Introduction
The purpose of the research is to provide a better understanding of how Louis Vuitton develops its brand meanings and how that interaction with its clients may affect consumer behavior and boost the company’s market success.
Research Question
Three overall research questions to address by this research include:
- What are the ways through which Louis Vuitton establishes its brand?
- How is the consumer behavior affected after experiencing Louis Vuitton brands?
- How does Louis Vuitton prompt a pleasant emotional reaction in its consumers?
Background
Louis Vuitton is one of the most famous luxury companies in the world and is renowned for its magnificent leather products, iconic steamer cases, distinctive monogrammed purses, stunning timepieces, jewelry and cutting-edge garments. A skilled artisan and fashionista from France, Louis Vuitton established this business in Paris in 1854 (Dong, 2022). At 33, Louis began his artisanal workshop, where he started his business by manufacturing trunks for Empress Eugénie de Montijo, the spouse of Napoleon III (Kai, 2021). Therefore, the foundations of his prestigious organization, Louis Vuitton, were founded. The Louis Vuitton brand is known for its reliability, elegance, flair, invention, and legitimacy, and the logo was developed to reflect these attributes (Gurzki, 2020). The logo is a precise depiction of the brand image. Louis Vuitton’s brand statement continues to be synonymous with style and ingenuity. Generally, a brand is a compilation of concepts and attributes that differentiate visual, ethical, and behavioral characteristics in the market and the minds of consumers (Helmold, 2022). In order to establish that Louis Vuitton’s current rise is not a random occurrence but rather the direct consequence of the strategy, this study seeks to distill the guidelines and principles of strategic initiatives for the Louis Vuitton brands (Dong, 2022). This study will unquestionably be significant to enterprises undergoing brand reliability problems or those looking to solidify their brands.
In order to guarantee that consumers can distinguish the Louis Vuitton brand in terms of character and traits, the brand’s attributes must consistently be associated with the brand and prompt a pleasant emotional reaction in users. The goods and the cultural practices they symbolize integrate innovation and heritage while stimulating creativity and vision. In order to establish that Louis Vuitton’s current rise is not a random occurrence but rather the direct consequence of the strategy, this study seeks to distill the guidelines and principles of strategic initiatives for the Louis Vuitton brands. This study will unquestionably be significant to enterprises undergoing brand reliability problems or those looking to solidify their brands. Up to 2010 Louis Vuitton used to report 10% plus growth rate each year but now it has been able to achieve double-digit growth rates for less than four years (Kai, 2021). With China having entered the world’s top 5 largest luxury markets, the Chinese account for nearly a third of luxury goods purchased globally. It is evident that trends in the market play a huge role in Louis Vuitton’s rising revenue growth during 2019 and 2020 (Li et al., 2021). This increase can be traced partly to the growing value of the brand and the change in demographic and consumer behavior.
Concept(s) Defined
There are 3 concepts of interest to study in this research plan: attitudes, incentives, and demographics. From the background information, each of these concepts are defined as follows:
- Attitudes – As defined by TSU as opinions regarding purchasing or intending to purchase Louis Vuitton merchandise (Li et al., 2021).
- Incentives – Defined as motivations and reasons behind the purchasing of Louis Vuitton commodities.
- Demographics As defined by Kaolawanich as a brand’s apparel operational measures in the new market in pursuit of fresh customers (Kaolawanich et al., 2020). This study aims to show how the brand uses different strategies to seek new markets.
Illustration
Population Defined– Population is defined as adults between 18 and 50 who own a Louis Vuitton product and live in the USA.
Sample Size Determined– A method of convenience sampling will be used to identify a portion of the population that associates with the brand.
Variables To Measure
- Attitudes towards purchasing or intending to purchase Louis Vuitton merchandise.
- Incentives, both the awareness and motivation for purchase of Louis Vuitton products.
- Demographics through identifying rates and percentages in the different age groups purchase the brand.
Questionnaire Section
The following are ten questions to be used in this study:
- Q1- Select the social media platform that you use to watch ads:
- Facebook
- Instagram
- Twitter
- YouTube
- Linked in
- Snapchat
- Q2- Select the brand you buy or own:
- Louis Vuitton
- Ralph Lauren
- Stitch Fix
- Michael Kors
- Rent the Runway
- The RealReal
- Matches Fashion (man and woman)
- Net-a-porter
Luxury product marketing is the business of promoting and selling high-end products.
On a scale of 1 to 10 where 1 is a negative attitude and 10 is a positive attitude, respond the following:
- Q3- Your attitude toward owning luxury brands.
- Q4- You attitude toward viewing ads about luxury brands.
- Q5- Your attitude toward the marketing strategy used to advertise a luxury brand.
