Experiential Marketing Growing Trend Worldwide Cultural Studies Essay

This article concentrates on the apprehension of luxury nutrient consumer perceptual experience every bit good as on the creative activity of a multisensory experience. The empirical survey is explorative in nature and relies on consumer narrations sing luxury nutrient consumer experiences. Based on relevant theories and the penetrations discovered during the face-to-face interview, this article aims to measure the different factors that influence the creative activity of a memorable consumer experience, which focus on the five senses experience, viz. , sight, hearing, touch/feeling, gustatory sensation and odor experiences.

As revealed from the consequences, it is apparent that the more a luxury nutrient trade name excites the five senses, the more likely it will make a memorable consumer experience ; hence, the more a consumer will be loyal to the luxury nutrient trade name. Building on these findings, this article contributes to the creative activity of a luxury nutrient consumer experience from a consumer-centred position.

Key words

Luxury nutrient consumer experience, multisensory experience, experiential selling

Table of Content

Table of Figures

Figure 1. Abraham Maslow ( 1943 ) theorized that people have five basic demands that could be ranked in hierarchal order. 9

Figure 2. Luxury Pyramid ( Kapeferer, 2008 ) 23

Figure 3. The Progression of Economic Value ( Pine and Gilmore, 1998 ) 29

Figure 4. The Four Realms of an Experience ( Pine and Gilmore, 1998 ) 31

Figure 5. Research method 41

Figure 6. Logos of Laduree and Picard 48

Figure 7. Posters and exposures were showed during the pre-purchasing portion 49

Figure 8. Shop exposures were showed during the buying portion 50

Figure 9. Data analysis. ( Braun and Clarke, 2006 ) 51

Figure 10. An illustration of the thematic map 52

Figure 11. The five senses experience for luxury nutrient trade names 56

Figure 12. Model for utilizing aromas in selling ( Bradford and Desrochers, 2010 ) 71

Table of Tables

Table 1: Traditional selling versus. Experiential selling ( Schmitt, 1998 ) 34

Table 2: Traditional vs. consumer-centred attack of luxury ( Bauer et al. , 2011 ) 35

Table 3: Sample features 42

Table 4: Categorization of the respondents based on luxury ingestion self-evaluation 43

Table 5: Categorization of the respondents based on experience 43

Table 6: Structure of the interview 46

Table 7: Overview on the luxury nutrient merchandises and trade names respondents mentioned 53

Chapter 1: Introduction

Experiential selling is a turning tendency worldwide. There is ample grounds to propose that more and more companies are presenting memorable consumer experience in order to keep competitory advantage. The IKEA experience is about doing better life with their co-creators by supplying well-designed place trappingss with low-cost monetary values every bit good as excellent and alone shop experience. The Starbucks experience is about sharing their great java with their friends: the warm feeling of a vicinity shop, the intimate connexion and the sense of the community, a topographic point for inspiration and conversation. The Ritz-Carlton experience is about ladies and gentlemen functioning ladies and gentlemen - staffs are non merely the co-designers of service bringing and of guest experience but besides the Godheads of WOW narratives for invitees ( Nixon and Rieple, 2010 ) .

Experience economic system was foremost introduced by Pine and Gilmore ( 1998 ) as portion of their work. From a long-run position, they distinguished four phases in the patterned advance of economic value: trade goods, goods, services and experiences. They argued that the economic value has progressed through three phases and that we are now come ining a 4th phase - the experience economic system. At the new epoch of experience economic system, the highest-value economic offerings are experiences. Companies are expected to present memorable experiences for consumers in order to last in the competitory market place. Experiences are the foundation for future economic growing.

Schmitt ( 1999 ) shared the same point of position with Pine and Gilmore, indicating out that traditional selling was developed in response to the industrial age, non the information, stigmatization and communications revolution we are confronting today. In a new age, we need to switch off from the traditional selling attack, which focuses on merchandise characteristics and consumer benefits. We need to see new constructs and attacks that capitalize on the experiential economic system. One such attack is experiential selling that views consumers as emotional human existences in the chase of enjoyable experiences.

Surprisingly, experiential selling is widely applied by many leading-edge companies in many industries ; nevertheless, selling in the luxury industry does non look to hold explicitly engaged the theoretical issues involved. Although luxury is a comparative construct and therefore is seldom comprehensive, the natural development of luxury, with luxury trade names originally being the preserve of the privileged few so today going more low-cost to mass-market consumers, raises great challenge for marketing practicians. Many organisations suggest that they are utilizing experiential selling for luxury trade names, when the world is that they are merely reiterating the mantra of traditional selling schemes ( Atwal and Williams, 2009 ) . It is hence necessary to use new selling tools and methods so as to stand in forepart of the new luxury consumers.

Bellaiche et Al. ( 2010 ) stated that in add-on to two traditional classs of luxury - difficult luxury ( i.e. tickers and jewelry ) and soft luxury ( i.e. manner and vesture ) , luxury extends to see in the new universe of luxury, such as intoxicant and nutrient, every bit good as travel, hotels and engineering. The planetary market for luxury merchandises is estimated to shut to 1 trillion, where intoxicant and nutrient stand foring about a‚¬50 billion. The luxury nutrient market is evaluated to achieve a‚¬5.3 one million millions in 2011, which makes its one of the markets that are non affected by the economic downswing ; on the other manus, it is expected to increase increasingly in the approaching old ages, thanks to the alone luxury nutrient features - delighting consumers with compelling culinary experience.

