people on both sides of the retail counter."
Clearly 2007-2008 was a prime time for Luxury Business, because the other book from this time period that I would recommend is Trading Up: Why Consumers Want New Luxury Goods--and How Companies Create Them. What I loved reading about in this book was how consumers make choices - why we might splurge on one category only to save in another.
Hug Your Customers: The Proven Way to Personalize Sales and Achieve Astounding Results written by Jack Mitchell, the Founder of Mitchell’s Department Stores is an incredible book about impeccable customer service. Another older book (published in 2003) and I remember it as required reading at Bloomingdale’s as we released a new loyalty program.
A fictional book, Counterfeit by Kirstin Chen. This Reese’s Book Club pick dives into the high-stakes world of luxury fashion, exploring the intricacies of counterfeit goods and the impact on the industry's authenticity. Reading the portion of the book Deluxe about counterfeits really made the whole world of this industry come together.
In September 2020 Thomas’ book Fashionopolis: Why What We Wear Matters was published. From bookshop.org description: “An investigation into the damage wrought by the colossal clothing industry and the grassroots, high-tech, international movement fighting to reform it.”
I added Future Luxe: What’s Ahead for the Business of Luxury, as a more recently published book, to my list, but note that I haven’t read it and can’t tell based on reviews if I would recommend (has anyone read? Add to the comments if you have and can share your thoughts.)
Thanks for reading Retail Diary: Book Club. Let me know what you think. What are we reading next?
Sarah Shapiro
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Would love to hear any book recommendations you have - business, fashion or fiction. Please add to the comments if you have a recommendation.
I read this book when it came out and thoroughly enjoyed the exposé on LVMH especially. I'm on board with your 2024 updated chapter requests! :D
“Counterfeit” is a fun read!!