How Luxury Brands Get You to Buy Into Their Hype
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All content directed, written and edited by John Mauriello. John Mauriello has been working professionally as an industrial designer since 2010. He is an Adjunct Professor of industrial design at California College of the Arts.
Are luxury designer goods ever worth the hype, or are they just a scam?
Main Works Cited:
“The Luxury Strategy” by Jean-Noël Kapferer and Vincent Bastien
“Luxury: A Rich History” by Peter McNeil and Giorgio Riello
“Deluxe: How Luxury Lost Its Luster” by Dana Thomas
Carwow Rolls-Royce vid:
VINWiki Ferrari VIP vid:
Other works were cited but in a smaller capacity. When referenced, they are displayed in the bottom left corner of the video.
Time stamps
0:00 Intro
2:40 Elevation
3:55 Jumping Through Hoops
8:47 Convenience
9:40 Legends and Luxury
11:30 Time
14:23 Asus Sponsor
16:10 Legacy
17:28 Patina
18:14 Time and Craft
19:36 Enduring Design
21:35 Elitism through Appreciation
24:10 Space
31:10 Is Luxury Losing Its Identity?
35:18 Beauty is a human need
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Comments (49)
I inherited this one shirt from my grandpa’s brother when he passed away. It was handmade and tailored in Singapore with finest silk by local tailor. It still looks like brand new for 40-year-old shirt. I didn't even cost much at all.
Thank you so much for explaining us what luxury really is. It made me discover that I am in fact sensitive to it although I thought that I despised it. It helped me better define what relation I have with it and why and how I am at least partly sensitive to a part of it. Luxury for me is when a skilled artisan makes something just for you. In that frame, if a luxury brand is global, then that is not luxury (with perhaps the exception of luxury car brands). Also, when the price is really out of measure, that probably is not luxury either, at least not the sort I enjoy. I'm not that rich, so I cannot buy a 500$ T-shirt, and I find the existence of $500 T-shirts abhorrent in a way.
On the other hand, I do indulge in some durable items that are made by hand or in small scale factories near me, that involve a lot of skilled work and authentic materials that explain why they are more expensive. I pay more so that crafted workers do high skilled quality work for me, are rewarded by the quality of what they are doing and the money I give them, and perpetuate a traditionnal knowledge.
I could tell you the brand of my shoes, but you probably don't know it and that is not the point. The point is that they were built from beautiful, sturdy leather, that the lining is made from calf leather, that the way the sole is connected involves specific hand sewing techniques that improve their durability, and that is important to me. I can buy a 250$ pair of shoes if they are beautiful, authentic, reflect on a tradition of shoe making, are extremely comfortable and last years. I can definitely not buy a 1000$ pair of shoes only because there is a big global luxury brand logo stamped on them. Citing brands I don't use, Solovair is more of a luxury brand for me than Balenciaga.
The idea of luxury products getting more and more value as they become heirlooms also resonate with me. I do own a watch that belonged to my grandfather, it is from a swiss luxury brand, it is about 60 years old. I deeply understand why he bought it, at a period of time when he was finally able to buy it after a time of duress (WWII), and at that time those brand of watches were better time keepers than any other, so it did make practical sense. Now, I would not for the life of me buy sutch a brand of watches, secifically because time keeping has lost its value, and most of the time, when I need to know what time it is, I am using a device (car, computer, oven, whatever) that can tell me what time it is on top of whatever other functionalities it has.
I used to be a big fan of Asus. Used to be.
There are people who are willing to jump through the hoops and spend ridiculous amounts to own something luxurious. I'm not one of them and I won't be interested in their reasons until I approach the requisite level of income. I don't have means to show off my status, just means to use things I like: an old Suzuki motorcycle, a Seiko automatic watch and a Samsung phone.
Hey if i had that moneu id help repair and maintaij my home
The problem these days is that luxury is more about the exclusivity rather than the quality. It has grown to be more a rich people club than ever. Hypes and trends get wildly blown out of proportion and rich people jump on it and jack up the prices ruining it for everyone. In the past luxury goods meant more that something was just good quality but a regular working man could still get it if they wanted. I'm into watches so take Rolex as an example, in the past people bought a Rolex as their one watch that they wear for the rest of their lives and if you look at vintage Rolexes they all are heavily worn but still running perfectly. Then you also had the gold Rolexes that were really the luxury ones but they were still bought to actually wear. Rolex now is more an investment and collecting hobby than anything. Rich collectors buy up all the stock and ruin it for everyone.
In polish word etykieta means both lable and etiquette-how to behave properly but in high society/aristocratic way.
No wonder average income pragmatic people look at rich eccentric folk as needlessly uptight, addicted to image and holier than thou despite their sh*t smelling just as bad. And ofcourse rich folk looking at the average Joe as unwashed, dumb, trash. Perception is a really powerful influencer of opinion.
Luxury is to despise not to desire.
If your luxury item depreciates slower than money ( due to inflation), then it would be worthwhile converting your money into watches and Ferraris
I am a watch enthusiast and as such I find a lot of the luxury brands hands down rediculous. Yes, a Patek or AP is build with an impressive level of craftmanship, but the quality difference to great entry or mid level brands like Citizen, Seiko or Tissot is not so relevant to justify a price difference of tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars. People who buy the superexpensive stuff are either eager to impress other people or are EXTREMLY geeky about the hobby.
I am what animates the objects I interact with and use, not the other way around. The second that Japanese guys glasses hit my face, they become an instrument and expression of my subjective will. From that point on, he and his contribution is over and dead.
Excellent video. As a fellow Engineer and Designer- Bravo!
