This study is based on young adults’ identity in Japan and Hong Kong and its relation to conspicuous consumption. The purpose of this study is to explore how conspicuous consumption influenced the young adults’ identities in Japan and Hong Kong. In order to study this phenomenon, we created a conceptual model, we named “Young Adults Conspicuous Consumption Identity” (YACCI), which is based on previous research on identity and luxury values. The research is based on a qualitative study and the empirical data was gathered through 11 semi-structured interviews with young adults from Hong Kong and Japan. Findings show that the identities of young adults in Japan and Hong Kong are heavily influenced by the society that surrounds them. The results of the societal pressures force them to keep up with a certain standard of image which increase their conspicuous consumption behaviour. This study has contributed to a further understanding of underlying factors that influence young adults’ identities in Japan and Hong Kong.

This project aims to challenge preconceptions of mental health and attempts to conceptually dissect the popular phrase “mental health is a luxury”. The dissection is grounded on a theoretical background related to the inefficiencies of the health care system, advocacy movements of health care rights, material culture and luxury consumption, in order to conceptualize design strategies for sociocultural change.The concept challenges the perception of mental health care as luxury through the invitation of other mental health sufferers into a collaborative co-design space that generates information about their subjective lived experiences and needs, through participatory and empathic design methods. Jewelry has been selected as a design medium that combines possibilities of self-expression, involvement in co-crafting, similarities to other devices for self-regulation and preconceptions of status. The socioeconomic issues of the accessibility of mental health care reveals inequalities related to social status, and jewelry with its historical connotation as a social status symbol is used in this project as a critical tool to portray and question the correlation between socioeconomic privilege and mental health care. The collaborative process of co-designing and translating real people’s needs into customized jewelry works as an attempt to redefine jewelry as a manifestation of human needs and to cultivate mental health sufferers’ agency and power towards their own health.

Purpose The aim of this master’s thesis is to gain in-depth insight into the emotional connections of consumers to the brand heritage of luxury fashion brands. Another aim of the paper is to investigate how brand love is enriched by the communication of brand heritage dimensions on Instagram. Design/Methodology/Approach This study is adopting an epistemological position of interpretivism and an abductive qualitative methodology. Seven semi-structured, in-depth interviews were conducted with emerging luxury fashion consumers. Further, to gain insight into the meanings attributed to heritage luxury fashion brands, visual participatory methods were implemented. The methods used were a digital tour and a visual collage. The data was analysed with the help of thematic coding. Findings The current study finds that emerging consumers form emotional connections to heritage luxury fashion brands through dimensions of brand love: self-brand integration, passion-driven behaviours, long-term relationships and declarations of affection. This process of forming brand love for heritage luxury fashion brands is named ‘heritage brand love phases’ by this study. Additionally, the study finds that brand heritage is an enricher of brand love for emerging consumers on Instagram, where the consumer is already ‘highly brand-involved'. Managerial Implications It became evident in this study that there is a compatibility conflict between heritage luxury brands and social media. Brand managers ought to weave brand heritage seamlessly into their social media strategy for it to succeed. It is further suggested that managers take into account the ‘heritage brand love phases’ when devising heritage-related social media strategies. Originality/Value This paper explores brand heritage as an enricher of brand love on Instagram. This represents an unexplored area of brand love research. The study expands knowledge of luxury fashion by investigating how one dimension of luxury, brand heritage, impacts emerging consumers’ brand love.

ABSTRACT  Date: 2022-06-01 Level: Master thesis in Business Administration, 15 cr  Institution: School of Business, Society and Engineering, Mälardalen University  Authors:   Nor Reda  Rubar Onursal Title: Consumers’ involvement of online luxury purchases Supervisor: Stylianos Papaioannou  Keywords: Online luxury, Consumer behavior, Theory of planned behavior, Different generational cohorts. Research questions: What factors influence consumers’ involvement of luxury purchases online?  Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine the identified gap in regards to online purchases of luxury goods in the context of cars and how it in turn may influence consumers’ involvement. Contrasting factors are linked to the Theory of planned behavior. Method: This study is of a quantitative nature by conducting a web based questionnaire. A deductive approach was undertaken to test the relationship between the three independent variables together in relation to the dependent variable purchase intention of the TPB. The main analysis for this study is a multiple linear regression supported by an exploratory factor analysis as wel as a correlation analysis. Conclusion: The results of this study reveal that the main influence of consumers’ involvement of luxury purchases online is attitude. Other factors such as subjective norm and perceived behavioral control did have a significant influence, henceforth not to the same extent as attitude.

