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GRAFF, BREGUET TOP LIST OF JEWELRY AND WATCH BRANDS IN LUXURY STATUS INDEX June 20, 2012 (0 comments)
New York, NY—Graff Diamonds heads a list of 22 luxury jewelers in the 2012 Luxury Brand Status Index survey, conducted by the Luxury Institute. The U.K. based diamantaire—who has six retail outposts and representation in some Saks Fifth Avenue stores on this side of the pond—ranks first in the brand reputation component of the survey, and leads other jewelers in evaluations of product materials and craftsmanship. The survey also says pentamillionaires view the brand as having the most justification for charging premium prices.
Fellow U.K. jeweler Asprey came in second, followed by Mikimoto in third place on the LBSI. But popularity isn’t what puts a store in first place: according to the Institute, only 1% of pentamillionaires have shopped at Graff, while 3% have shopped at Asprey and 4% have bought a Mikimoto pearl.
Tiffany, meanwhile, earns the “most popular” spot, if not the “finest” spot on the LBSI. 13% of pentamillionaires have shopped there in the past year, and 75% of pentamillionaires say they are considering shopping there in the coming year. But the brand—not retailer—cited most frequently for future purchase intent is Alexis Bittar, a favorite with celebrities like First Lady Michelle Obama and Lady Gaga.
In the luxury watch category, like Tiffany for jewelry, Rolex is the most popular brand but not necessarily considered the best. Of 27 luxury watch brands, pentamillionaires (Americans with a minimum net worth of $5 million and at least $200,000 in annual income) in the Luxury Institute survey gave that honor to Breguet instead.
Despite having relatively low brand awareness in the United States, Breguet was voted “the brand purchased by people I admire and respect.” It tied with Vacheron Constantin as the brand super-rich consumers say they’re most likely to consider for their next purchase. Patek-Philippe and Boucheron also scored highly.
The study evaluated brands according to four characteristics:
- Consistently superior quality
- Exclusivity and uniqueness
- A measure of enhanced social status
- A measure of the brand’s ability to make a customer “feel special”