Here is some interesting data on the subject of luxury goods...
Most luxury consumers buy cheaper goods
Just because U.S. households with incomes of $150,000 or more have been dubbed luxury consumers, doesn`t mean the consumers buy luxury items.
"So much attention has been given to the `trading up` phenomenon -- people with upper-middle incomes of $50,000 to $75,000 stretching to luxury -- that the converse trend toward `trading down` has been largely ignored," says Pam Danziger, president of Unity Marketing and author of "Let Them Eat Cake: Marketing Luxury to the Masses -- as Well as the Classes."
"`Trading down` is where the affluent consumer with means to buy just about any luxury they want at full price, opts instead to select a less luxurious, but more affordable substitute for the `real thing.`"
Luxury consumers, the top 5 percent of households based upon an income of $150,000 or more a year, are cautious with their money and are strongly motivated to get maximum value for the money they spend, Danziger says.
Only 15 percent of the luxury consumers are highly indulgent buyers, who always or almost always go first class, according to Unity Marketing research.
Source: UPI