This Master's thesis focuses on the current luxury print media, which are published in the Czech Republic and are intended for the general public. At first, a theoretical part introduces the entire contemporary print media market, with an emphasis on periodically published titles. The thesis also deals with factors, that affect the form of these titles and media in general, using knowledge of a political economy of communication. Subsequently, the thesis shifts attention to its main topic - a luxury in general and luxury magazines. These magazines are described and set in the context of niche media. The thesis also summarizes knowledge about advertising. The research uses a qualitative research method with a partial application of a quantitative method: categorization, description, and comparison. It brings a summary of all currently published luxury periodicals, which are categorized based on thematic focus, periodicity, price, and publisher. The main part of the research is an analysis of ten titles (53x11, Můj dům, Motorbike, Dolce Vita, Bylinky Revue, SCORE, Kreativ, Vesmír, FC and dTest), in which a self- presentation, a target reader, a content, and a graphic design are described and evaluated. Part of the analysis also deals with advertising content and its relationship to editorial content....

Date: 2021/06/03 Level: Master Thesis in Business Administration, 15 cr Institution: School of Business, Society and Engineering, Mälardalen University Authors: Shadi Botros, Yacoub Said (87/07/24) (95/01/01) Title: LUXURIOUS BRAND AND SOCIAL MEDIA Tutor: Edward Gillmore Keywords: Luxury brands, Social media marketing activities, Brand perceptions, Brand awareness, Purchase intention. Research questions: What are the outcomes of social media marketing used by luxury brands, brand awareness and brand perception, on purchase attention? Purpose: The purpose of this research is to study if social media marketing can have an effect on luxuries brands perception in consumers mind and if social media can influence consumers purchase intention. Method: This study is following a quantitative approach by using statistical methods to test the hypothesis. Conclusion: Luxury brands are considered as exclusive and expensive brands. Social media is a mass communication tool that is usually used to reach a broad segment of consumers. The authors found out through the gathered data that consumers are aware about the brand and they perceive the brand as a luxury brand. However, consumers were not only relying on the official home page of the brand to obtain information.

Purpose/aim Culture, lifestyle and economy are the three factors that influence the purchasing intentions for luxury goods. The aim of our dissertation is investigating if the importance of the factors will be changed or not, with the changing generations in China. Design/methodology/approach In this dissertation, we use questionnaire to collect data, and then use mathematics and statistics to test our hypotheses. Findings The results show that the importance of the factors could be changed, with the changing generations in Beijing and Qingdao. In contrast, the importance of the factors could not be changed, with the changing generations in Ningbo. So, we cannot establish in China, the importance of the three factors could be changed or not, with the changing generations. Originality/value In this dissertation, our original ideas are the different generations and the factors which effective influence the Chinese consumer´s purchasing intentions of luxury goods. We collected data in different cities in China to figure out if there is any connection between the three factors and three generations. The risk of the research is the sample size, we will have errors in that respondents.

Background and problem: The perception of luxury fashion has been shaped throughout history with well-known brands’ innovative strategies and designs. Along with its crafts and arts, exclusivity has been one of the main pillars of luxury fashion, creating the perception of luxury fashion products only being available to the ‘elite’; which has been feasible to maintain in an analog society. However, as luxury fashion brands have moved into the digital landscape; using digital channels such as e-commerce, social media, and disruptive technologies such as augmented reality, virtual clothing; distribution channels have opened up, contradicting traditional practises.  It has been found that it is the consumers’ perception that determines luxury brands separation from the ordinary. Raising the question of how consumers may perceive luxury fashion brands when operating in the digital landscape; since the use of digital channels and disruptive technologies contradicts with the characteristics defining luxury fashion, in particular exclusivity.   Purpose: In order to contribute to literature and create new understandings of the digitalisation of the luxury fashion industry; the purpose of this study is to explore how consumers perceive luxury fashion brands’ use of digital channels and disruptive technologies, specifically regarding the perception of exclusivity.                         Method: The study broadly followed an interpretivist research philosophy where qualitative data was collected by conducting eight semi-structured focus groups with Swedish luxury fashion consumers, born between the years of 1992-2000. The empirical findings were analysed through the general analytical approach, and thereafter discussed in relation to the frame of reference.  Conclusion: The findings suggest that consumers perceive that luxury fashion brands’ use of digital channels and disruptive technologies are diluting the perception of exclusivity, as luxury fashion becomes more accessible and visible with an increased attainability.

