Brands Serving High Networth Individuals During And After COVID-19 Lockdown
Luxury brands’ survival depends on the High Networth Individuals brand assessment and here are a few questions to ask during Covid-19 lockdown.
Known as the 1% of the world’s total population, and holding 40% of the global wealth, High Networth Individuals are the ideal client for luxury brands and an army of creative minds are working tirelessly to meet their wants and needs.
Most business people who started their enterprise with the desire to serve this specific demographic, developed an innate curiosity, almost an addiction to understanding the stages of growth in humans, looking deep down into consumers’ sense of exclusivity, authenticity, value, beliefs and their expectations.
Abraham Maslow’s classification hierarchy back in 1943 explains that the transition from an individual’s existing level of wants and needs into a higher level of lifestyle is only possible when an individual is completely satisfied and fulfilled and, as a result, is motivated to upgrade their lifestyle and decide to move into the next level of their existence.
On reflection, these levels are overlapping each other at any point in time… A good example is an unprecedented desire to give during Covid-19 outbreak, regardless where you position yourself in the Rich List. Seems that now is the right time for Sovereign to launch The Inner Rich List. At the top of this new hierarchy must be Captain Tom Moore who walks to support NHS and who attracted online donations in excess £22,835,764.98 at the time of publishing this article.
Is Covid-19 bringing a new sense of self actualisation in our lifestyle?
From a recent study we carried out for our sister publication on luxury lifestyle changes during and after Covi-19, we learned a few interesting facts. High Net-Worth Individuals are in alignment with their beliefs system and they are aware of the impact their own lifestyle choices make on society. As a result, they will expect the brands they purchase to care about what they care about and most importantly, they care of the impact they make in society.
What motivates HNWI to choose one brand against another in 2020 and beyond?
From London to Tokyo, Dubai, Hong Kong, Dubai, New York and Singapore, the nouveau riche rose from emerging markets and their buying power is celebrated throughout the Far East and Middle East, all the way to North and South America.
The ultimate goal in Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is to reach “Self Actualisation”, which is the fifth level of his hierarchy.
Not surprisingly, the HNWI are looking at how a brand is taking care of the basic needs of their employees and suppliers, and how well they fare into the ‘fair- trade’.
In our survey there are two questions that HNWI are asking themselves before choosing a brand or another:
Is their favourite Luxury Brand taking care of the physiological needs of their employees?
Is the Luxury Brand they buy into verifying the level of diversity and closing the gender gap within the supply chain?
Advanced sense of ethical brand assessment
More than anyone else in the history of High Net Worth Individuals, the nouveau riche care when other human beings are struggling to meet their immediate needs: food, water, accommodation, health and education.
They are aware that if workers and suppliers of their favorite brands are enable to put food on the table, or are sleep deprived, or if their children have no shoes to go to school, they are not helping the progress of society, and society is at a great loss. If the brands they are buying from are not supporting their employees and supply chain, millions of people are unlikely to pursue safety, belongingness, esteem, and eventually reach self-actualization, as they did.
HNWI went through significant years of high education already but they never stop learning, accumulating new life experiences, and their constant exposure to premium brands, helped them develop a sixth sense for quality and a listening ear for authentic narrative.
If you wonder how best to engage with the HNWI’s Elite, here are a few questions you could ask yourself
What do you do as a brand to feed their advanced sense of brand assessment and alignment to their system beliefs?
Are you telling the story of the people who created the brand to serve their needs for sustainable luxury?
When was the last time when your story helped buyers enrich their lifestyle with a sense of fulfilment that they contribute to the greater good when buying your product?
While the coronavirus pandemic is associated with social distancing , and people from all paths of lives are closer than ever, for “business as usual” to carry on, there is a sense of awareness transforming the attitude of both High Networth Individuals and luxury brands. Brands introduced video conferences and virtual events to keep suppliers and consumers connected during Covid-19 upheaval. There is a renewed energy into sharing the story behind the brand to enhance exposure to High Networth Individuals who now, more then ever before, have the time to listen to the unique message you want to voice.
What is your Covid-19 strategy and how is changing the image of your brand during lockdown and beyond?
We would love to hear from you!
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