Insider Monkey

Top 15 Luxury Fashion Companies in the World

Ramish Cheema
8 min read

In This Article:

In this piece, we will take a look at the top 15 luxury fashion companies in the world. For more luxury fashion companies, head on over to Top 5 Luxury Fashion Companies in the World.

Fashion is one of the most lucrative industries in the world. The popularity of luxury and high-end goods both among the rich and the poor is in a large part attributed to human and social psychology. Ever since evolving from monkeys to our current day state, sociologists and scientists believe that humans have prioritized evolutionary behavior to find a mate and signal to others that they have status, resources, and power.

These conclusions are also backed by research. A study conducted by researchers from the University of California outlines that consumers can be divided into four groups based on their need for wealth and status. These groups are wealthy consumers with low and high needs of status and non-wealthy customers with low and high status needs. The research outlines that the four groups' preference for luxury goods, both conscious and subconscious, is correlated to their desire to either associate or dissociate with their social strata. It concludes by sharing that the wealthy who do not want to showcase their status tend to make purchases that are inconspicuous and are recognizable only by their social class. On the flip side, the wealthy with a high need for status make flashy purchases to signal to those that are below them in society's rank that they are different. Finally, the less wealthy with a high need for status tend to purchase low cost counterfeit luxury goods as they aim to 'emulate' the wealthy.

This basic human desire has spurred a multi-billion dollar industry full of glitz and glamour as well as produced the world's richest man as of April 2023. While Tesla chief Elon Musk dominated the world's rich list for a good part of last year, right now it's the French fashion boss Bernard Arnault who is worth $238 billion as of April 2023. At the same time, while Mr. Arnault's wealth might stun you, it is almost a tenth of the total worth of the global fashion industry. According to estimates from McKinsey, the global fashion industry generated $2.5 trillion in revenue before the coronavirus pandemic hit and devastated the retail sector by shuttering down shops and stopping foot traffic.

At the same time, the industry also roared back soon after the pandemic, with McKinsey pointing out that between 2020 and 2021, the fashion industry's revenues grew by 21%. The products' profitability also improved, as overall the fashion industry's margins doubled during the same time period, from an earlier 6% to 12.3%. Yet, the historic inflation that pummeled global populations in 2022 also hit the industry, with its growth slowing down during the second half of 2022. Yet, McKinsey also points out that 2023 will be a good year for the fashion industry, particularly since the gap between luxury and non luxury products will grow. This is due to the simple fact that the wealthy are generally insulated against the effects of inflation, and they can afford to continue their spending as opposed to the broader population which has to make some sacrifices to manage the high costs of living.

and

Recommended Stories