The Last Word
Catching Butterflies
By Amy Spiezio

The hottest portion of luxury consumers today fall under the psychographic category "butterflies," a group that fits generally into the baby boom age group, with a high income and an interest in connecting with the outside world. As this market emerges from a cocooning period at home after the nervous years recovering from the dot-com bust and September 11, they are ready to spend their money on big-ticket items--with retailers who go the extra mile to appeal to this demanding niche.

"Luxury has been railed at for two thousand years, in verse and in prose, and it has always been loved." --Voltaire

This affluent group has the money and the inclination to buy high-end goods, but they're looking for a buying experience that is engaging and exciting. "Everything about the luxury market has gone experiential. It's not about buying things, it's about buying an experience. Because they have everything they can possibly need, they want to buy something they get a kick out of," says Pam Danziger president of Unity Marketing, a luxury trend research firm (Unitymarketingonline.com).

The power of the name brand is diminishing as the butterflies seek the latest goods with the best technology and unique features. "The brand is just the price of admission. Brand alone doesn't cut it any more," observes Gregory J. Furman, executive director of the Luxury Marketing Council.

Value driven and armed with savvy research from the Internet, the butterflies are looking for quality service, efficient delivery of product, and follow up. To appeal to this market, high-end retailers are regrouping and changing their approach to business. Rather than selling things, they are focusing on making the retail experience fun and educational. The current luxury buyers are, "Probably the most discriminating consumer of luxury product in history. The hunger to know on the part of the consumer is probably on an all-time high," Furman says.

Strategizing for success with the luxury-buying butterflies often means that dispensary personnel have to be more knowledgeable than ever about the products they are presenting, as well as what their competitors are doing. "Consumers will go to the vendor after doing research and they will then challenge the sales people," Furman says.

Another point Danziger makes is that butterflies are not going to lay out money for a luxury item without feeling they are getting a good deal. Just because they have money and they can afford to pay full price doesn't mean they will pay full price. Part of the buying experience is the fun of getting a discount or special offer.

"It goes against conventional wisdom, but they will go out of their way for a discount," Danziger notes, "They want the the express thrill you get from getting a bargain."