Incentives may include duty-free spending and voucher schemes, which may include a mail for you in the form of premium gifts and early access to brand events. With this definition in mind, answer the following group of questions:
- Q6- Are you aware of any incentives to receive a luxury brand coupon or voucher? Yes/No
- Q7- On a scale of 1 to 9 with 1 being less likely and 9 being highly likely, if you receive a $1000 voucher from luxury brand to redeem it for one of them merchandize how likely are you to redeem it in the next 4 months? 1 being not at all likely and 9 being extremely likely
- Q8- On a scale of 1 to 9, with 1 less Likely and 9 extremely Likely, if you receive a $2000 voucher from luxury brands to redeem it for one of their merchandize how likely are you to redeem it in the next 4 months? 1 being not at all likely and 9 being extremely likely
- Q9- On a scale of 1 to 9, with 1 less likely and 9 Extremely likely, if you receive a $500 voucher from luxury brands to redeem it for one of them merchandize how likely are you to redeem it in the next 4 months? 1 being not at all likely and 9 being extremely likely
Finally, one last question to gather information about the luxury products that you prefer.
- Q10- What products interest you? Select from the following groups:
- Shoes
- Clothes
- Watches
- Jewelry
- Designer handbags
Future Research & Limitations
Marketing is one of the more recent advertising techniques of the Louis Vuitton luxury brand that aids in developing its brand meaning and, eventually, its success. Furthermore, it lets the brand connect with an increasing number of consumers who want to purchase its luxury products. One of Louis Vuitton branding drawbacks it is affected by competition from lesser premium brands that could offer similar quality without the high price tag. As a result, the Louis Vuitton brand should strive to think of innovative ways to market their products to interested customers. Another limitation of Louis Vuitton branding is its online marketing strategy where even though digital marketing may increase sales, it also jeopardizes the credibility of the luxury brand. Since the development of celebrity culture and paid influencers on social media, businesses that should signify exclusivity, uniqueness, and quality have been formed and as a result causing a strain in how louis Vuitton’s brand is viewed by its consumers.
Future research on Louis Vuitton will center on the imperative that the luxury brand should think more imaginatively to cater to these new consumers’ demands, notably those of the young generation. Louis Vuitton as a brand must develop and adapt their marketing approach to new social media platforms in conjunction with translating their in-store distinctive touch to the digital environment. A Louis Vuitton, brand research recession, is inevitable due to political unrest and market volatility, where even wealthy people hold back when things are unclear.
Reflection Section
Through good time management and the ability to express my ideas clearly, I have learned how to be productive as a researcher. On my next research project, I’ll consider the Louis Vuitton brand relevance to me individually and its significance to others, including the other luxury brands I’ve mentioned above and others who might profit from the study’s findings.
The research design phase has always been my favorite part of the research since it involves having to go out and gather information and get opinions from individuals to create a good research paper. The need to create a new infrastructure when working on a new project where several tools may need to be put up for this time-consuming procedure and they all must be integrated and maintained is my least favorite things in a research project. Data sharing benefits the researcher, research financiers, data repositories, the scientific community, and the general public. Sharing encourages researchers to connect and work together more, which results in wiser choices and it also helps the interested parties have a good understanding of the research topic.
Conclusion
Research on the brand meaning of Louis Vuitton was conducted using a methodical methodology that involved acquiring and evaluating the gathered data in order to provide answers to pertinent questions and assess the findings. Online surveys and in-depth interviews (IDIs) were the two data-gathering techniques used in the Louis Vuitton research. This was accomplished through online interviews and the use of questionnaires. The questionnaires targeted an online audience and were completed over the Internet. Given that the data needed to be obtained was quantifiable, it was timely, accurate, and efficient.
References
Dong, A. (2022). Louis Vuitton’s marking strategies and branding analysis in China and the United States. Proceedings of the 2022 3rd International Conference on Language, Art and Cultural Exchange (ICLACE 2022). Web.
Faraoni, M. (2021). Building a sustainable brand image in luxury fashion companies. The Art of Digital Marketing for Fashion and Luxury Brands, 273–296. Web.
Gurzki, H. (2020). A brief history of luxury and consumption. The Creation of the Extraordinary, 49–62. Web.
Helmold, M. (2022). Marketing, sales and pricing: Introduction. Management for Professionals, 1–11. Web.
Kai, X. (2021). Research on brand alliance strategy innovation based on the Big Data Analysis of consumers’ attitude take Louis Vuitton and supreme as an example. E3S Web of Conferences, 235, 01075. Web.
Kaolawanich, R., Oe, H., Yamaoka, Y., & Chang, C. Y. (2020). A discussion of a luxury apparel brand strategy in an emerging market: Conceptual model with Network Perspectives. SIASAT, 5(2), 58–72. Web.
Li, Y., Ni, N., & Yan, N. (2021). The luxury brand transcultural strategies in contemporary society. Proceedings of the 2021 International Conference on Public Relations and Social Sciences (ICPRSS 2021). Web.
Oliveira, M., & Fernandes, T. (2020). Luxury Brands and social media: Drivers and outcomes of consumer engagement on Instagram. Journal of Strategic Marketing, 30(4), 389–407. Web.