In footings of nutrient, luxury conveys a complicated message. First, it is non merely merely plenty to be desired, to be expensive or to be a qualitative polish. Luxury nutrients are non specific points of nutrients, but as nutrients offering a polish of a basic nutrient that is widely desired and a agency of differentiation ( van der Veen, 2003 ) . However, different from basic nutrients and gastronomy, luxury nutrients are frequently regarded as indulgence, excessive and unneeded, which are merely consumed in peculiar topographic point and clip for peculiar intents, such as household jubilation and corporate banquet. Second, as a agency of differentiation, luxury nutrients emphasis on the pleasance of ownership and the compelling experience ( i.e. sense, feel, think, act, etc. ) . This entire experience in inquiry should be positive, gratifying, memorable and persuadable, since the continuance of this ingestion and ownership lasts merely a few seconds or proceedingss. Not merely luxury nutrients should carry through consumers ' instrumental demand ( Berry, 1994 ) , but besides the milieus that are approachable to consumers ( i.e. packaging, presentation, atmosphere, etc. ) should be taken into consideration to heighten the message of exclusivity and excellence.

Postmodernity has radically altered and expanded modern-day apprehensions towards luxury consumer behavior. Consumers ' subjective experience of luxury and their sense of individuality have somehow changed significantly in the postmodern civilization. Besides, as luxury nutrients are going more and more accessible, luxury nutrient consumers are looking for other agencies to distinguish themselves from other consumers. As Tsai ( 2005 ) argued that the traditional product/service value proposition is no longer adequate for making consumers or making important distinction. Business must ease the sweetening of a seamless entire experience for consumers, which determines whether merchandises or services maintain competitory borders. This impulse is even more critical for luxury nutrient trade names.

This survey aims at analyzing luxury nutrient consumer experience and uncovering the manner to make valuable consumer experience in order to guarantee the greatest success of luxury nutrient trade names. In an explorative research utilizing qualitative interviews, this survey investigates luxury nutrient perceptual experiences and experience creative activity from a consumer-centred position. Building on these empirical findings, the manner luxury nutrient trade name can utilize to construct a compelling and persuasive multisensory experience has been introduced.

In order to develop effectual experiential selling in the country of luxury nutrient trade names direction, it is necessary to hold an apprehension of the conceptual issues related. This portion of the paper outlines the conceptual foundations, which includes stipulating the relevant definitions of the chief footings and on that footing explicating the experiential selling model, which could function to luxury nutrient trade name consumer experience edifice. Finally, the chances and challenges faced by luxury nutrient trade names will be presented.

2.1 The development of luxury

Luxury is portion and package of humanity and of life in society ( Kapferer and Bastien, 2009 ) . Since the beginning of humanity, there have been extraordinary objects and symbols, excessive life styles and increasing cardinal power, organized societies restricted to the taking groups. The visual aspect of luxury originates from the symbols and objects specific to these taking groups.

The term luxury is derived from the old Gallic luxurie intending `` richness, ebullient growing ; excess, dissipation, extravagancy '' . Reaching back farther, it stems from the Latin luxus, intending `` extra, extravagancy '' . This negative classical position of luxury, situating luxury as `` barbarous indulgence '' , stresses on its the non-essential nature. In the context of his celebrated proposal to analyze the nature of justness and unfairness in the person, Plato broached the topic of luxury by contrasting the necessary appetency, what Plato called `` demand '' and the unneeded appetency as `` desire '' [ in Cooper ( 1997 ) ] :

`` Certain of the unneeded pleasances and appetencies I conceive to be improper aˆ¦ I mean those which are awake when the logical thinking and human and governing power is asleep ; so the wild animal within us, gorged with meat or drink, starts up and holding shaken off slumber, goes away to fulfill his desires aˆ¦ ''

Plato continued, in this book The Republic ( Grecian: Politeia ) [ in Cooper ( 1997 ) ] , to promote work forces to command his `` desire '' because a life with luxury is unworthy:

`` When a adult male 's pulsation is healthy and temperate, and when earlier traveling to kip he has awakened his rational powers, and fed them on baronial ideas and questions aˆ¦ after holding foremost indulged his appetencies neither excessively much nor excessively small, but merely plenty to put them to kip, and forestall them and their enjoyments and strivings from interfering with the higher rule aˆ¦ ''

The decisive ground for the negative rating of luxury in classical idea has its roots in historical constructions of the societal hierarchy. Aristotle placed luxury at one extreme from robustness with endurance [ in Saunders ( 1981 ) ] . Persons whose lives were given over to a soft, epicurean life was incapable of supporting themselves. The epicurean adult male was therefore so `` soft '' that he could digest no hurting. Luxury produced military failing. These work forces were effeminate because it was of kernel of humanity to contend and to put on the line decease [ in Brown ( 2009 ) ] .

Luxury was bit by bit going a political issue and human desire was considered as potentially riotous power. By acknowledging the impossibleness to fulfill the insatiate appetency, which comes from human nature, Seneca [ in Stewart ( 1900 ) ] claimed that:

`` He who restrains himself within the bounds prescribed by nature, will non experience poorness ; he who exceeds them will ever be hapless, nevertheless great his wealth may be. ''

Harmonizing to Seneca, the wants of the organic structure are few. It wants protection from the cold, and the agencies of stilling hungriness and thirst ; nevertheless, all desires beyond these are frailties, non necessities. Body needs could be met by the Nature, which are little, few, and cheap [ in King ( 1927 ) ] . Luxury is on the contrary mulct, or qualitative differentiations where in Nature there are no supply.

