Cartier Release Short Film // Luxury Brands Optimise For Mobile // Valentino Opens Menswear Store

This week we talk about Cartier’s short film released in build-up for Valentine’s Day, how important mobile is to luxury brands, and the opening of Valentino’s first menswear store in Paris.

Cartier – Short Film Released in Run-Up to Valentine’s Day

We’ve written before about how important it is to integrate video content into your digital strategy but Cartier’s new short film Destinée released with the critical Valentine’s period in mind takes video content in a new direction. Watching the short film is more like watching an episode of a drama rather than a promotional video. Dialogue appears improvised at points, whilst the story has been conceived to appeal directly to the viewer’s emotions. Could this be the start of a trend whereby brands release mini-series that get under the skin of consumers in a way we’ve never seen before?
Watch the video…

Luxury Daily – The Importance of Mobile for Luxury Brands

The E-Retail Satisfaction Index: Luxury Brands conducted by ForeSee revealed that the real area of difference between luxury and non-luxury retail comes down to ‘mobile usage and satisfaction’. 65% of visitors to prestige ecommerce sites reported using their mobile device to visit a brand’s ecommerce site whilst in-store. 59% of shoppers of the 13 luxury retailers selected use a mobile phone to interact with a company.
Read more…

Vogue UK – Valentino to Open Menswear Store

If one of the success stories of 2012 was men’s fashion then 2013 shows no signs of changing direction. Significant increases in the luxury menswear market has spurred Valentino to open their first stand-alone menswear store in Paris and is intended to be the first in a series of Valentino’s menswear stores to open throughout Europe.
Read more…

FT.com – Luxury Brands Avoid Talking About Outlet Sales

There’s an elephant in the room says this interesting piece in the FT and apparently it answers to the name of ‘Outlet’. The source of sales that dare not speak its name is becoming an increasingly core part of luxury brands’ business models, perhaps more so than brands are willing to admit. Read more…

The Guardian – Luxury Cars Beat the Odds

Sales of luxury cars beat the odds in 2012 and showed an impressive increase in sales throughout Europe and the US. Whilst the general car market saw marked decreases in production and sales the demand for luxury cars such as Bentley, Maserati and Daimler remained positively healthy. In Europe Bentley reported a 12% sales increase whilst the UK proved recession resistant with a 7% growth.
Read more…