Is Exclusivity Back in Fashion?
Explaining the red thread between Hermès, Charli XCX, and a Utah ski slope.
In today’s debut SOTA INSIDER — our new, weekly insider view of the creative industry — we’re talking about…
Hermès, Charli XCX, and a Utah ski slope
Why Beyoncé won’t save Levi’s
The rise of direct-to-fan models
Sports’ latest gaming entry
Billie Eilish’ follower growth hack
Brands are U-Turning on Accessibility, Here’s Why
We want you to really want it. Really, really, want it. And for you to pay a fat premium, be recommended by three impressive “friends” more important than you, and do it all again tomorrow.
Judging by recent brand behaviour, exclusivity is back.
After experiencing years of radical accessibility driven by investor demands for brands to rapidly scale and broaden their reach at any expense, the era of unrestricted access to purchasing your way into a brand has ended, and your invitation is now void.
Just last month, luxury fashion brand The Row, known for its obscenely high priced everything, banned show guests at its latest runway show to take and share photos on social media. The move caused online mayhem, with fans calling the move everything from “arrogant” to “clever”. Those not physically present would have to wait a week for the brand to release imagery of the event online.
Over in Utah, Netflix co-founder Reed Hastings, bought a controlling stake in Powder Mountain, a ski area which he is looking to make strictly accessible to people who own homes atop the mountain and who pay an annual membership fee that’s set to annually cost between $30,000 and $100,000. It’s a business model new to the ski industry, but a much needed one.
“All of the independent ski areas are looking for ways to survive,” Hasting told The New York Times. “Going boutique, higher end, private, is probably where they need to go.”
More recently, over in New York, CharliXCX hosted her debut Boiler Room DJ set in what was a myth to get into unless you’re Julia Fox, Addison Rae, or Richie Shazam who joined the musician behind the booth.
The performance was part of a smart roll-out for her anticipated new album ‘BRAT’ set to launch in June and which was announced a few months ago during which a private Instagram group @brat360 was created for super-fans. The page today has nearly 100 thousand followers eagerly waiting for priority access and news.
Now whether it’s the growing lines outside of luxury stores, exclusive restaurants and clubs like New York’s The Frog and London’s Maison Estelle where even phone cameras are adorned with stickers, or social media companies like WhatsApp and Substack launching new ‘tiered-access’ closed digital communities (we hear that digital passports are the next big thing here), the allure of access for the few is rapidly resurfacing across different realms of consumer experiences. It’s done in a bid to grow beyond the traditional model of widespread availability, shifting towards personalised experiences for a select clientele.
Why? Because increasing loyalty among super fans and VIP clients is this year’s most important KPI in brand building. Despite challenging macroeconomic conditions, the overall luxury market reached and estimated €1.5 trillion globally in 2023, a robust 8% to 10% growth over 2022, according to Bain & Co.
In other words, a wider group than ever before is looking to flaunt their wealth through luxury goods and experiences. And the genuine elite, characterised by both financial affluence and cultural impact, now seek to distance themselves from newcomers, preferring exclusive spaces and distinct possessions (when is the last time you went to a Soho House?)
Their insatiable demand for brands, artists, and institutions to offer them something more exclusive, more private, something just for them, is backed by their give-us-what-we-want-or-we-take-our-money-and-influence-elsewhere attitude. And brands would be smart to take not, given that the top 2% of luxury customers drive around 40% of all sales. The smart ones are, creating private access to experiences and product that money alone can’t buy (our sources tell us of a brand hosting 500 private global members events a year, making up the majority of its marketing spend).
Today, we’re heading in a direction where you’re either in and get the Hermès Birkin bag, or you live long enough to see yourself become the person who sues the brand for the brand not deeming you important enough to buy one.
What’s else caught our eye…
Beyoncé's Levi's Lifeline
Levi's has been going through a tough time recently. They're trying to sell directly to their customers, grow beyond denim, and cut costs (an staff). It wasn't looking too good until they noticed track 17 ‘LEVIIS JEANS’ on Beyoncé's new album, ‘Cowboy Carter.’ The mention helped boost the stock by 20% following the company’s first quarter earnings report.
On LinkedIn, Sir John Hegarty accurately notes that Levi's desperately needs to re-connect with culture saying, "It needs to follow up with campaigns that have integrity, memorability, and imagination. Secondly, it needs to act now. Beyoncé will rapidly move onto another project. And the moment will vanish. Thirdly, it should remember to be the star. Levi’s needs to create communication that puts it at the heart of the story.” — Tom Garland
The Direct-to-Fan Model Opportunity
London musician James Blake announced a partnership with artist-to-fan startup VAULT.FM on Instagram, aiming to revolutionise the streaming industry. Artists set their own music prices via subscription. Blake, the platform’s first artist, offered three unreleased demos for $5 monthly. This opposes the current streaming model paying around $0.003 per stream.
VAULT.FM's disruptive move reflects industry tensions amid poor artist-label-distributor relationships and AI advancements. In February, Universal Music Group pulled its discography from TikTok over payout disputes. SAULT and Pharrell, have followed with releasing ‘direct-to-fan’ tracks (Ye teased the same on his IG stories). Recently, AI company Suno introduced its V3 model to rival Google's Dream Track. These developments signal a critical juncture for the music industry, urging swift action to avert collapse. — Harry Salmons
How Billie Eilish Added 7M Followers in 48 Hours
Over the weekend, Billie Eilish gained 7 million followers on Instagram after adding her 100-million-plus followers to her “close friends” where the singer has been sharing cryptic teasers for her forthcoming third studio album. According to Billboard, Eilish saw a growth of 6.4% on the platform after the move. Exclusivity done the clever way. — Christopher Morency
In a First, Football Enters Roblox
Amsterdam-based football club Ajax has become the first Adidas sponsor to appear on Roblox, and recently announced a cycling collection inspired by the Dutch capital. Clubs are harnessing their position as global brands, telling narratives to fans that transcend just football. — Harry Salmons
This feels so Ick to me and is just dividing our country more and more… soon enough there will be no more middle class, just the haves and have-nots.
Indeed, focusing on and retaining VICs is the way to go, now that the truth about aspirational buyers has become apparent.