The World Luxury Chamber of Commerce is honored to present an exclusive conversation between its President, Alexander Chetchikov, and António Paraíso, a distinguished luxury consultant and international speaker. With an extensive career spanning over 50 countries, António has worked with some of the world’s most prestigious brands, helping them navigate the evolving landscape of luxury marketing, branding, and customer engagement.

In this insightful discussion, António shares his expert perspective on the essence of luxury today and the factors shaping its future. He delves into the evolution of luxury consumer behavior, the growing influence of technology and sustainability, and the distinct expectations of old and new money. Additionally, he offers a preview of his “Make Them Dream” webinar, where he unveils a five-step formula for crafting unforgettable luxury experiences.

As the luxury industry continues to evolve, this conversation provides valuable insights for brands looking to connect with affluent clients in an increasingly digital and experience-driven world.

Alexander Chetchikov: Welcome, António, and thank you for joining us as a guest speaker at the World Luxury Chamber of Commerce! With your experience working with prestigious brands worldwide, how would you personally define the essence of luxury today, and what key factors do you believe will shape its evolution in the next few years?

António Paraiso: Thank you for inviting me.

Well, luxury is a timeless concept of a way of life, very much related to mindset, culture, and behaviour, where extreme quality, excellence, beauty, creativity, details, and exclusivity are desired and sought after. Although this way of feeling and living is timeless, luxury as a concept has always evolved along with the evolution of society and the key factors that are shaping its essence today are very much related to sustainability, technology, and experiences.

Due to social revolutions since the late 80s of last century, luxury has also been very much democratised with the emergence of more powerful middle classes and new money. Personally, I see luxury evolving in the next decade into two different luxuries: one for old money and a different one for new money.

AC: In your upcoming “Make Them Dream” webinar, you introduce a 5-step formula for crafting engaging luxury experiences. Could you share a glimpse of these steps and explain why emotional engagement is so crucial in the luxury sector?

AP: Luxury is bought by desire and not by need. And money is not a problem; therefore, luxury clients value and are willing to pay high prices for pleasure, happiness, emotion, an exclusive lifestyle, and a sense of belonging to something that is not for everybody. When I studied Luxury Brand Management many years ago, one of my masters was French contemporary philosopher and sociologist Gilles Lipovetsky. Master Lipovetsky used to say in class that luxury and the superfluous have anthropological nature and are absolute necessities of humans in order to affirm their superiority to other animal species, otherwise, our existence would be confined to survival and conservation.

In my webinar, I debate and share real examples about the 5 drivers for emotional engagement. These are the ingredients used by luxury brands to make clients dream, and they are all connected to surprises, storytelling, experiences as well as other factors that trigger pleasant emotions to generate desire and buying behaviour.      

AC: With your extensive experience across 50 countries, what are the most important cultural nuances you’ve encountered when tailoring luxury marketing strategies for different regions, and how can brands effectively navigate these differences?

AP: There are indeed cultural differences and nuances, but luxury as a mindset and way of life is a global phenomenon.

Even in different regions of the world, I have noticed that there are similarities in the behaviour of old money individuals and there are also similarities among the behaviour of new money individuals in different regions of the Globe and from different cultures, however they are still embossed by culture and traditions.

Luxury is very much impacted by culture and education, hence, cultural traditions in different corners of the World are used with elegance and refinement to add value and emotional engagement to client interactions.

And, there are also some differences in behaviour, lifestyle, and desire between older and younger generations.

So, when designing luxury marketing strategies in different regions of the world, there is always a common ground related to quality, exclusivity, and emotion. But then the engagement triggers will have to be different according to age, education, and cultural background of the target audiences that brands wish to seduce.

AC: As luxury continues to evolve, especially in attracting younger, affluent clients, what significant changes have you seen in their expectations, and what strategies should luxury brands adopt to stay relevant and connect with this demographic?

AP: There are indeed new generations of clients under 45 years of age entering the luxury market. According to research published by Bain&Co. and GWI, both Millennials and Gen Z represent more than 60% of luxury purchases, and this is expected to grow until the end of this decade.

They have high purchasing power, different moral values and lifestyles than those of their parents and grand-parents. 

In order to stay relevant and connect to these younger, affluent demographics, luxury brands are evolving to create “phygital” environments, blending technology and digital in their physical spaces, incorporating diversity and inclusion action plans, leveraging sustainability in everything they do and crafting engaging, unexpected experiences in their client interactions.

This is a challenge for all luxury brands, but they have clearly understood that they need to evolve and embrace Modern Luxury.

This thought-provoking exchange with António Paraíso highlights the dynamic nature of luxury and the importance of emotional engagement in shaping consumer experiences. As the industry adapts to new generations and emerging trends, the insights shared today serve as a guide for brands striving to remain relevant in an ever-changing market.

The World Luxury Chamber of Commerce extends its gratitude to António for sharing his expertise and to our audience for joining this enlightening discussion. Stay connected for more exclusive conversations with industry leaders driving the future of luxury: https://worldluxurychamber.com/insights-news/