QUIET LUXURY

Miski Muse Photographed for Âme by Jem Mitchell

Across the globe, luxury has been synonymous with status. Whether a person was wearing a Cartier bracelet, a pair of Balenciaga shoes, or holding a Gucci bag, they were announcing to those around them that they were part of a tribe. They were making a statement.

To an extent it was about demonstrating success, but it was also about saying that a fashion aesthetic was part of your personal identity. Either way, luxury has involved a big dollop of ‘outer-directed’ symbolism.

Post-Coronavirus, these fundamentals will gradually return, and this has already been demonstrated in China as consumers have left their lockdowns.

In the US and Europe however, SUM also expects a new consumption pattern to emerge.

Well before Covid-19 there had already been a noticeable emergence of more ‘inner-directed’ brand values; to buying into beauty and style in ways that would not be at the expense of the planet, as well as aspiring to more subdued, crafted styling.

We now expect this to now grow into a new kind of consumer psychology, from ‘what this says about me’ to ‘how this makes me feel’. The rise of quiet luxury.

This more measured, personal experience will become a key theme in the way products are designed, shifting towards styles that offer increased levels of comfort and pleasure.

It will also affect the strategic approaches of luxury branding agencies and fashion marketeers, through campaigns that are created in a more understated, calming, and considered way.