Method
This site assesses brands and houses against the definition of a luxury brand proposed by Ko, Costello and Taylor (2019). For these authors, a luxury brand is a product or service that consumers perceive as having five characteristics: high quality, authentic value, a prestigious image, a price that commands a premium, and the ability to build a deep connection with the customer.
These criteria describe perceptions. No database holds them directly. The site therefore approaches them through verifiable indicators, each with its source. A criterion is “met” only when sourced evidence shows it.
Reference
Ko, E., Costello, J. P. and Taylor, C. R. (2019). ‘What is a luxury brand? A new definition and review of the literature’. Journal of Business Research, 99, 405–413 (definition on p. 406).
Met, not established, no data
- Met: at least one piece of sourced evidence shows the indicator.
- Not established: the data exists but does not reach the indicator (for example, a price below the sector threshold).
- No data: nothing settles it. The site never infers a failure from missing data.
- The score is the number of criteria met, from 0 to 5. It measures what is proven, not what a house is worth.
The indicators
- High quality. Clearly superior materials and finish.
Membership of an association with a charter of excellence, where admission is by application (Comité Colbert, Altagamma, Walpole, Círculo Fortuny, Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie); an official craft label; a haute couture or high jewellery house recognised by the Fédération de la Haute Couture et de la Mode. - Authentic value. Real benefits, functional or emotional.
Documented manufacturing in the country of origin; the brand’s own workshop or manufacture, named and located; a lifetime guarantee or repair service. The evidence comes from the official website of the brand or its group. - Prestigious image. A reputation built on craft, expertise, heritage and service.
Presence in a reference list (associations, federation, Deloitte and Brand Finance rankings); or a heritage of at least 50 years since the founding. - Premium price. Customers accept to pay far more than for an equivalent.
Entry price of the signature product, taken from the official website with its date, above the threshold of its sector (table below). - Resonance. Deep attachment and loyalty from customers.
Documented sales or service by appointment, waiting list or client programme; or international renown: a Wikipedia article in at least 20 languages.
The thresholds
The thresholds are editorial choices, gathered in a single parameters file. They may change; this page then updates itself. For price, the threshold is about four times the price of a good-quality mainstream equivalent.
- Heritage: 50 years since the founding.
- International renown: a Wikipedia article in 20 languages or more.
- Prices found in another currency are converted to euros at the European Central Bank reference rate of 26 October 2026.
| Sector | Product checked | Mainstream equivalent (order of magnitude) | Threshold |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fashion and leather goods | smallest size of the signature leather bag (or signature piece) | €350 (leather bag from a mainstream brand) | €1,500 |
| Watchmaking | entry watch of the signature collection | €800 (entry-level Swiss mechanical watch) | €5,000 |
| Jewellery | least expensive gold piece of the signature collection | €350 (gold piece from a high-street jeweller) | €1,500 |
| Fragrance and beauty | signature 100 ml eau de parfum (or skincare product) | €40 (100 ml eau de parfum sold in supermarkets) | €150 |
| Wines and spirits | 75 cl bottle of the signature cuvée | €25 (bottle of a mainstream sparkling wine or spirit) | €100 |
| Cars | base price of the entry model | €35,000 (average new car) | €150,000 |
| Hotels | none: hotel rates vary too much from day to day | — | none |
| Fine food and dining | tasting menu, or signature box or piece | €60 (menu at a good neighbourhood restaurant) | €250 |
| Art de vivre | entry signature piece (glass, plate, cutlery, pen…) | €35 (equivalent piece from a mainstream brand) | €150 |
The three levels
The level follows the classic distinction between accessible, intermediate and absolute (or inaccessible) luxury, proposed by Danielle Allérès. It is assigned by hand, from the brand’s entry price, the scarcity of its distribution and the share of made-to-measure in its offer.
The level is a description, not a rating: it does not count in the score.
The places
Places come from OpenStreetMap: any element whose “brand:wikidata” (or “wikidata”) tag points to a brand on the list. Hotels and restaurants without that tag are matched by name around their Wikidata coordinates; an uncertain match is never put on the map.
The type of place is inferred from the tags: car dealership, counter when the name points to a department store or an airport, flagship when the name contains “Maison” or “Flagship”, workshop or estate for a production site. When the address gives no city or country, the site uses the nearest city (GeoNames).
Limits
- The five criteria are perceptions: verifiable indicators approach them without measuring them.
- Independent shops (jewellers, watchmakers, workshops) are not in this first version: they appear on no list and their place in luxury cannot be checked automatically.
- OpenStreetMap is incomplete, and uneven from one country to another: a brand may have more boutiques than the map shows. OpenStreetMap also does not say whether a boutique belongs to the brand or to an authorised retailer.
- Many brand websites refuse automated reading or show no prices: the price criterion then stays at “no data”.
- The Deloitte ranking covers groups: a brand appears through the rank of its owning group. Its latest published edition covers financial year 2022.
- A few brands are added at the editor’s request without being on a reference list; their profile says so.