Many luxury and fashion brands are cashing in thanks to the Millennials wave.
What’s the reason behind such an obsession?
1. A fresh target makes a perfect attention-getting hook for investors and shareholders
2. It should represent an additional target to the already existing ones
3. They are represented as eager for brands and products
4. They should represent a strategic target to nurture and grow for the future
5. They are an easier target as under-marketed consumers In fact this risks to be more fluff than long term opportunity because:
- Millennials are not high net worth people. Their parents are.
- In key countries like China they are at risk to enter the loan-debt-shop vicious circle
- The over-marketed consumers are more discerning and loyal to brands and style
Focusing on Millennials is clearly an easy-to-sell recipe that risks to rely on a generation of youngsters that have not proved yet themselves to be able to enter the HNWI groups.
And it leads luxury brands to dilute their power through heavy streetstyle compromises: ugly sneakers, skateboard-like lifestyle, teen agers look and feel are trends quite difficult to revert when Millennials will be done.
Take Chanel. Take long term investments. And Penelope Cruz.