Luxury ingestion is unsafe and hence needed to be regulated. In order to keep luxury or extravagancy, sumptuary Torahs was born to modulate personal ingestion, in peculiar, of nutrient, frock and ornamentation ( Hunt, 1996 ) . For case, one jurisprudence which was enacted on May 31, 1517, declared that a cardinal could hold nine dishes at one repast ; but a duck archbishop, Marquis, earl or bishop could hold seven dishes at a repast ; a Godhead, earl, lord city manager of London, knight of the supporter and archimandrites could hold six dishes ; citizens who made around ?40 to ?100 could merely be served three dishes at a repast ( Alison, 1998 ) . The passage of these Torahs were motivated by the effort to non merely continue societal differentiation, but besides limit luxury ingestion among common people, so that, their fortunate could be of aid if the crowned head was in demand of it.

It is in the context of trade that we can spot a important displacement in the significance of luxury ( Berry, 1994 ) . During the eighteenth and 19th centuries, following the Industrial Revolution, which increased well the life criterions, more and more persons obtained the fiscal power to luxury goods, thanks to the trade both in national and international degrees. The 18th century was a period when the argument over luxury came into prominence.

Adam Smith ( 1776 ) theorized the nature of luxury in his work `` the Wealth of Nations '' by tie ining it with goods that are in limited supply, hard to obtain and expensive:

`` When the measure of any trade good, which is brought to market falls short of the effective demand aˆ¦ some of them will be willing to give more. A competition will instantly get down among them, and the market monetary value will lift more or less above the natural monetary value aˆ¦ ''

Hume ( 1752 ) distinguished guiltless from barbarous luxury on the footing that one was good, and the other baneful, to political society. Innocent luxury produces `` economic and societal goods '' , while barbarous luxury is the `` socially unproductive ingestion of a little elite '' ( Marshall, 2000 ) . Luxury is assumed as uniqueness, scarceness, hereditary heritage, personal history, aesthetics and societal differentiation, which are relevant to the fulfillment of human existences ' dream of going portion of the superior category.

In his paper A Theory of Human Motivation, Maslow ( 1943 ) used the footings `` Physiological, Safety, Belongingness and Love, Esteem, and Self-Actualization '' needs to apologize the form that human motives by and large move through. Maslow ' Hierarchy of Needs is frequently portrayed in the form of a pyramid ( Figure 1 ) , with the largest and most cardinal degrees of demands at the underside, and the demand for self-actualization at the top. Maslow suggested that the most basic degree of demands must be met before the person will strongly want or concentrate the secondary or higher degree demands ; single tends to care about more and more his moral facets ' fulfillment once he climbs to a higher degree demands.

Figure 1. Abraham Maslow ( 1943 ) theorized that people have five basic demands that could be ranked in hierarchal order.

As can be seen from Maslow 's Hierarchy of Needs, Human 's demands are restricted by a series of societal and economic variables. However, all people are believed to be every bit ambitious and that `` the desire to better one 's status '' is a major motivational force for human existences ( Smith, 1776 ) . Described as the `` natural wants and demands of world '' in his Lectures on Jurisprudence ( 1762 ) , harmonizing to Adam Smith, these unconditioned homo features in the aspiration of luxury ingestion clear up the advancement of human civilisation:

`` Man entirely of all animate beings aˆ¦ is the lone 1 who regards the differences of things aˆ¦ Humans attention about the aesthetic qualities of objects - their coloring material and signifier, assortment or similarity to other objects aˆ¦ These desire and polish are the foundation of all the minute, and to more thoughtful individuals, frivolous differentiations aˆ¦ to satisfy which a 1000 humanistic disciplines have been invented. ''

This love of polish and elegance is `` natural '' , and it is `` good '' that nature that leads work forces to want `` to divert and entertain their most frivolous desires '' ( Smith, 1759 ) and therefore advance the economic development, because when luxuries are non available, or non wanted, people produce no more than plenty to populate on ( Brewer, 1998 ) . By detecting ordinary people who tended to respect the adult male of wealth and by effect produce economic growing in order to portion this felicity and warm feeling of regard, Hume ( 1752 ) argued, in his first portion of `` Of Refinement in the Humanistic disciplines '' that societal and economic effects of luxury are good to the person and to society at big:

`` Work force are kept in ageless business, and enjoy, as their wages, the business itself, every bit good as those pleasances which are the fruits of their labor. ''

In comparing to the classical idea, which regards luxury as hurtful and harmful, luxury, in the modern-day context, is given more positive significance and apprehension. The codifications of luxury, reserved to a little group of societal elite, refer to the feeling of high quality, the ultimate felicity, the desire and the capableness to go what one is, deserving, strength, self-esteem and assurance and are bit by bit developing into a dream for common people. During the eighteenth and 19th centuries, there were an increasing figure of persons who were in ownership of the fiscal means to afford luxury points and they were ready to `` cultivate the pleasance of the head every bit good as those of the organic structure '' ( Hume, 1752 ) . From the 20th century forth, this luxury, whose pleasance and delectations that were one time isolated from the remainder of the universe, is going accessible to a larger population. Globalization, communicating, increasing disbursement power, every bit good as democratisation are the cardinal drivers for this alteration ( Kapferer and Bastien, 2009 ) .