This research aims to present, analyse and discuss how to sustain a competitive advantage in the Fashion Luxury market throughout a case study of Emerging Fashion Brands. The analysed data determines that considering the customers’ demands, the attributes of the Emerging Fashion Brands and the idiosyncrasy of the Fashion Luxury Market these brands must apply a Differentiation Strategy directed to a focal target group in order to sustain their competitive positions in the market. Furthermore, the findings of the research prove the relevance for Emerging Fashion Brands to identify their innovative capabilities where to design or redefine their Business Models. Also, this research describes a future scenario of the Fashion Luxury Market whereby the identification of the upcoming trends and opportunities are identified. Therefore, a holistic approach of the Fashion Luxury Market is provided in order to help the managerial decision-making.

Im 21. Jahrhundert, die digitale EinzelhandelsTransparenz und die zunehmende weltweite Ungleichheit brachten eine neue Konsumkategorie: Humanistic Luxury. Diese Verbraucherkategorie von Produkten und Dienstleistungen richtet sich an gebildete Verbraucher der Mittelschicht und verspricht die Möglichkeit Status Güter zu erwerben und gleichzeitig an humanitären Bemühungen teilzunehmen. Ein Oxymoron, das wert ist, untersucht zu werden. Um Schlüsselfunktionen und Konsequenzen der Kategorie aufzuzeigen, wurde eine Methodenforschung der Grounded Theory durchgeführt. Vierzehn globale Verbraucher aus elf Ländern wurden eingehend Statusgruppe, ihre Werte und ihre Funktionen befragt zu definieren. Die Ergebnisse enthüllten drei distinkte Untergruppen innerhalb der Verbraucher, der moralische Überlegenheit anstrebt, und die Verbraucher aus Schwellenländern („Ich konsumiere ganz normal, aber jetzt unterstütze ich meine Gemeinschaft“). Diese Ergebnisse beleuchten die Folgen des humanistischen Luxus und einige der unwahrscheinlichen Quellen lokaler und globaler Ungleichheit Reproduktion im Bereich des Konsums. Diese Kategorie bietet keine Unterscheidung mehr auf der Grundlage des finanziellen, sondern des kulturellen und moralischen Kapitals. Humanistischer Luxus kann zwar dazu beitragen, die Verletzlichkeit des Handwerks zu beseitigen Die Hierarchien sind zementiert aber auch soziale, die bestätigen, wer „würdig“ ist und wer nicht, und was letztendlich die soziale Mobilität auf lokaler und globaler Ebene behindert. / The 21st century, digital (retail) transparency, and increasing worldwide inequality brought a new consumer category: Humanistic Luxury. This consumer category of products and services caters to educated, middle-class consumers, promising them a chance to acquire status goods, while, at the same time, to participate in humanitarian efforts; an oxymoron that is worthy to investigate. To expose key functions and consequences of the category, a grounded theory methodology research was conducted. Fourteen global consumers from eleven countries were deep interviewed to define the status group, its values, and its functions. The findings unveiled three district subgroups within consumers who are seeking moral superiority, that is, consumers of the Americas (“I must consume to change”), consumers of Europe (“I must change to keep consuming”), and the third group of consumers from emerging economies (“I consume as normal but now I support my community”). These findings shed light on the consequences of Humanistic Luxury, and some of the unlikely sources of local and global inequality reproduction in the sphere of consumption. This category is no longer providing a sense of distinction on the base of financial, but on cultural and moral capital. While Humanistic Luxury may help to eliminate artisan vulnerability, it also cements social hierarchies confirming who is “worthy”, and who is not, ultimately hindering social mobility on both local and global levels.