Defining Characteristics of the Luxury Goods Industry

The luxury goods industry is characterized by high quality products, creative and innovative designs, brand recognition, a high degree of consumer service, and a very sophisticated store ambiance. The market is divided into a tree main categories: haute-couture, traditional luxury, and the growing sub-market created by Coach accessible luxury. The US and Europe equally share the largest percent of the industry sales at 60%, China holds 20 %, and Japan is at 11% of the total industry sales. The Italian companies hold 27% of the global market share with the French at 22%, Swiss 19%, and US 14% of the total global market share. The Luxury goods industry was affected by a decline in sales during the financial crises of 2007-2009 in US. China has seen continued growth and is expected to increase by 7.8 percent annually through 2015. High income consumers usually have been the top purchasers of luxury goods; however, with the introduction of the accessible luxury category, the producers of luxury goods have seen a great increase from middle income purchasers.