In the new century, alterations in modern-day consumer behavior in western societies have led to the outgrowth of a new significance and perceptual experience of luxury. Dubois, Laurent and Czeller ( 2001 ) carried out an of import survey to exemplify luxury perceptual experiences on a cross-cultural degree. They performed qualitative and quantitative cross-cultural consumer-based surveies in Western Europe, USA and Asia Pacific and designated luxury, in the managerial literature, as a combination of the undermentioned six dimensions: `` Price, Quality, Uniqueness, Aesthetics, Personal History and Superfluousness '' .

This line of idea goes frontward in the modern-day epoch. Contemporary lexicons such as Cambridge lexicon, involve homo 's well being within the definition of luxury:

A particular object: `` something expensive which is pleasant to hold but is non necessary '' ;

A manner of life: `` great comfort, particularly as provided by expensive and beautiful things '' ;

A grade of differentiation: `` something which gives you a batch of pleasance but which you can non frequently do '' .

Yet a reappraisal of the recent literature reveals that there is a deficiency of consensus sing the definition of luxury in the selling context, due to the continually rising apprehensions towards sociology and psychological science that have been developed. Veblen ( 1899 ) affirmed that luxury depends on both the merchandise attributes and the consumer ; luxury is that which is socially most desirable, since it places you at the acme of the hierarchy. Yet particular object that is considered as luxury in a social-economic context might be merely an ordinary one in another context. Psychologists examined the relationship between necessity and luxury, and claimed that different persons have different points of position refering the significance of luxury, despite their similar background ( Lunt and Livingstone, 1992 ; Matsuyama, 2002 ) . Kapferer and Bastien ( 2009 ) brought into visible radiation the dichotomy of luxury: luxury fulfils the symbolic desire to belong to a superior category ( `` luxury for others '' ) and at the same clip promises a strong personal and hedonic nexus to self-pleasure ( `` luxury for oneself '' ) . From this point of position, in their book `` The Luxury Strategy '' , Kapferer and Bastien asserted ( 2009 ) :

`` Luxury is about being, for oneself and for others, non about holding. ''

For this ground, Pierre Berge , CEO of the Pierre Berge - Yves Saint-Laurent Foudation, pointed out that luxury offers objects and non merchandises ; luxury is a infinite of enjoyment and non ingestion ( Kapferer and Bastien, 2009 ) . Luxury object has a psyche inside it: it is a pure creative activity and it speaks for itself. Luxury creates a spread, meaning position and civilization ; nevertheless, an artisanship of highly high quality does non needfully do it a great name everlastingly and globally. This is the difference between luxury and luxury trade names. A luxury trade name is first of all a trade name and secondly luxury.

2.2 Basic nutrients, gastronomy and luxury nutrients

Civilization begins with agribusiness. When our ascendants began to settle and turn their ain nutrients, human society is everlastingly changed. Not merely do small towns, towns and metropoliss begin to boom, but so do cognition, humanistic disciplines and technological scientific disciplines. That is the ground why the greatest ancient civilisation is ever built around the greatest rivers, which serve to the irrigation and transit of nutrients. The lowest lever of Maslow 's Hierarchy of Needs is made up of the basic physical demands including the demand for nutrients, H2O, slumber and heat. Basic nutrients are critical for endurance ; it is therefore considered as a basic demand for all human existences. Human beings discover easy different methods to fix nutrient with different ingredients for different occasions such as, crop, spiritual offerings and funerary rites. These nutrients are consequently attributed with assorted symbolic significances: they are used in an effort to show the wants of human existences, to delight God, to memory the asleep or ease their hereafter.

The culinary art was going more and more sophisticated in the Middle Age, and chefs were recognized by their honorable profession and did frequently cook merely for the royal households. The art of the tabular array foremost appeared around 1530 in the upper-class society, following the publication of the book Civilitas morum puerilium of Erasme. The word gastronomy is derived from Ancient Greek `` gastro '' : tummy and `` nomy '' : Torahs that govern, and hence literally means `` the art or jurisprudence of modulating the tummy '' ( Vitaux, 2007 ) . Brillat-Savarin ( 1988 ) , the male parent of gastronomy, maintained that cookery is a degree of true scientific discipline ; excellence is based on the intrinsic quality of ingredients prepared with attention. He aimed to do connexions between nutrient and its effects on non merely the organic structure and wellness, but besides the head and spirit:

`` State me what you eat, and I will state you what you are. ''

Basic nutrients are at the foundation of gastronomy. Gastronomy transforms the basic nutrients into a signifier of art, by analyzing how to increase the freshness, the presentation, the spirits, the colors of ingredients and the overall message of the nutrients. Gastronomy is much deeper than basic nutrients, for it integrates human penetrations into culinary facets. Gastronomy is therefore different from basic nutrients. Basic nutrients are a necessity for human being 's endurance. They can be described as non-intentional or cosmopolitan, in that they do non mention to the peculiar demand of an single, but to the general demands of all human existences ( Berry, 1994 ) . On the contrary, gastronomy is a petition space of quality, an look of gustatory sensation, a pleasance for feeding ; it reflects the outlook of people acquiring involved, the relationship between the nature and human existences, every bit good as the civilization it represents. Harmonizing to Jean Vitaux ( 2007 ) , the difference between gastronomy and basic nutrients is apparent:

