Month: September 2016

Hobo Glam Wins Fashion Week: is it the New Look of Luxury?

Published by Pamela Thomas-Graham

As New York Fashion Week wound down, the Dandelion Chandelier team made the rounds to take the temperature of luxury retailers and consumers in the wake of the festivities. What’d we find? Consumers running at an average temperature, neither hot nor cold on the New York shows, breaking out the leather and suede and anxiously awaiting Milan, London and Paris. But the New York luxury retailers? Low grade fever, accompanied by irritability and envy.

So What’s it Like to Be a Rich Dog?

Published by Pamela Thomas-Graham

In our multi-part exploration of the secret lives of well-off dogs, it’s time to talk fashion. It shouldn’t come as a surprise that the great European luxury houses have responded to the desire to treat our dogs as we do our children by launching designer apparel and accessories for the canine contingent. Pucci has $350 dog carrier, and Louis Vuitton goes them one better with a monogrammed one for $965. Pet bling is a thing, too, and there are reports of an owner spending $250,000 on a diamond dog collar.

Wealthy People are More Likely to be Dog Owners

Published by Pamela Thomas-Graham

Well, I’ll be doggone. It turns out that dogs are a luxury good. Who knew? The wealthier you are, the more likely you are to own a canine. While 51% of American households own a dog, a recent survey by the consultancy Spectrem Group reported that of Americans with more than $5 million in net worth, 74% own at least one dog.  Need further proof? Beyoncé and Jay-Z just bought their first dog.

Member of the Club: Are You In?

Published by Pamela Thomas-Graham

Do words like exclusive, private, dues, waiting list and members-only excite you? If so, you’re not alone. Do they make you anxious or even angry? Ditto. This is a tension I hear about every day from friends, acquaintances and family. And it’s also an interesting driver of a very little understood kind of luxury business: the private club.

Is the Quest for Luxury Instagram Pics Making you Crazy?

Published by Pamela Thomas-Graham

Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines has launched a new advertising campaign that appears to be the perfect intersection of luxury, marketing and tech, and also the quintessential sign of our times. Outdoor ads all over Manhattan show screen shots of fictional Instagram pages with gorgeous photos of luxury life onboard their ships and on excursions to various photogenic ports of call. The ads are complete with multiple hashtags, and of course the obligatory tally of the number of (fictional) likes each post has garnered.