Over the last decades, the global luxury business has become dominated by large conglomerates. Backed by the financial power of their parent companies, formerly small and often family-owned brands have expanded their presence around the globe. They have established themselves in some of the most expensive shopping districts, acquired illustrious testimonials, and sponsored prestigious events. Almost overwhelmed by the omnipresence of luxury, consumers are said to have begun looking for the “genuine” and “unique,” favoring smaller, less homogenized and more intimate luxury brands not necessarily known to the larger public. This study thus looks beyond the well-known players in the luxury market and explores the differentiating strategies used by independent niche luxury companies. It aims to identify factors contributing to their success in a global market otherwise dominated by ever-growing luxury giants.

A growing number of authors state that in recent years the notion of luxury has become all too common. Many say that authenticity is the real rare good in today’s luxury marketplace. Overwhelmed by the omnipresence of luxury and its homogenization, consumers are said to start looking for the genuine and unique, favoring smaller, more intimate and independent luxury brands. This study looks beyond well-known global players in the luxury marketplace, exploring the identities of independent niche luxury companies, their differentiating characteristics and in particular the role of authenticity. Keywords: corporate identity; corporate image; authenticity; luxury brand management; niche luxury brands; independent luxury brands

The world market for brands and licenses is constantly growing and represents a very interesting economic field. Brands are constantly being sold, and brand ownership may change often completely unbeknown to the majority of consumers. Brands are in fact held as any other assets, either by individuals or by companies, as part of their balance sheet (Lucky & Giliberti, 2013). A multiple case study of independent luxury companies enables us to identify the following best practices: 1) Perfume = Survival Most brands achieve a long lasting market penetration once they successfully move into the fragrancies. Every case study confirms the assumption. 2) Perfume + cosmetics = survival and success It seems that the perfume business and cosmetics in general are the main boosters for a brand to keep on growing and gain if not “top of mind” at least “aided awareness”. 3) Less licensees = more business! As strange as this can be, most luxury brands that have succeeded in keeping a remarkable growth have made the decision not to expand their number of licensees, but rather to dramatically diminish them, selecting, in most of the cases, main licensing categories like: 1- Perfumes and cosmetics 2- Watches 3- Eye glasses 4- Limited ranges of accessories The cases show that massive licensing may have brought very interesting revenues obtained “the easy way” by the brands owners, but have then started a decline in revenues due to many practical reasons: The brand loses its appeal by becoming seen just about everywhere and applied to any type of possible product. The brand simply becomes less exclusive and therefore less luxury. Cases like Saint Laurent (new name used instead of Yves Saint Laurent) in France or Valentino in Italy, clearly indicate that the brands managers have decided to concentrate their core business within a very limited number of licensees making sure that the brand orientation strictly reflects the identity chosen by the (new) owners. The most impressive example of extremely massive licensing tending to pull the brand out of the luxury market is without doubt the one of Pierre Cardin.

The world of luxury is harboring an endangered species: that of the independent companies! In an increasingly-challenging and globalized luxury environment, companies are fighting to escape from the ever-growing clout of luxury “conglomerates” - Swatch Group, LVMH, Kering, and Richemont. As of 2015, these “big four” own more than 100 brands and are maintaining a constant pace of acquisitions , relying on vertical integration to secure supplies (and deprive competitors of them) which has particularly insidious consequences for independents. Most independents are struggling to survive and end up being acquired or going out of business. Interestingly, this same movement towards consolidation is rendering brands more and more uniform, thus creating opportunities for players able to craft unique offerings for niche luxury clientele. Innovation is the path to follow in this challenging journey. Based on a multiple case study analysis of innovative independent luxury companies, we have identified four innovation strategies (Hoffmann & Lecamp, 2015). “Back to the roots” include independent companies innovating in the essence of luxury: extreme quality and extraordinary craftsmanship to create the ultimate sensorial and emotional experience. For companies like Vignes, Thomas Mercer, Mirazur by Mauro Collagreco, Norlha and Brunello Cucinelli, luxury is rooted in a terroir and a sense of purpose permeates this endeavor. “Code breakers” are playing with product and societal codes to culturally innovate and build the icons of today and tomorrow. Examples include Martin Margiela and Miuccia Prada in fashion, Fernando & Humberto Campana in furniture design, and HYT in watchmaking. “Eagle in the aquarium” companies are disrupting the way luxury companies create, deliver and capture value. Globalization and digitization are powerful enablers to reconfigure resources at the levels of funding (e.g. crowdfunding), design (e.g. 3D design), manufacturing (e.g. 3D printing), distribution (e.g. online platforms), marketing and communication (e.g. online social networks). “Game changers” are building breakthrough innovations at the product and business model levels. Comme des Garçons, Etudes Studio, Iris Van Herpen, MB&F, and W Motors are independents taking bold initiatives in a fascinating and inspiring journey. Managerial implications and venues for future research will be highlighted during the conference.

Nearly 70% of the Swiss luxury watch market is represented by major groups, bringing together worldwide well-known brands. In order to stand out from concurrence and to get a place in this highly competitive market of reference, independent (often unknown) companies have to find other vectors of marketing differentiation.