`` Gastronomy aˆ¦ emphases on the gustatory sensation, the merchandises, the readying and the confederation between nutrient and drink. It is the pleasance [ of fixing and eating nutrient ] that comes foremost. Gastronomy insists on the assortment and the quality of merchandises, while [ basic ] nutrients are more insistent. ''

The modern apprehension about gastronomy is greatly influenced by several Gallic texts published in the 18th century. Brillat-Savarin ( 1826 ) included in the gastronomy the cognition and apprehension of all that relates to adult male as he eats, its intent is to guarantee the preservation of work forces, utilizing the best nutrient possible. He insisted that the true gastronomy is about the natural history, physiology, chemical science, commercialism, political relations, economic system, medical specialty and sociology. Gastronomy is recognized as the survey of nutrient and civilization, with a peculiar focal point on epicure culinary art by modern bookmans and practicians. It is a demanding multidisciplinary art explicating nutrient itself along with its context, presentation, freshness, and history. Revel ( 2007 ) pointed out:

`` The culinary art is a flawlessness of nutrients, gastronomy is a flawlessness about the culinary art. ''

Gastronomy is apparently synonymous with `` haute culinary art '' and `` quality '' associated with costliness, or even luxury. It is frequently referred to as the grade of societal elite, which is non true. Certain gastronomy may be a spot costly, depending on the monetary value of the ingredients or the name of the chef. Yet this is non ever the instance. The difference of societal categories, states, parts, and manner are cardinal determiners for the assortments of gastronomy. Gastronomy is a societal and cultural pattern instead than luxury nutrients - a mode of `` humanitarianism of the tabular array '' ( Cesergo, 2008 ) .

Luxury nutrients differentiate from both basic nutrients and gastronomy. Luxury nutrients are object of desire ( Berry, 1994 ) , which propose physical or bodily satisfaction and centripetal enjoyment. Based on Berry 's work, van der Veen ( 2003 ) conceptualized luxury nutrients in the undermentioned manner:

`` Luxury nutrients are those nutrients that are widely desired because they offer a polish or qualitative betterment of a basic nutrient and a agency of differentiation because they are non yet widely attained. ''

Under this definition, luxury nutrients possess a few features:

Luxury denotes nutrients that are non indispensable for human nutrition. Additionally, luxury nutrients frequently focus on proficient high quality, far transcending consumers ' outlook.

Luxury nutrients express themselves in footings of aesthetical and animal values. They are things that offer pleasance and enjoyment and are characterized by a qualitative polish of a basic nutrient: they represent an indulgence.

Luxury nutrients are comparatively rare in footings of production, resource, or distribution, reflecting luxury life styles and stand foring consumers ' societal position and differentiation. Luxury nutrients are frequently associated with elites: they are symbols of the upper categories, who use expensive and alien nutrients to tag societal position, to individuality differentiation.

Luxury nutrients involve high disbursement, and hence being widely desired yet difficult to be obtained. If the figure of people who have entree to a luxury additions, the position of these goods alterations ; they turn into platitude goods and may finally go necessities ( Berry, 1994 ) .

2.3 Luxury nutrients: hedonistic ingestion

Kapferer and Bastien ( 2009 ) believed that, in luxury, the merchandise ever comprises one ( or more ) objects and a service. A luxury service should go stuff in an object, and a luxury object is ever accompanied by a service, or is even the look of it.

Vickers and Renand ( 2003 ) developed a three dimensional significances of luxury goods in footings of `` functionalism, experientialism and symbolic interactionism '' . Functionalism is termed as merchandise characteristics that could `` work out a current job '' or `` forestall a possible 1 '' , by fulfilling consumers ' useful public presentation demands, such as superior quality, well-selected ingredients, a piece of work that is non merely eye-catching but besides tasteful. Experientialism incorporates characteristics that could excite centripetal pleasance and hedonistic ingestion, such as traditional artisanship and the great name of the manufacturer, particular profusion and tone of ornament, elegance of yearss gone by. Symbolic interactionism implies merchandise constituents related to position and self-recognition, such as esteemed name or recognizable bring forthing manner. Although both luxury and non-luxury nutrients can be conceptualized in a similar manner, there is a typical difference in the mix of these constituents. In contrast to basic nutrients, luxury nutrients are those whose ratio of functional public-service corporation to monetary value is low while the ratio of intangible and situational public-service corporation to monetary value is high ( Nueno and Quelch, 1998 ) . The functional dimension is where the luxury nutrient trade names `` does '' in the stuff universe, instead than what it `` nowadayss '' ( Berthon et al. , 2009 ) . Thus luxury nutrient trade names make outstanding merchandises of great functionality: far transcending consumers ' outlook. Basic foods correspond to a demand ; the function of basic nutrients is to run into the demand every bit rapidly as possible at the lowest cost compatible with a minimum degree of quality. Luxury nutrients correspond to a dream. Dreams are beyond demand or desire ; the Deoxyribonucleic acid of luxury nutrients is the symbolic desire to belong to a superior category ; the function of luxury nutrients is to react to individual 's dreams to populate in a multisensory experience over clip. Further treatment on the symbolic interactionism and experientialism of luxury nutrients will be extended as follow.

