[think] aspiration
Luxury is the celebration of human achievement with the achievement of other humans
L U X U R Y I S A S Y M B O L O F H A R D W O R K
“I worked hard and accomplished something worthwhile, therefore I’ve earned and deserve a reward for my efforts.
And I deserve something that was made by someone who worked just as hard as me.”
Y O U S H O U L D C A R E B E C A U S E
72% of wealth in America is self-made
8%
20%
72%
Self-made wealth is so respected in the United States that Forbes created a scale
The Forbes Self-Made List prioritizes individuals who made it to the Forbes 500 and overcame the most adversity to achieve their wealth.
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From poverty. Significant obstacles had to be overcome to achieve wealth, such as educational inequality, abuse, and trauma.
Example: Oprah Winfrey
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From a working-class family. No savings. Major obstacles had to be overcome to achieve wealth, including educational inequality
Example: Carl Icahn
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From a middle or upper class family. No inheritance, small amount of savings.
Example: Mark Zuckerberg
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From a wealthy family. No inheritance but started off well funded.
Example: Reed Hastings
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Increasing wealth from investments, didn’t create business
Example: Meg Whitman
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Build a large fortune with a small inheritance
Example: Mickey Arison
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Inherited wealth but is increasing fortune meaningfully
Example: Dan Cathy
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Inherited wealth and increasing fortune marginally
Example: Abigail Johnson
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Inherited wealth and has a role in managing the fortune
Example: Lauren Powell Jobs
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Inherited wealth and is not working to increase the fortune.
Example: Dagmar Dolby
T H E R E A R E M I L L I O N A I R E S A M O N G S T U S
60% of modern affluents are “stealthy wealthy”
Because so many modern affluents came from middle-class backgrounds, there is a significant amount engaging in stealth wealth, otherwise known as “the millionaire next door.”
They often have no role models or family precedent of traditional luxury status symbols and do not engage in the traditional exclusive social circles of the elite.
Furthermore, they do not feel wealthy because their money is illiquid and unseen.
However, they will spend generously and selectively on the things that matter to them and their families.
61%
39%
SOURCES
Wealth-X World Wealth Report 2024
Forbes Self-Made List, 2020
Author-led qualitative and quantitative research of new affluents, 2014 to 2021
For luxury brands and products
01
Wealth culture has fragmented and will continue to fragment due to growing population of diverse affluents with self-made backgrounds
02
Affluents engaging in luxury consumption continue to drive wealth culture, while the “silent majority” who don’t are unnoticed by the luxury industry
03
There is a large cohort of affluents who do not engage in traditional luxury consumption patterns
04
Luxury brands are missing out on a large untapped market. Understanding the motivations and drivers of affluent consumption of luxury and non-luxury goods will be key to future product success of any luxury brand
Fred Kim was the Society & Technology Research Group Manager at the Silicon Valley headquarters of Mercedes-Benz Research & Development. He led trend forecasting and strategic foresight for future vehicle development, including the W223 S-Class, X223 Maybach, and V297 EQS.
He identified new cultural and consumer trends with a 98% accuracy rate and qualified the rise of Progressive Luxury, a new luxury buyer archetype that’s now prevalent in the market today. In 2012 he was the first foresight leader in the industry to correctly forecast Millennial trajectories in ownership and luxury signaling.
He personally interviewed over 50 decamillionaires and billionaires while studying the intersection of status symbols, career success, and aspiration.
Connect & Collaborate
Available for conversations and very select luxury market consultation + speaking engagements