What is aspirational Luxury?

There are two types of luxury consumers: The aspirational and the ultra-high-net-worth (UHNW, or the already arrived). The aspirationals are the middle classes and the lower-upper financial stratus.

The fashion industry, cosmetics, skincare, sporting goods, accessories, food and spirits, and other low price-point luxuries depend on the first category for up to 80 percent of their sales.

The private jet companies have only UHNW customers, so they are not as affected by downturns in the economy.

The middle financial groups can save up and buy a $3, 000 handbag, but will never pack enough brown paper lunches, or skip enough Starbucks runs, to save up $300 million for a yacht.

Flying high
The truly rich are rich even after losing half their net worth.

If you are worth a billion and lose half of it, you are not skipping any meals. The less a company must rely on aspirationals, the more insulated they are from economic swings.

In the travel world, the top of the pyramid is owning a whole private jet or jets. Next would be fractional ownership – 1/16th is the smallest amount legal by Federal Aviation Authority law.

The entry point for this market starts with smaller planes or jets and smaller fractions for people with a liquid net worth around $50 million.

The next step down would be the cardholders who buy private time by the hours. This group’s entry into this market starts at around $10 million in liquid assets, not including homes and other non-liquid assets.

Under that there is charter. Next is commercial first/business class and next is coach.

The farther down on that scale you go, the more customers will be affected by the economy as a whole.

The higher up, the more autonomous they are, and even if having lost one-half their net worth, they are still incredibly rich.

The UHNW are also usually more internationally divested and so they take less of a punch. It is a paper loss to them until the economy turns around.

So, when the media states that the luxury market does not feel the swings of the rest of the economy, it depends whether they are luxury brands that rely on aspirational consumers.

Peerless
Most brand and media sources reach aspirationals – those who can sample the lifestyle, but not really live it. They can buy a purse or a tie, take a ski trip once a year and sample several of the lower-priced luxuries. They could be members of a local country club, and mom and dad both have a BMW sedan. They can splurge on a $700 bottle of wine for their anniversary, but not drink one every night.

Fragrances, cosmetics, skincare, fashion, sunglasses, lower-level jewelry, ski coats and boots, surf boards and other sports paraphernalia are perfect examples of lower-priced luxuries. These lower-level luxury sectors are very well covered in the media.

The middle class, upper-middle class and lower-upper financial demographics are the easiest to reach.