There is ample grounds that interpersonal or external factors with respects to symbolic interactionism, such as sentiments, influences, blessing and suggestions of or interaction with others, are posited to be a major motive for luxury goods ingestion ( Groth and McDaniel, 1993 ) . The societal and psychological nature of luxury nutrients has aroused greater and greater consciousness ; it is argued to be a major factor lending to the consumers ' buying determination ( Gardner and Levy, 1955 ) . Many anthropologists and sociologists have demonstrated how luxury nutrients are used as a semiotic device, signalling rank and competition, solidarity and community, individuality or exclusion, and familiarity or distance. Popular literature positions luxury nutrient ingestion as a complex interplay of cultural, economic, societal, political, and technological forces. Its current attack seems to stress on its double nature as both an object of art and a metaphor ( Kniazeva and Venkatesh, 2007 ) . As Levy ( 1959 ) noted in her article Symbols for Gross saless:

`` Peoples buy merchandises non merely for what they can make, but besides for what they mean. When people talk about the things they buy and why they buy them, they show a assortment of logicsaˆ¦ They try to fulfill many purposes, feelings, wants, and fortunes. ''

Luxury nutrients frequently carry out a powerful signifier of human look used to quantify love and respects from others. The excessive banquets and feasts are perfect illustration for this penetration. During these occasions, bill of fares composed of assorted alien and luxury nutrients for the wealthy are expensive, yet merely little parts are taken. Beautiful objects are used and great tabular array is set to recover the wealth and the reputable position of the host. Guests are invited purely on the footing of their differentiation and luck in the societal hierarchy. There is no admiration that luxury nutrients are in some cases recognized as the luxury symbols to keep societal ranks and baronial privilege in human history, together with vesture and jewelry.

Experientialism is likely the most of import dimension of luxury nutrients. The separating feature of luxury nutrients is that luxury nutrients are transeunt: it is eaten and therefore mostly disappears, and absorbed by the organic structure ( van der Veen, 2003 ) . Taste is one of the five senses together with sight, hearing, touch and odor. The gustatory sensation is besides the most hard to specify and reproduce, because human existences can non enter it as sight and hearing, neither can we clear up it as touch and odor. Scientists have discovered that gustatory sensation is non the exclusive determiner to win a consumer 's favor ( Hunter, 2002 ) . Although gustatory sensation can act upon what a consumer may name a spirit, other senses may supply other of import centripetal information that defines a nutrient 's spirit ( O'Donnell, 2011 ) . For case, we smell the olfactory property of freshly baked bar by luxury house and our gustatory sensation buds are titillated ; our appetency is whetted when we pass by the luxury cocoa house where the hand-made macarons are attractive to the eyes ; we expect to hear the all right bubbles that arise in a newly poured glass of bubbly ; we enjoy the steadfast texture of lobsters, a pricy merchandise but a must for esteemed eating houses. On the other manus, single differences in gustatory sensation perceptual experience are striking: some people may respond to some certain gustatory sensation ( or odour ) by experiencing it is excessively strong ; and others, excessively weak. Some groups enjoy high-impact, high-flavour, about painful centripetal experiences when they eat a nutrient ; others favour more elusive, quiet centripetal experiences. The understanding about gustatory sensation varies from one state to another, from one person to another. First, social-demographic variables including age, gender and instruction attainment are extremely related to luxury nutrient perceptual experience and experience. For case, adult females are sensitive when it comes to emotional ups and downs than work forces. Therefore, they may be more emotional involved in centripetal experience of luxury nutrient ingestion than work forces. Second, another chief factor act uponing consumer experiences is consumers ' cultural background. Alien luxury merchandises excite more foreign consumers than local 1s. The ingestion of luxury nutrient merchandises generates and requires significant mental activities on the portion of consumers. Yet the comprehensive dimensions sing the experiential facets of luxury nutrient consumers in the selling research are small explored or accounted for.

Individual differences are disputing to nutrient engineers. As a affair of fact, the altering environment is one factor that leads to assorted surveies and researches about the relationship between single differences and external environment every bit good as the subsequent decision-making. The Optimum Stimulation Level ( OSL ) is a belongings that characterizes an person in footings of his general response to environmental stimulations ( Raju, 1980 ) . The OSL model proposes that every being most prefers a certain degree of stimulation, which may be termed `` Optimum Stimulation '' . When the environment stimulation ( which is determined by belongingss such as freshness, ambiguity, complexness, etc. ) is below optimum, an person will try to increase stimulation ; when it is above optimum, he/she will endeavor to cut down it. Consumers OSLs are consistently related to curiosity-motivated behavior, assortment seeking, and hazard pickings ( Steenkamp and Baumgartner, 1992 ) . Zuckerman ( 1979 ) implied in his findings that consumers with high OSLs would put greater precedence on hedonism, autonomy and stimulation values. On one manus, stimulation and autonomy involve intrinsic involvement in freshness and command ( Schwartz, 1994 ) . Schwartz et Al. ( 1992 ) argued `` stimulation values derive form the presumed organismal demand for assortment and stimulation in order to keep an optimum degree of activation '' . The motivational end of stimulation is excitement, freshness and challenge in life. Choosing, making, and researching through independent idea and action characterise autonomy. Raju ( 1981 ) suggested that high OSL consumers were more funny. Zuckerman ( 1979 ) shared the same sentiment by claiming that high esthesis searchers were more independent. Therefore, stimulation values may deduce from OSL and should correlate extremely with any step of it, at the really least. On the other manus, hedonism has emerged as a motivational value type that serves higher-order openness to alter and self-enhancement ends, harmonizing to Schwartz ( 1994 ) . Zuckerman ( 1979 ) claimed that high sensation-seekers are characterized by a life style that emphasises hedonic self-fulfilment. From the above surveies and researches, it is concluded that consumers seeking bangs, escapade, disinhibition, new experiences, flight from ennui, strangeness and alternation among familiar things have been identified as prosecuting in consumer behaviors in order to raise their degree of stimulation in life ( Hirschman, 1980 ; McAlister and Pessemier, 1982 ; Raju, 1981 ; Zuckerman, 1979 ) .

