Altiant research finds affluent/HNW consumers overwhelmingly receptive to luxury collaborations but creativity, exclusivity and authenticity matter far more than influencer involvement.
Based on 300 affluent/HNW consumers in the UK, US and France, The Collaboration Economy in Luxury explores not only whether wealthy consumers embrace collaborations, but what makes them work, what they do for brand perception and where consumers want luxury brands to collaborate next. The sample had median investible assets of just over US$1.6m, with more than half qualifying as HNWIs.
Luxury collaborations have moved from marketing experiment to meaningful consumer opportunity, according to new research from Altiant.
Almost half (47%) of affluent and high-net-worth consumers surveyed purchased at least one luxury collaboration or co-branded product in the past year, rising to 55% in the US and 54% among under-45s. More than two-thirds (68%) view collaborations by their favourite luxury brands positively.
Key findings
• Collaborations have become a genuine purchase category: Some 47% bought a luxury collaboration product during the past year. One in five respondents (21%) bought multiple collaborative products.
• Consumers are broadly pro-collaboration: More than two-thirds (68%) respond positively when their favourite luxury brands collaborate with others, rising to 72% among under-45s. This being said, Affluent/HNW French are most in favour of independent brand extensions (58%), while Brits come to the fore for collaborative ones (74%).
• Collaborations can make brands feel more contemporary - not less luxurious: Some 68% agree that collaborations make brands appear more modern and innovative, while 59% enjoy discovering new brands through collaborations and 66% say a cross-category collaboration could encourage them to try a brand they had not previously purchased. 33% believe collaborations dilute brand image.
• Hotels emerge as the most attractive collaboration territory: Hotels and branded rooms lead consumer interest at 54%, ahead of food & drink and furniture/home furnishings (both 40%), consumer technology (37%) and art/collectibles (36%).
• The winning formula: creativity + exclusivity + uniqueness + authenticity: Among consumers able to recall a collaboration they liked, these four characteristics were the strongest drivers of positive response, each selected by around half of respondents.
• Social media dominates discovery - but isn’t the whole story: Some 67% usually discover collaborations through social media, followed by brands’ own websites (48%), in-store discovery (46%), online media (45%) and word of mouth (42%).
A surprising takeaway
For an industry accustomed to celebrity-led launches and influencer amplification, one of the more striking findings concerns what consumers say actually makes a collaboration interesting.
Just 6% cited the involvement of a favourite influencer as a reason why a collaboration they remembered positively appealed to them. Strong sustainability credentials also registered at 6%.
By contrast, creativity, exclusivity, uniqueness and authentic alignment between collaborating brands were substantially more important. Fun and surprise also resonated.
The distinction is important: social media may be where affluent consumers discover collaborations, but it isn’t necessarily what makes the collaboration itself desirable.
Not every collaboration works
The findings also underline the risks of collaboration for luxury brands.
Of five high-profile partnerships tested, Hermès x Apple was the best received, with 71% responding positively. Louis Vuitton x Supreme proved much more divisive: 36% responded negatively versus 31% positively, with the report pointing to perceived lack of synergy between the brands as a possible factor.
This reinforces a central message from the study: wealthy consumers are receptive to brands crossing traditional category boundaries, but the partnership needs to make sense.
Download the report: https://altiant.com/collaboration-economy-in-luxury
Quotes
“There has been plenty of debate around whether the sheer volume of collaborations risks diluting luxury brands. What consumers are telling us is more nuanced: they are not tired of collaborations; they are discerning about them.” Meryam Schneider, CMO, Altiant
“Nearly half have actually bought a luxury collaboration in the past year and two-thirds see collaborations positively. But putting two famous names together isn’t enough. Creativity, exclusivity and authentic alignment are what make a partnership resonate. That distinction matters enormously for brands deciding where and with whom to collaborate.” Meryam Schneider, CMO, Altiant
