One-, Two-, and Multiple-Segment Chinese Luxury Clients and the Rise of the Middle Class

Abstract

The term “luxury brand” relates to the concept that certain goods and services are of high quality, expensive, and non-essential. These brands are also perceived by customers as rare, authentic, prestigious, and original, embedding an emotional and symbolic value (Tynan et al., 2010). The term “luxury brand” is also associated with a lifestyle that values the heritage and historical path of a brand. The historical path of a luxury brand is often influenced by the sociocultural, economic, political, and technological variables related to its specific geographical country of origin (COO). Most luxury brands originated in European countries, in Italy and France in particular. Such brands have now consolidated their status and their cultural heritage, as well as their brand image, in the market, which has allowed them to be highly recognizable in fast-growing economies by luxury customers (Okonkwo, 2007). The luxury brand concept was initially related to the highest rank of exclusive brands, having embedded within them multiple types of physical and psychological meanings for their customers (Vigneron and Johnson, 2004; Wiedman et al., 2007). Luxury does not simply relate to an industrial sector or product category, but refers to a particular dimension with specific symbols and a concept that includes values associated with specific cultural and socioeconomic variables, as well as symbolizing social identity in a product (Vickers and Renand, 2003).