Luxury nutrients ingestion is hence a hedonistic response instead than useful petition, lighting consumer behavior with respects to goods or properties whose choice and usage is guided by emotional wants instead than functional demands ( Khan et al. 2004 ) . Basic nutrients, on the other manus, are chiefly instrumental and their purchase is motivated by functional merchandise facets. In comparing to useful ingestion, hedonistic ingestion may be perceived as comparatively more discretional ( Okada, 2005 ) . Dubois and Laurent ( 1996 ) pointed out that emotional value is a critical feature of luxury merchandises. They stated that:

`` A huge bulk subscribes to the hedonistic motivation aˆ¦ one buys luxury goods primary for one 's pleasance. ''

Hedonic ingestion designates those aspects of consumer behaviors coupled with the multisensory, phantasy and affectional facets of one 's experience with merchandises ( Hirshman and Holbrook, 1982 ) . Luxury nutrient trade name sellers are recommended to supply high external environmental stimulations to elicit luxury nutrient consumers ' wonder, to excite consumer experiences and thereby to actuate consumers to buy and buy back. The more a luxury nutrient merchandise excites the multiple sensory of gustatory sensations, sounds, aromas, hearing, touch, haptic feelings and ocular images, the more likely it will be appeal to consumers.

The modern apprehension of a trade name is consumer and individuality oriented. A trade name is defined as `` a name, term, symbol, or design, or combination of them which is intended to place the goods and services of one marketer or group of Sellerss and to distinguish them from those of rivals '' ( Kolter, 1991 ) . Luxury trade names are regarded as one of the purest illustrations of branding in today 's market place ( Keller, 2009 ) . Based on the definition of luxury trade names by Heine ( 2011 ) , we can gestate luxury nutrient trade name in the undermentioned manner:

`` Luxury nutrient trade names are regarded as images in the heads of consumers that comprise associations about a high degree of monetary value, quality and aesthetics, extraordinariness in footings of gustatory sensation ; genuineness and rareness in footings of ingredients, and a high grade of non-functional association. ''

The Colbert Committee is an association founded in 1954 by Jean-Jacques Guerlain, who contributed to the communicating of Gallic luxury industry in the universe. Till today, the Committee has 75 luxury maisons as members, including Pierre Herme Paris, La Maison du Chocolat and Lenotre as the most extraordinary luxury nutrient trade names. Colbert Committee may hold a word in make up one's minding who are the most esteemed luxury maisons in the luxury industry ; nevertheless, this does non forestall those nutrient trade names that are non born with luxury codifications from using a luxury nutrient trade name scheme. de Barnier et Al. ( 2006 ) in their article argued that a non-luxury nutrient could go a luxury one depending on the statics. It is associated, in the first topographic point, with the highly high criterions of services that are linked to the merchandising accomplishments and images of sellers. The primary end of sellers is to make an appropriate luxury shopping experience for the consumers. Boutique interior design and ware presentation are considered as important constituents to make statics and luxury experience ( Atsmon et al. , 2011 ) .

Therefore, there exist different types of luxury nutrient trade names. Jean-Noel Kapferer 's ( 2008 ) luxury pyramid ( Figure 2 ) provides farther penetration in this country. At the top of the pyramid, there is the griffe - the Godhead 's signature engraved on a alone work. Pierre Herme Paris is a maison founded by the great name of Pierre Herme , a talented Gallic pastry chef dubbed `` The Picasso of Pastry '' . The 2nd degree is that of luxury nutrient trade names produced in s promenade series within a workshop. Qwehli, the queen of the runts good known in the culinary universe, the star of the home base on the tabular array, conducts a purely one-year production policy in order to command the quality and keep its exclusivity. The 3rd degree is that of upper-range trade name, between luxury nutrient trade names and industrialized nutrient trade names. The 4th degree is that of streamlined mass production. At this degree of industrialisation, the trade name 's celebrity generates an aura of intangible added values for expensive and premier quality merchandises, which however bit by bit tend to look more and more similar to the remainder of the market. Hence its name peers to mass prestigiousness.

Figure 2. Luxury Pyramid ( Kapeferer, 2008 )

Luxury nutrient trade names direction is to keep the extremism of all bounds, elevate a philosophy of design, industry, distribution and communicating to depict luxury, with the exclusive end of delighting the roof of the mouth of consumers and make multisensory experience ( Sicard, 2003 ) . The luxury nutrient trade names cultivates its singularity ; it prefers to be reliable to an individuality in its pursue of excellence and high quality in ingredient choice, aesthetics and quality, and the ultimate pleasance for selected consumers by puting a high monetary value.

2.4 Luxury nutrient trade names in the postmodern age

Recent facets of Western life in general and of ingestion in peculiar have reflected the being of a major current: the postmodern. The term `` postmodernism '' was foremost used in architecture to stress the interruption in the sixtiess with modern functional and rational thought. Today it has been used in all spheres of scientific discipline and cognition.

