Curriculum The Economics of Luxury
The Economics of Luxury
Why people pay thousands for a handbag: luxury goods and income, prices that raise demand, engineered scarcity, the giant luxury groups, India's luxury market, fakes, the lipstick effect, luxury taxes, China's shoppers, luxury cars, sustainability and the ethics of status spending.
- What Makes Something a Luxury? How economists define luxury goods through income elasticity, and how luxury differs from ordinary products in quality, price and meaning. 📄 Read-aloud
- When Higher Prices Raise Demand How some luxury goods become more desirable as they get more expensive, why this breaks the usual law of demand, and how brands use it. 📄 Read-aloud
- Waiting Lists and Engineered Scarcity How luxury brands deliberately limit supply, create waiting lists and control who can buy, and why this raises value. 📄 Read-aloud
- LVMH and the Luxury Giants How a few big groups like LVMH, Kering and Richemont own many famous brands, and why the luxury industry has consolidated. 📄 Read-aloud
- India's Luxury Market How India's luxury market is growing with rising wealth, what Indians buy, the role of weddings and jewellery, and why global brands see potential. 📄 Read-aloud
- Fakes, Dupes and Counterfeits Why counterfeit luxury goods are widespread, how they affect brands and consumers, and the rise of legal lookalike "dupes". 📄 Read-aloud
- The Economics of Luxury: Checkpoint 1 Quick checkpoint - five questions on luxury goods, Veblen effects, scarcity, luxury groups and fakes. 5 questions
- Luxury in Good Times and Bad How luxury spending responds to booms and recessions, the "lipstick effect", and why the ultra-rich keep spending when others cut back. 📄 Read-aloud
- Taxing Luxury How governments tax luxury goods, from India's GST cess to the failed US yacht tax, and who ends up bearing the burden. 📄 Read-aloud
- China's Luxury Shoppers How Chinese consumers became the largest buyers of luxury goods, why they shop abroad, and how China's slowdown affected global luxury firms. 📄 Read-aloud
- Luxury Cars in India Why luxury cars are a small share of India's car market, how taxes affect prices, and why the segment is growing. 📄 Read-aloud
- Luxury and Sustainability How luxury brands are responding to pressure on sustainability, from destroying unsold goods to durability and repair, and whether luxury can be greener. 📄 Read-aloud
- Status Spending: Wasteful or Harmless? The debate over whether luxury spending is wasteful status competition or a legitimate choice, and a recap of the module. 📄 Read-aloud