Profiling Customer Types in Luxury Retail Setting

Abstract

The type of customer who buys luxury is continuing to evolve. This research investigates the value and service-dominant theory effects on the value co-creation process between a service provider and service consumer within the luxury retail environment. The goal of the paper is two-fold: first, to offer a new view on value co-creation and second, to suggest potential in-store target segments based on experiential drivers in order to improve value sharing within luxury stores for diverse luxury shoppers. In other words, the author noticed a gap between the existing writing and practice – customer involvement has become interactive, and not neglected. The paper, thus, introduces four groups of customers: Experts, Popular, Exclusive and Aspirational. The methodology used combines analyses of four value creation denominators within the luxury setting: actor’s role, aesthetics, networks and luxury brand with findings from secondary research to integrate into the existing writing in this field. The managerial implications mainly target brand managers of luxury and premium brands with the objective to offer insights on how to address, with higher precision, the types of clients visiting and shopping for luxury products.