Democratisation of Luxury: Current State and Future Directions

Event details

This event will discuss aspects related to luxury consumption.

Abstract

Historically the preserve of the elite, luxury landscape is evolving substantially with the rapid rise of the middle class globally and its relentless demand for luxury brands. Many luxury brands are tapping into this demand and enjoying substantial economic gains. At the same time, others have failed miserably to engage with these consumers.

This ‘democratisation of luxury,’ understood as the perceived reduction in distinctiveness, exclusivity, and self-differentiation of luxury goods due to wider availability and access, has changed the luxury industry landscape substantially. Yet, it remains an under explored phenomenon in academic research. In this seminar, I offer initial reflection on the changing nature of luxury landscape, particularly focusing on democratization. My presentation will focus on highlighting some of the recent findings as well as offering future avenues for research in this highly interesting and an under-explored research domain.

Biography

Professor Paurav Shukla holds a Chair in Marketing and is currently the Head of Research for the Digital and Data Driven Marketing Department at the Southampton Business School, University of Southampton, UK. His research interests include cross-cultural consumer behaviour, luxury marketing and branding, health policy and international marketing with a particular focus on emerging markets. He is one of the most cited academic scholars for the past several years in the luxury branding domain and is included in the top 2% of scientists globally according to the Stanford list.

Paurav's career began in industry, and he continues to work with academic institutions and serves on the board of directors of both corporate and not for profit organizations in the capacity of a visiting professor and an advisor. He has published many articles in top-tier academic journals including Journal of Business Research, Journal of World Business, Marketing Letters, Information & Management, International Marketing Review, Psychology & Marketing among others and contributed chapters in edited books. Popular accounts of his work and views appear in the mainstream media regularly. He has been delivering corporate training, teaching and consulting assignments for various organisations in Europe, Asia and Africa.

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