Article body
Dana Thomas is a true fashion insider and works as the correspondent for Newsweek in Paris. In this book, she presents a controversial and courageous view of how luxury brands sell the illusion of being rich to the middle class, and in doing so devaluates the authenticity of luxury brands.
Written like a novel, the author takes the reader on a personal journey behind the scenes and around the world, putting luxury in a historical context, explaining the genesis of many popular luxury brands. She explains how luxury was really exclusive at one time, and only made by small artisans for the benefits of really wealthy people.
However, there are more than just interesting stories in this book. There is real substance in the form of an entrepreneurial guide on how to manage a luxury brand. Dana Thomas explains that luxury businesses today are just the same as any other businesses, i.e., short-term and sales oriented. According to her, the decline of luxury started when luxury became the matter of big corporations which focus on distributing luxury to the masses.
This book will have you rethinking the whole idea of what luxury is, and how perhaps one can become a luxury brand and not compromise over time. Is a luxury product defined by the type of people who are buying it? Perhaps Dana Thomas is nostalgic of a time when only the elite could afford luxury.
After reading this book I started to think about the compatibility between fashion brands and luxury brands, but also pros and cons of luxury brand licensing, designers becoming superstars, the always pervasive practice of counterfeiting, the vintage market, and the impact of outlet malls. This book is a source of inspiration for both researchers and entrepreneurs.