Clarkston’s team of retail consultants have highlighted the top luxury retail trends that businesses should consider. See an excerpt of the trends report below, and read all four trends for 2025 by downloading the full report here.

2025 Luxury Retail Industry Trends

Largely due to economic uncertainty, rising geopolitical tensions, and continued high prices, the personal luxury goods market declined between 1-3% in the first half of 2024, and it’s suspected that a similar trend will emerge for overall year-over-year (YOY) growth. While the economy slowly improves in the US, China and South Korea have seen a massive economic slowdown, which in turn effects the luxury goods market – a far cry from the massive growth seen in the region post-pandemic. Across the industry, there continues to be rise in investment pieces such as jewelry and handbags, large price fluctuations, a redefinition of exclusivity in the wake of a growing consumer base, and an overall increase in technological advancements. Luxury brands that will set themselves apart moving into 2025 are those that understand these changing dynamics and how innovative methods of marketing and technology can differentiate them from their competitors. In this report, we explore the top four trends set to impact the luxury retail industry in 2025. 

Trend #1: Subtle Statement Dressing and Investment Pieces 

Perhaps due to economic hardships in 2024, discretionary spending in luxury was limited and highly directed towards products with long-staying value, such as jewelry and handbags. The RealReal, a luxury online resale platform, reported fine jewelry saw the biggest growth of any category, with sales up 22% for pieces valued at $5,000 and above. Luxury handbags were also popular, seeing a spike in buyer growth at 13% YOY. This suggests that consumers were investing in pieces that will stay relevant past one season and continue to hold their value.  

Furthermore, 2024 introduced the trend of “quiet luxury” – Harper’s Bazaar defines quiet luxury as the “aesthetic of secret wealth,” where luxury is signaled via high quality, materials, and craftsmanship. As opposed to highly branded items that were popular in the 2010’s, quiet luxury takes away the logoed elements, leaving the quality and craftmanship of a product to stand out Looking at 2024’s most popular luxury items, the trend of timeless, quality items is evident. Quiet luxury offered consumers an avenue to reset their wardrobe, paving the way for “subtle statement” dressing in 2025, where consumers will continue to bolster their wardrobe with personal investment pieces like jewelry.  

Rati Sahi Leveque, President and Chief Operating Officer of The RealReal, suggests this pull away from highly labeled goods is due to a larger shift in fashion. She states, “Fashion is undergoing a seismic shift. Trends less frequently flow from the top (runways) and are now emerging from the ground up… This unprecedented collision of fashion and culture is empowering consumers to shape trends themselves, driving demand for unique, high-value items that reflect their personal style.” This suggests that this shift is more than a passing trend– it’s here to stay. Consumers are increasingly buying to reflect their personal style rather than “hot” items, meaning luxury companies must invest in fine goods and craftsmanship to appeal to smart consumers. 

Looking to 2025, luxury brands are presented with an intriguing challenge. Whether due to economic uncertainty or a larger shift in fashion, it’s evident that consumers will continue to look towards investment pieces, often shying away from “hot items” in favor of personal purchases. This puts immense pressure on luxury goods companies as they no longer dictate trend cycles but are subject to consumer’s preferences. This means companies that will be competitive in 2025 must spend less time focusing on trends, and far more efforts into their quality, craftsmanship, and materials to appeal to individual consumer preference.  

Trend #2: Increasing Transparency in Wake of Price Fluctuations

2024 was also marked by high price fluctuations, with some brands, such as Chanel, Hermès, Gucci, and Prada, increasing prices due to inflation and rising demand, while others, like Burberry and YSL, cut prices to appeal to a larger customer base. Consumers are becoming more demanding of the quality they are paying for, leading to an increase in price transparency across the luxury sector that will mark 2025.  

Several brands increased pricing throughout 2024: Chanel increased bag prices by 6-8%, Louis Vuitton increased prices by 1-4%, and Hermès increased prices by 6.40%. These brands are pointing to inflation as the reasoning behind the price increase, along with the rising demand for luxury goods. Additionally, due to growing consumer demand and regulatory changes, many brands are investing in sustainable and traceable raw materials, which drive up price points. Many brands also continue to invest in diversifying their supply chains after the pandemic exposed how vulnerable they previously were. 

Due to pushback accompanied by price increases, there is a notable trend moving into 2025 of transparent and traceable supply chains. Chanel, for example, introduced a QR system where buyers can trace the bag’s manufacturing process from start to finish. Similarly, Patek Philippe’s Traceable Time collection allows buyers to track the origin of every component of their luxury watch from diamonds to gold. The rise of blockchain transparency could be due to the rise in prices as well as to prevent product dupes – luxury brands are demonstrating to customers both the authenticity and quality of the pieces they’re investing in. This is likely to continue to build across the luxury sector as supply chains face increasing scrutiny for environmental, social, and governance aspects.  

However, as consumers demand transparency for prices, some luxury brands are walking back price increases of the past few years. Burberry reduced pricing on their Knight bag by 22% and decreased overall bag prices by 5% in 2024, while YSL reduced the price of their popular LouLou bag in the US by 10%. However, these price decreases are hardly meaningful when looking at how the brands have shifted pricing over time. Burberry had previously increased prices by 58% in an attempt to raise brand value in 2022, and YSL’s new reduced price tag of $2,650 is still far above the price tag of $2,050 at the end of 2020. Both brands’ struggling sales after their price hikes demonstrate that consumers are becoming more critical when it comes to pricing.   

In 2025, it’s likely more luxury brands will introduce pricing transparency to consumers through traceable supply chains. Other brands, like Telfar, are becoming more creative with their pricing models. They have introduced a “live pricing” model, where customer demand determines price. After a given collection drops, pricing will begin at wholesale price and rise until it hits traditional retail markup. From that point on, the item will remain at that given price. Not only does this eliminate barriers to luxury that exist for many other brands, but it also increases transparency into how much an item costs. It is likely more brands will take note from Telfar and introduce more transparent pricing models in 2025 and beyond. Continue reading by downloading the full report below.

Download the Full 2025 Luxury Retail Trends Report Here

Read last year’s Luxury Retail Trends Report here.

Contributions by Ellie Epperson and Leah Harding