Charlie Chaplin famously said, “The saddest thing I can imagine is to get used to luxury.” Luxury is not — by definition — necessary, but we all crave it. It lifts us above our mundane routines and makes life more pleasurable.
Ultra-premium products claim exceptional quality due to superior ingredients, a higher level of craftsmanship, limited availability and/or better design than lower-priced products in their category. These objective qualities are essential in the intellectual equation that defines luxury standing in consumers’ minds. However, the intellectual equation does not drive our luxury purchase decision. It simply provides justification for the emotional decision once we’ve made it.