The Magic of Luxury

The world of luxury appears to possess a captivating magnetism. It grabs your attention, piques your curiosity, and makes you want to be part of it. It draws you in with its clearly visible, flawlessly impeccable quality, but above all with what is not immediately apparent: its mystery, class, innovation, history, tradition, exclusivity, sophistication, and the pleasure it delivers to the senses, making it affordable to only a select few and desired by many.
It finds expression in the perfect symbiosis between tangible and intangible value. The former is reflected in the extreme quality, durability, beauty and precision of details that almost go unnoticed. The latter can be felt in the emotion, the meaning, the bond that is created between the object and the person who chooses it, or between the experience and the person who partakes in it. 
Mademoiselle Coco Chanel once said, “Some people think that luxury is the opposite of poverty. It is not. It is the opposite of vulgarity.” In point of fact, high and unrestrained purchasing power is not the only characteristic of the true luxury customer. Such customers are also usually distinguished by their education, elegance, savoir-faire, culture, taste, refined intellect, appreciation of exclusivity and creativity. Brands and professionals working in the luxury segment would do well to introduce an element of erudition into the products they offer, whether art or some other form of culture, which is something that truly makes a difference, and to offer innovation, to provide an unforgettable experience and to add that intangible quality that provokes emotions, justifies the high price and wins over their audience.  
In the world of gastronomy, the creation of menus inspired by literary works or opera arias, tailor-made to the customer’s taste, are examples of the creativity, erudition, experience and intangibility I mentioned. 
The customisation provided by a well-known luxury brand in its shop at the time of purchase, engraving the customer’s initials or name on the perfume bottle, is another such example. More than just an object or an experience, luxury is an attitude towards the world, it is the rejection of the disposable, the ephemeral, the vacuous. 
The celebration of excellence, authenticity and truth, which is not measured in quantity but in intention, comes not from haste, but from time; it is not a trend, rather an ageless quality. Luxury is the essence that remains when everything else has faded away.

António Paraíso
Luxury Marketing and Innovation Consultant