Many "Experts" Do Not Understand Modern Luxury
- The AHA Group
- Jan 28
- 2 min read
It’s rare that I read an article this contrary to modern luxury. I kept waiting to read commentary that wasn’t old-fashioned, outdated, out-of-touch, and so conventional that following it would place any luxury brand strategy squarely in the 1900s.
Don’t get me wrong, I understand the value of heritage. We work with some of the most revered heritage brands in the world. These are brands that every single one of you reading this would recognize. But for every one of those whose heritage is a vibrant asset, there is a vault of luxury brands with impressive history that are long since dead because they failed to know when to move on. Jag doesn’t want to be one of those.
The commentary in this article is dangerously outdated. To suggest that to be luxury, Jag has to be “noble and statuesque”, and that they have “abandoned the language of luxury” is incredibly narrow minded about the look and feel of modern luxury. Modern luxury should be vibrant, immersive, and distinctive, and brands should be free to use visual imagery that makes us all think.
To state that “equity isn’t part of the equation [of luxury] nor is inclusion.” And “the value of luxury is only about heritage, craft, and legacy…. [for the rich]”. I can see Gordon Gekko circa 1987 nodding in the background as he reads that commentary. Modern luxury has debunked this way of thinking - creating a new value system that is far from this world of top hats, white gloves, and wingback chairs.
Stating the overwhelming need for “luxury brands to remain firmly embedded in their heritage and myth” is formulaic at best, dangerously myopic at worst. Ask that grave yard of historic brands how that worked out for them.
Let’s not forget that Jaguar already tried ALL of these “heritage” strategies over the past 10 years. In my opinion, they made some great cars - true to their glorious history. And it wasn’t sufficient. They tried again and again. Modern luxury consumers voted with their wallets, and they all voted that the heritage, incremental approach was not attractive to the market. In 2020, that was 49.6K cars world-wide. That’s luxury mass market death. They could die or pivot.
Whether you like the design of Jaguar or not, they are making a bold move here to move forward with a point of view on modern luxury. As I have noted in all my media interviews, the success will be determined by the financial runway to build a quality product, a thriving passionate community, and an exquisite ownership experience befitting a high-end luxury mark (which contrary to this article, they very much are). That’s what I’ll be watching for.
Modern luxury has space in it for all kinds of brand expression because modern consumers in luxury, ultra-luxury, and beyond, have a huge swath of taste, preferences, and desires.