‘Luxury’ is perhaps the most overused term in the marketing industry’s vocabulary, selling everything from hotels to toilet paper. Defined as “a material object or service conducive to sumptuous living, usually a delicacy, elegance or refinement of living rather than a necessity”, luxury means different things to different people, and the experience of luxury is constantly evolving.

While a hot bath may be the ultimate luxury to someone without the means to have one whenever they choose, it is within the realm of the uber-wealthy that the definition of luxury, real luxury, is changing most. To those reasonably affluent but without oodles of cash, traditional luxuries such as costly clothing, gourmet food and pricey accessories are still what indulgence is all about. However, because the globe’s richest are today able to afford most things material, their focus has moved towards using their money to discover otherwise unobtainable experiences and adventures. In fact when it comes to serious money, the new ‘luxury’ often isn’t necessarily luxurious at all.

Living the life

‘Experiential’ is the adjective most often used to describe this new luxury. With objects of desire such as designer handbags and indulgent holidays available to anyone who decides to splash out, be they a secretary or CEO, those with deep pockets want something more, something unique. As a result, experiences are the new status symbol: trekking overland to the South Pole, climbing the Seven Summits, communing with Rwanda’s gorillas or travelling into space. And of course, having the time to do these things is as much a luxury as being able to afford them. A case in point is Dennis Tito’s eight-day stint at the International Space Station in 2001, making him the world’s first space tourist and costing him a reported US$20 million. Another example is Ewan McGregor’s epic motorcycling adventures around the globe in 2004 and through Africa in 2007.

Says Emma Matthew, Managing Director (Asia Pacific) of Quintessentially, a leading private membership club and concierge service for the global elite, “the perception of luxury is certainly changing. We now see a lot more consumers who appreciate and understand that luxury can be understated and experienced. This is especially so in the area of luxury travel. Consumers with a good disposable income used to take holidays where they’d fly to a particular destination, stay in a five-star hotel and simply relax on the beach. Increasingly, the luxury traveller is after more than this. Experiential travel and luxury adventure is what it's all about now.”

When asked how the experience of luxury has changed in the last few years and why, Matthew adds that, “It’s all down to the ever rising perception of luxury, moving away from the traditional big, bold and expensive and more towards bespoke, unique and exclusive. For example, nowadays more people are surrounding themselves with personal trainers, lifestyle managers, personal shoppers, chauffeurs and the like, which would have been regarded as superfluous luxury ten years ago unless you were a celebrity. Our members now have a greater preference for uniqueness and express style individually. The pursuit of exclusive and hard-to-get items, access and experiences is not only a sign of spending power, but also of insider knowledge and connections.”

Having an imagination helps too. The new luxury is about getting a premiership league footballer around to kick a ball with your son for his birthday, purchasing a section of turf from Lord’s Cricket Ground to plant in your front garden, obtaining early photos of a designer’s new line to pre-order before the collection’s hit the catwalk, or organising a published novelist as a tutor. The sky’s the limit really – if your bank balance doesn’t have one, of course.

To learn more about luxury trends around the world click here.