THE LUXURY PARADOX
(2025) BUSN39 20251Department of Business Administration
- Abstract
- Keywords: luxury, semiotics, sign, heritage brands, persuasion, promotion.
Overall Aim: To explore whether luxury can, and if so how, coexist with high availability and short term sales initiatives.
Purpose: To explore the phenomenon of the Luxury Paradox; how luxury brands balance luxury and promotion.
Methodology: Through a qualitative, abductive, and grounded theory approach, we analyze four Swedish brands, Ekelund Linneväveri, Hagabadet, Stenströms, and Svenskt Tenn, using semi-structured interviews and secondary data. These brands were selected based on their strong brand heritage, luxury positioning, and varying degrees of accessibility.
Theoretical perspective: The literature review grounds our analysis in four key... (More) - Keywords: luxury, semiotics, sign, heritage brands, persuasion, promotion.
Overall Aim: To explore whether luxury can, and if so how, coexist with high availability and short term sales initiatives.
Purpose: To explore the phenomenon of the Luxury Paradox; how luxury brands balance luxury and promotion.
Methodology: Through a qualitative, abductive, and grounded theory approach, we analyze four Swedish brands, Ekelund Linneväveri, Hagabadet, Stenströms, and Svenskt Tenn, using semi-structured interviews and secondary data. These brands were selected based on their strong brand heritage, luxury positioning, and varying degrees of accessibility.
Theoretical perspective: The literature review grounds our analysis in four key domains: the definition and evolution of luxury; semiotics and the symbolic meaning of brands; the balance of persuasion and promotion in branding; and the role of brand heritage. We integrate these perspectives to build a theoretical foundation for the Luxury Paradox.
Empirical Data: The empirical data consists of 9 in-depth, semi-structured interviews with managers, executives and/or owners of the case companies, coupled with case company information through secondary data. Empirical findings are presented using a “Three W” framework, What, How, and Why, capturing how the case companies define luxury, implement brand strategies, and justify their approaches.
Conclusions: We conclude by presenting our framework the Luxury Paradox. The case companies are able to be perceived as luxurious while engaging in traditional marketing tactics through communicating their heritage through symbolism and using promotions purposefully. Our findings contribute to luxury branding literature by demonstrating how brands can sustain exclusivity while engaging in promotional activities. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
http://lup.lub.lu.se/student-papers/record/9206962
- author
- Bengtsson, Adam LU and Johansson, Emma LU
- supervisor
-
- Mats Urde LU
- organization
- alternative title
- How High-Volume Luxury Brands Navigate Maintaining Exclusivity While Engaging in Promotional and High-volume Strategies
- course
- BUSN39 20251
- year
- 2025
- type
- H1 - Master's Degree (One Year)
- subject
- keywords
- luxury, semiotics, sign, heritage brands, persuasion, promotion
- language
- English
- id
- 9206962
- date added to LUP
- 2025-06-30 15:38:40
- date last changed
- 2025-06-30 15:38:40
@misc{9206962,
abstract = {{Keywords: luxury, semiotics, sign, heritage brands, persuasion, promotion.
Overall Aim: To explore whether luxury can, and if so how, coexist with high availability and short term sales initiatives.
Purpose: To explore the phenomenon of the Luxury Paradox; how luxury brands balance luxury and promotion.
Methodology: Through a qualitative, abductive, and grounded theory approach, we analyze four Swedish brands, Ekelund Linneväveri, Hagabadet, Stenströms, and Svenskt Tenn, using semi-structured interviews and secondary data. These brands were selected based on their strong brand heritage, luxury positioning, and varying degrees of accessibility.
Theoretical perspective: The literature review grounds our analysis in four key domains: the definition and evolution of luxury; semiotics and the symbolic meaning of brands; the balance of persuasion and promotion in branding; and the role of brand heritage. We integrate these perspectives to build a theoretical foundation for the Luxury Paradox.
Empirical Data: The empirical data consists of 9 in-depth, semi-structured interviews with managers, executives and/or owners of the case companies, coupled with case company information through secondary data. Empirical findings are presented using a “Three W” framework, What, How, and Why, capturing how the case companies define luxury, implement brand strategies, and justify their approaches.
Conclusions: We conclude by presenting our framework the Luxury Paradox. The case companies are able to be perceived as luxurious while engaging in traditional marketing tactics through communicating their heritage through symbolism and using promotions purposefully. Our findings contribute to luxury branding literature by demonstrating how brands can sustain exclusivity while engaging in promotional activities.}},
author = {{Bengtsson, Adam and Johansson, Emma}},
language = {{eng}},
note = {{Student Paper}},
title = {{THE LUXURY PARADOX}},
year = {{2025}},
}