What Does It Mean to Be a Premium or Luxury Brand?

The words “premium” and “luxury” are thrown around a lot without much detailed or critical thought. For many brands it’s often used as marketing fluff and as an excuse to charge exorbitant prices without putting in the work.

It can also be subjective and sometimes based on individual experiences and insights on what they believe makes a premium or luxury brand. Some may experience an afternoon tea at London’s Aqua Shard's as luxury whereas another group of people would say an afternoon tea at Scotland’s Glenneagles is real luxury. They’re both considered luxury but what makes one more luxurious or more premium than the other than price and a sophisticated logo?

There isn’t a gold standard or a board of directors that allow brands to officially call themselves premium or luxury, but there are key markers that truly make a brand premium or luxury.

In short, prestige, heritage, association and experience is what makes a brand premium or luxury. Let’s deep dive into this…

1.⁠ ⁠Exceptional Quality: The product or service must be superior in materials, craftsmanship, design or performance. It’s not just better, it’s consistently better in the way it looks, feels, performs, etc.

2.⁠ ⁠Scarcity & Exclusivity: For anything to be considered luxury, it needs to be rare and there’s barely anything that competes with it locally and globally. Limited editions, invitation-only access or extremely controlled distribution all contribute to exclusivity.

3.⁠ ⁠Heritage & Storytelling: Many true luxury or premium brands have a rich history or a clear origin story – think Hermès, Maserati, or the Burj Al Arab, Dubai. Their legacy adds perceived value and emotional depth. You’ll also notice they don’t heavily market themselves – they know they’re luxury and don’t have to try hard to prove it!

4.⁠ ⁠Price-Value Disconnect: With mass-market brands, prices are generally cheaper as the goal of the business is to sell to the masses. With luxury and premium brands, the price reflects status, craftsmanship and emotion. That’s why someone pays £10,000 for a handbag – they’re not buying leather; they’re buying the identity and status that comes with it.

5.⁠ ⁠Brand Identity & Consistency: A premium or luxury brand has a crystal-clear identity that’s reflected in its values, visuals, tone, service and even down to how employees dress, speak, interact, etc. It’s obsessively consistent across every customer touchpoint from the product, packaging, service, aftercare and so forth.

6.⁠ ⁠Customer Experience: The service consistently feels personal, attentive, elevated and anticipatory. Whether it’s a boutique greeting you by name or a concierge service remembering your preferences, that is a true marker of a premium brand.

7.⁠ ⁠Cultural Symbolism: Luxury brands signal something in culture: success, exquisite or unusual taste, rebellion, sophistication. They’re considered aspirational or create this type of social club that not everyone can have access to.

So, if you’re marketing your brand as premium or luxury but it lacks that depth in craftsmanship, consistency or symbolic value it’s purely a facade and you’re not fooling anyone.

Here’s a side-by-side comparison between a “true” luxury or premium brand and one that pretends to be:

Feature	True Luxury	Fake Luxury
Quality	Exceptional, often handmade, with obsessive attention to detail (e.g. Hermès bags stitched by a single artisan)	High price tag, but mass-produced with quality that doesn’t justify the cost
Heritage	Rich history and legacy, often dating back decades or centuries	Relatively new with no real backstory or one that’s fabricated, vague or uninteresting
Exclusivity	Limited production, hard to obtain (or copy), long waitlists, controlled availability	Artificial scarcity or hyped drops without real demand or craftsmanship
Design Philosophy	Timeless, often iconic; innovation balanced with brand identity	Inconsistent branding, often shifts with trends or collaborations
Brand Identity	Deeply consistent across all channels and customer touch points, instantly recognisable tone, look and feel	Inconsistent branding, often shifts with trends or collaborations
Customer Experience	White-glove service, personalised services, loyalty programmes that feel intimate	Basic service with little personal touch – focused primarily  on upselling and sales rather than care
Price Justification	Price reflects not just the product but the brand’s story, artistry and status	Price feels inflated; buying it feels like overpaying for a label
Cultural Status	Respected and aspirational across generations (e.g. Rolex)	May be trendy now but lacks lasting cultural weight, respect and longevity
EXAMPLES	Patek Philippe watches: known for unmatched craftsmanship, heritage since 1839, pieces become family heirlooms	Pretty Little Thing: Some influencer-founded fashion labels, charge extortionate prices for basic items, rely heavily on celebrity hype, often lack consistency or depth

If you’re setting up a genuinely premium or luxury business, here’s how you can stay away from looking like a pretender and actually positioning yourself as a credible premium or luxury brand:

1.⁠ ⁠Master Craftsmanship First, Hype Later: Shift from mass production to craftsmanship. Even if everything can’t be artisanal, certain signature products should reflect real mastery – materials, process, finish, longevity, etc.

2.⁠ ⁠Build a True Brand Philosophy: What do you stand for and can you uphold it? Luxury brands have convictions – timeless beauty, quiet power, rebellious elegance. It must go beyond aesthetics to values like sustainability, legacy or individuality and be evident in every choice your brand makes.

3.⁠ ⁠Create Emotional, Not Just Visual, Consistency: Every touchpoint from social media, packaging, website to store music should feel emotionally aligned. Luxury is a mood, not just a colour palette, font type, logo, etc. Ask yourself are you saying something special or could it come from just anyone?

4.⁠ ⁠Cut the Noise. Fewer Drops, Deeper Stories: Premium brands don’t chase trends. They set pace and are the trend setters. Fewer collections or releases, but with deep storytelling and design reasoning, carry more cultural weight. For example, ]a limited product launch should feel like an event, not just inventory clearance with fake urgency.

5.⁠ ⁠Elevate the Customer Journey: Invest in a white glove service, whether online or in-store. Handwritten notes, follow-ups post-purchase and remembering past preferences all contribute to a luxury experience.

6.⁠ ⁠Control Distribution Ruthlessly: You can’t be everywhere and still be exclusive. Cut ties with platforms, retailers, influencers and celebrities that dilute the brand’s image, even if they drive sales. Choose steady growth over fast noise. Prestige is what’s going to make your business stand out and drive profit.

7.⁠ ⁠Invest in Cultural Depth, Not Just Influence: Partner with true artists, thought leaders and experts, not b-list celebrities or influencers. Be seen supporting or creating in meaningful spaces (exhibitions, residencies, etc).

8.⁠ ⁠Let Time Build Your Brand Reputation – There Are No Shortcuts: What makes brands like Louis Vuitton, Leica or Aston Martin special is decades of being excellent and consistently excellent. Your brand needs to evolve and improve with intention and attention to detail. It starts with clarity of purpose and ruthless commitment to quality instead of chasing surface-level prestige.

If you’re a premium or luxury business that’s ready to invest in how you present yourself to your customers, let’s have a discovery call and let’s explore options.