Dive Brief:
- The Saks Luxury Pulse report released last week found that 58% of luxury consumers plan to maintain or increase their spending in the next three months, up from 53% in last quarter’s report.
- Consumers surveyed said they planned to spend on travel, with 74% planning to or already having booked a trip in the near future. Of that group, 72% said they planned to buy luxury items as part of their trip preparation.
- This is the first time that the percentage of luxury consumers planning to increase their spending has gone up since the report began tracking this figure in May 2022. For consumers who make $200,000 or more, 64% plan to spend the same or more on luxury in the next three months, up from 57% last quarter.
Dive Insight:
Sentiment about the overall economy seems to have improved over the past few months, at least for luxury consumers surveyed here. The report indicates that 55% of consumers said they’re concerned about the economy, down from 60% in the prior survey.
Meanwhile, optimism about personal finances is relatively stable, at 68% compared to 67% last quarter. Only 35% of consumers said they would need to see improvement in the overall economy in order to spend more on luxury, compared to 43% in last quarter’s survey, “reinforcing the growing optimism about the economy among luxury consumers,” per the release.
“We are pleased to see the first increase in over a year in purchase intent across the luxury consumer continuum, an indication that core luxury consumers are starting to turn the corner,” Marc Metrick, CEO of Saks, said in the release.
But while the report offers good news for luxury brands, Metrick said the company would “remain measured in our approach to navigating the rest of the year.”
Similar to last quarter, 54% of respondents said a sale or promotion would motivate them to spend more on luxury. Similarly, 54% of consumers also said they go directly to retailers, whether online or in person, for fashion inspiration, with 70% citing outfit ideas in general, and 71% mentioning outfits for specific occasions as the most useful forms of fashion inspiration. Furthermore, 41% percent said they browsed social media, and 40% said they looked to fashion journalism.
However, sources of inspiration shifted depending on the customers’ age and gender. Generation X and Baby Boomer women said they got their fashion inspiration primarily from fashion journalism, while men in the same age group said their top source of fashion inspiration was the retailer itself. Meanwhile, Millennial men and women said they’re most likely to look for fashion inspiration on social media.
The Saks Luxury Pulse is conducted by Saks, the luxury digital platform established in March 2021 as a standalone e-commerce company.
Saks has an exclusive partnership with SFA, the entity that operates the Saks Fifth Avenue stores. According to a company spokesperson, Saks maintains control of the Saks Fifth Avenue brand and is responsible for digital and physical merchandising and marketing. Meanwhile, SFA provides Saks customers with in-person services, including alterations and in-store return.
Saks began conducting its quarterly Luxury Pulse survey in March 2020. It is a “periodic online survey of luxury consumers’ attitudes towards shopping, spending and fashion trends,” according to a statement by the company. This quarter’s report is based on responses from 1,836 U.S.-based luxury consumers over age 18, collected between July 20-24, 2023.
