Fashion leaders share their vision of the future of luxury

What is the future of luxury? The New York Times asked a selection of decision makers, including Jonathan Akeroyd, CEO of Gianni Versace; Francesca Bellettini, president and CEO of Saint Laurent; Alex Bolen, CEO of Oscar de la Renta; and several others who run fashion companies or who serve that segment in one way or another.

“The luxury goods industry will need to manage with the fact that more and more disposable spending is now being spent on experiences rather than goods, as the cupboards are full, and the garages are full, and the affluent would now rather buy unique, memorable experiences,” Sonu Shivdasani, founder and CEO of resort company Soneva, told the newspaper.

“Today luxury is not just about price,” said Steve Shiffman, CEO of Calvin Klein. “For some, it’s about having the best. For some, it’s about having better. It’s not enough for a brand to create a single definition of luxury — it has to be more democratic than that.”

Victor Luis, CEO of Tapestry, the new parent company of Coach, Kate Spade and Stuart Weitzman, reflected on the future of luxury in relation to contemporary omni-channel realities. “After many years of attempted focus on all things digital,” Luis said, “brands are realizing that consumers demand differentiated experiences across channels and we will continue to see innovation in brick-and-mortar store experiences as well as product co-creation with consumers — personalization and customization — taken to new levels.”