Consumers’ Perceptions and Evaluations of Luxury and Luxury Brands

This chapter takes a critical look at concepts for measuring the perception and evaluation of luxuries by consumers. After a short clarification of the multifaceted relationship between consumers and luxury brands, the first focus lies on the presentation of relevant and much-noticed measurement concepts. The critical discussion of these approaches reveals three challenges that need to be mastered by future research: (1) the relevant points of reference for the perception and evaluation of luxury goods need to be identified in a more differentiated and systematic way; (2) the interplay between conscious and unconscious perception and appraisal must be considered; last but not least (3) the resulting perceived value of luxury brands should be recorded in a much more differentiated manner. Subsequently, the chapter mainly offers first proposals to close the highlighted research gaps.