Firat et Al. ( 1995 ) offered a comprehensive image of the postmodernity to selling and proposed an alternate position on ingestion ; their surveies highlight six classs that characterize the conditions of postmodernism:

( 1 ) Hyperreality manifests in consumers ' petition of hyppereal experience and their belief in the trade name promise. Numerous modern-day illustrations of the hyperreal are grounded in ingestion experiences. The phantasy of subject park, computing machine games and movies involves the loss of a sense of genuineness and the transmutation of practical world to world that consumers are willing to accept. ( 2 ) Atomization describes the disconnected minutes of ingestion experience, particularly, in marketing communications such as Television commercials that last 30 seconds or 15 seconds. Further, persons today have every agency of societal communicating to show their being in the universe which is full of information and disconnected minutes. Postmodernism is a period of utmost individuality. ( 3 ) The reversal of ingestion and production arises when persons actively define their self-images for themselves every bit good as to others through ingestion - the consumer is the manufacturer of his or her ain experience. Consumers are motivated non merely for buying the useful facets, but, most significantly, anticipating the symbolic and experiential facets of the merchandise. ( 4 ) The decentering of the topic, such as functionality and monetary value of the merchandises one time believed to be the exclusive involvement of rational consumers, is the effect of the trade names attempts to make narratives and heroes, irreverently worshipped by consumers. ( 5 ) Paradoxical appositions of antonyms show that consumers of postmodern civilization appreciate and bask the paradox and the gaiety ; they are ready and able to non merely liberate themselves restricted in one individual function in the society but besides represent different self-images in disconnected minutes. ( 6 ) Loss of committedness happens due to the inability of the trade name to present its promises, and the turning willingness of consumers to see differences.

The research workers ' proposition maintains that the age of postmodernism makes image the kernel of the merchandise ( Firat et al. , 1995 ) . In the postmodern market place, luxury nutrients do non project images ; they fill images that are related to the consumers ' dream and desire. Cova ( 1996 ) provides farther principle in explicating `` Postmodernity = the age of the image + the age of experience '' . He claimed that postmodern consumers are non devouring merchandises ; they are devouring the images of those merchandises - the symbolic significances. The images, represented through the planned interplay of a battalion of marks, emerge and go the Centre the consumer seeks in following a merchandise. Technological inventions are substituted by the aesthetic dimensions ; in another word, The functional significances disappears behind the aesthetic dimension. Technology is merely at that place to prefer the creative activity of images.

The luxury nutrient merchandise is likely to go less and less a `` finished '' object of desire ; consumers reject to accept the dominant value and everything that is normal. They want to take part. They request a procedure to let them to plunge themselves and can supply inputs. They shape, reshape, modify and negotiate until their `` engagement '' allows them to accomplish an image for themselves. There is an accent on the consumers ' multisensory activities in luxury nutrient trade name selling. Therefore, the traditional determiners including values, attitudes, penchant, incomes, societal category and so on, which are used in explicating consumers ' behaviours are no longer helpful. These demographic and psychographic features do non alter momentarily, and by effect, consumers are believed to be simple, rational and loyal in their picks. This point of position is, nevertheless, no long suited to understand, in full range, consumers who expose themselves in the postmodern civilization. There is a necessity in happening out new determiners of luxury nutrient ingestion that could be of aid for luxury nutrient trade names to understand postmodern consumers.

In the new epoch, luxury nutrient trade name selling practicians has to include the consumer non as a mark but as a Godhead of experiences. Yet the ability of postmodern persons to writhe or deviate significances in order to accomplish their ain self-image sometimes shows a menace to the luxury nutrient trade names, in peculiar, in the new epoch where a little consumer ailment may by manifested as monolithic dirts by societal networking in the international degree. In order to better command this personalized and unintended procedure of creative activity, new selling techniques are required. Cova ( 1996 ) provides, in his article, a simple equation aimed at suggesting a postmodern selling solution: `` Postmodern selling = image selling + experience selling '' . The postmodern position seeks non to replace traditional theories of ingestion but instead to widen and heighten their pertinence.

Image selling can be regarded as anything ocular. It can be gourmet ads and posting, dress shops, ornament, presentation of luxury nutrients in aesthetic ways and so on. These visuals work invariably on the surface, reassigning to consumers the significances that the company wants to bringing. Companies want to take part actively into the building of image of consumers so as to reenforce the trade name message and image.

Experiential selling responds to the trade name 's attempt in the continual production of significances, in which consumers are to the full participated. Experiential selling emphasizes `` interactivity, connectivity, and creativeness '' , which are the nucleus values of postmodernism ( Atwal and William, 2009 ) . This is what Regis Mckenna ( 1995 ) defines as `` real-time selling '' or `` participatory selling '' . Staging an unforgettable consumer experience is considered as one aspect of the luxury nutrient trade names, together with the nutrient merchandises and the service related in the dress shop. The luxury nutrient merchandises are transeunt, while the experience can populate in the memory for a long clip. Therefore, the luxury nutrient consumer who is devouring is besides going liberated from the exclusive function of a consumer and is going a manufacturer of his ain experience. That is why the postmodern selling has to include the consumers non as a mark for luxury nutrients but a manufacturer of experiences. Although in much present consumer research there is an increased attending in the importance of consumer experiences, this field has received limited probe in the context of luxury nutrient trade names.