As a woman who is more of value than brand, I really love how you presented these facts on your video. This is very informative. A perfect reminder for practical people to remain practical and save their money.
My guess was $5 and it stayed the same. People who buy stories waste money.
24:17 here is where all the luxury falls apart. Exquisite craft doesnt mean anything compared to the boot licking to a societal class that its simple existence creates poverty.
The luxury pricing doesn't come from the need of good craft, comes from a place where this class doesn't really needs to be wealthy but needs to look wealthy. Looking like you can mindlessly afford this items can be as important as actually being able to afford them.
I haven't finished the video, but so far this is all assuming said "luxury" brands are actually selling quality products, like they did 30+ years ago. Now we get luxury prices with cheap flea market quality with 99/100 alleged luxury brands
Have I entered a different "timeline"? Didn't companies in China out these "Luxury" brands a short time ago for having their products made in China, then shipped to France for "finishing" ?
Love this video
Porsche in the 80's or 90's upped their prices about 25k Deutsch Mark and marketed it as exclusivity but it was to throttle demand so they had not build another factory/man.line. 😅
Well, it's a bit weird to say only the best craftsmen are allowed to make Hermes bags and need years or decades or experience. Even the cheapest mass produced goods today require a huge amount of knowlegde, expertise and training to make. What do people think? Especially making those for a low price is an art. It just shows me how little people know about actual production and making things. Instead most people have a great tendency: They want to be lied to. They wanted to be treated bad. You can see that by what they buy and also who they vote for. They will spend more on products from companies that give a damn about their customers. Apple is a good example. People just love to spend too much money on a product that isn't any better and then basically being told by the CEO that the customers are dumb. It's just what a big part of the population loves. Most of those luxury products aren't any better or even worse than average products. But people love to be maltreated and they want to believe in lies and deny reality. That's why it works. I prefer a cheap quartz watch over any fancy mechanical watch because none of them can match a quartz watch in terms of accuracy. Not even in keeping time the mechanical watches are good.
It's basically never worth it. Because it's mostly useless stuff with dubious quality. So if you don't have endless money to throw away don't buy luxury goods. They aren't worth it. They maximize profit for the most part.
This is like a propaganda piece both against AND FOR buying luxury brands.
Hah.. Casios are perfectly enough 😉
Look into pricing model on 4Runner TRD PRO.
watchdives, cronos, san martin etc much better than invicta.
Cue the “we hate rich people” comments
Your explanation is unbelievably good!
I support Dior in communist workers exploitation in their homeland. Great move!
This was a most amazing video.
Whether or not luxury is worth it, for me, is almost entirely dependent on the quality of the the thing. I'd rather spend more on a genuine leather purse that I know will last me decades, than less on a faux leather bag that will start peeling in a couple of years regardless of how well I take care of it. The brand name is only relevant if I know they consistently make quality products.
Explains why you can find so many YouTube videos showing tours of the Gibson guitar factory.
The only luxary i care for is…. sleek design… unique pattern …. high quality looking material (cause i am not a craftman to know good leather vs amazing leather for example)!
Never in my life given a shit about the story… but knowing it is hand made and when it looks good in a reputable brand factory, then i get a sense of security it is less likely to be crap or that they will take more time to make sure any faulty product not reach consumers!
Anything more and we turn ourselves into mindless sheep that you see in the population
My boy sneaked in an ad without us even noticing😅
Tax the rich. Ban the billionaires.
Facts, I designed my own custom faux leather jackets and had them custom made for me. Production cost in total? 20 dollars. But if I made a store and sold them, I could sell them for 200 minimum
I wonder if they sold any of those Asus zen things. They are horrible specs, it is like an apple but a shitty windows laptop from 15 years ago. I'm a windows guy, but why even make this laptop if it cannot compete with its competition in any way? Maybe the ceraluminum finish.
They don't
I think I'm the only one dreaming of owning an "old" toyota or honda, I want a 1999 toyota corolla or a 1999 honda accord. Reliable cars that the CIA cannot hack into and make m3 crash. Also, a toyota truck from the 70s is the dream, have you seen the ad about th3 suspension? You could climb a mountain in one of those and it wold still be a smooth ride
They don't bro I'm not retarded.
Usually those so called true craftsmanship doesn’t really live up to what they claimed.
11:22 Gawdamn
the thing with Asus is that you have to withstand numerous ads before you can start an app 🙂
if I were very rich, I would buy a Toyota. And a Fouga I guess…
Not exactly "luxury" but the only expensive clothes i own are a pair of Doc Martens & a Stetson Ranger hat, nearly $300(AUD) per item. Which i only bought because i know with proper care, these items can last me upward of 10 years and will age & wear down with a battle jacket ive made, which ive put tireless hours into sewing band patches onto & of course has become sentimental to me. The hat, boots & vest will last a long time and accompany me on my many adventures gaining scuffs and wear along the way
Gaaaaaawd! I watched 3 minutes of this and I'm bored to death. The guy is telling me about why luxury goods are expensive. REALLY? And there are 1.3 million morons who didn't know that? Damn youtube recommends the worst crap to me.
The Rolls coin gimmick is why they make the £1 coin half an inch thick. You can balance it on a friggin horse.
For a watch that keeps time, holds water, and can take a beating, I would pay €200 max. And it mustn't look like gay man jewellery.
Thank you for this important expose. Modern mass market "luxury" is mostly a scam. As the ancient bible verse says: "a fool and his money are soon parted". You didn't say much about the signaling of status which is at the root of many, if not most, "luxury" or "near luxury" purchases. It is often about signaling status and trying to create envy. Fundamentally a hollow life, but one from which many resources are extracted.