What does the word ‘luxury’ make you think of?

Perhaps it conjures up images of sports cars, private jets and fabulous mansions. Or maybe a pleasurable experience such as enjoying a fine cigar, or a massage at your favorite spa. Or does luxury to you mean something even simpler, such as watching a beautiful sunset or spending a lazy morning in bed? The fact is that ‘luxury’ can mean countless different things to different people. Thanks to decades of over-use by marketing agencies and the media the word has lost all definition, becoming a catchall term applied to almost anything from a hamburger to a holiday in the Maldives. Often it is just used as a convenient prefix in order to justify a higher price tag.

However, as society changes, the concept of luxury is changing too. As the number of millionaires and billionaires on the planet increases, so too does our exposure — through media and marketing campaigns — to the ‘luxury lifestyles’ of the rich and famous. Advertisers would like us to aspire to these lifestyles (and work harder and spend more to achieve them). For the most part, it’s a tactic that works all too well. There is a flip side to that record, though. As consumers, we are smarter and better informed than ever before, and over-exposure to the lifestyle dream has desensitized us to the idea of luxury as a purely material concept. The upshot of this is that those who seek to dazzle us with desirable goods are forced to constantly up the ante, dreaming up ever more elaborate luxury products in an attempt to catch our eye. A gold Lamborghini? You got it. A $666 burger? Coming right up, sir.

Look carefully, though, and amid the cacophony of excess it is possible to find the green shoots of a new luxury paradigm. Rather than falling for glitzy novelty with a sky-high price tag, discerning buyers are beginning to favor products that offer a deeper, more lasting emotional capital. Instead of chasing after empty status symbols —the golden Lamborghini at the end of the rainbow —we are seeking something more meaningful. Real luxury is becoming less about status, and more about state-of-mind. These more enlightened spending habits are embodied in a new set of luxury values; practical design, fine craftsmanship, quality, simplicity and above all authenticity have replaced novelty and flamboyance on the luxury wish-list. Affluent buyers tend to be highly mobile global travellers, and the products they want reflect this. Lightness, functionality, durability and minimalism are coming to the fore, often driven by technical innovation. Discerning buyers are growing less interested in brands that help them to be seen, and more into those which themselves have a vision. Needless indulgence is being replaced by a desire for cool, sleek utility.

More conscientious social attitudes (due partly to the financial instability of the last decade) have caused buyers to think harder about each purchase and demand a more emotionally fulfilling connection with their chosen product or brand. More than ever before, an individual’s status and strength are communicated not only by their material wealth, but also by their personal values. It is no longer sufficient for a luxury item to reflect the owner’s aesthetic preferences; it must now reflect their ethical ones too.Increased focus on and awareness of ethical and environmental issues means that any company with a public face must have its house in order. With the company history, employment practices, manufacturing standards and social responsibility of every brand now subject to scrutiny (and any transgressions likely to be punished with a public flogging on social media), transparency is the order of the day. Smarter companies are adapting to these changing consumer demands by opening their doors and inviting their customers backstage. The zai ski factory, for instance, operates a daily open-house policy, encouraging visitors to tour the factory, meet the workers and witness every detail of the manufacturing process first-hand. Sales and media events are regularly held in the ski workshop, with journalists welcome to write about what they see.

Customers find this approach incredibly refreshing, as it allows them to connect with the company and better understand the real value of the service and goods it provides. When a company has nothing to hide, it has nothing to fear. Transparency demonstrates total confidence in your product. As our ideas of luxury shift away from the material and more towards the experiential, brands are adapting the ways in which they connect with their customers. Social media and the internet allow a closer day-to-day dialogue, allowing consumers to stay in contact with their favorite brands — even to the extent of tracking the development of a new product from the design stage to the shop floor. Improved communication can result in improved service, as companies listen more intently to the feedback from their customers. The line between producer and consumer becomes blurred, allowing the buyer to engage on a deeper level with the brand. Providing customers with a richer brand experience is an integral part of the new luxury paradigm, and nowhere is it more evident than in the booming events sector. zai, which has its own very successful events wing, is part of the new wave of luxury producers inviting their customers not merely to listen to their brand ethos, but to live it. By holding regular events such as factory open days, ski demos and exclusive weekend trips, zai allows its customers to experience the relaxed atmosphere of the ‘zai way’, and enjoy the product in an environment that’s in tune with the company’s values. Events of this sort also create a natural sales platform, without the need for the dreaded ‘hard sell’.

Of course, not every company is so forward thinking, and many will be content to keep on offering trinkets as a substitute for real luxury for as long as people continue to buy them. But if you want to know the future of luxury, just look to companies like zai; an innovative brand which offers not only high quality product but authenticity, transparency, a willingness to engage with its customers on an equal footing and a readiness to live by its principles. Real luxury is much more than just a logo and a price tag; it’s a feeling, and a way of life.