News report: “LVMH, the owner of luxury brands from Louis Vuitton to Dom Perignon, has gained $82 billion in market value this year, the most among European stocks. That would amount to a gain of about $39 billion for the region’s richest man, Bernard Arnault, who owns nearly half the company, according to Bloomberg data.”
Well, they call them “luxury brands” for a reason, and part of the definition, stated or otherwise, would involve their price. You’ll certainly pay more for the sparkling wines of Dom Perignon than you would for even the finest Prosecco from Italy.
Learning of the very good year that Bernard Arnault has had got me thinking about the topic of luxury, and how it might be perceived in different ways by different people.
Iggy Azalea, for instance, has said that, “Luxury lives in the finer details. It’s a cloth napkin at a dinner table. It’s a mint on your pillow before bed.”
Angelo Bonati also points to the “little things” when speaking of luxury, which he defines as “attention to detail, originality, exclusivity and, above all, quality.”
Adds Jil Sander: “I am convinced that there can be luxury in simplicity.”
There’s no denying that a bottle of Dom Perignon can make quite an impression on party or dinner guests, or a special date. From my perspective, it’s one of those luxury items that is worth the price because of its long-held reputation and consistent quality.
But can you experience luxury in a bottle of Prosecco, or Spanish cava, or sparkling wine crafted somewhere else? Today, we have more bubbly choices than ever before.
I would tend to agree with Oscar de la Renta, who noted, “Luxury to me is not about buying expensive things; it’s about living in a way where you appreciate things.”
Indeed, gratitude is a trait that widens the spectrum of wine enjoyment, enabling us to appreciate everything from a refreshing rosé on a hot summer day to a glass of Dom Perignon on a special occasion.
To me, either experience could be considered a luxury, because I agree with the observation of Hans-Joerg Seeberger: “Luxury items are things you reward yourself with.”
