IMD Luxury Trends 2026: Creating Relevance.

01 Why it matters.

IMD’s 2026 luxury analysis is the most precise independent framing of the K-shaped luxury market available. The report explicitly names the divergence between ultra-high-end brands (Hermès, Richemont) and aspirational luxury houses (Kering, struggling LVMH fashion brands) as a structural phenomenon — not cyclical weakness — and identifies the causal factors: HNWI demand remains resilient, aspirational consumer demand has retracted under inflation and perceived value erosion.

IMD introduces a key concept: “Super Winners” — the small number of brands that capture the majority of luxury’s economic profit. This framing, combined with precise financial data on the divergence, provides the analytical foundation for our K-shaped luxury market analysis and several related case studies.

02 Key takeaways.

1. 01 The luxury market in 2026 is “K-shaped”: ultra-high-end brands are resilient and growing; aspirational luxury is in sustained decline.
2. 02 The divergence is structural, not cyclical — it reflects a permanent shift in where spending is concentrated among luxury consumers.
3. 03 “Super Winners” — LVMH, Hermès, Richemont, and a small number of others — capture the majority of luxury’s economic profit.
4. 04 HNWI consumers continued spending through the luxury slowdown; the retraction came from aspirational consumers whose financial confidence eroded.
5. 05 Brands that spent 2024–2025 repositioning toward ultra-high-net-worth consumers are building toward the rising arm of the K.

03 Used in our research.

1. 01 InsightThe K-Shaped Luxury Market: Why Hermès Grows While Gucci Falls
2. 02 InsightSell the Beauty, Buy the Jewel: LVMH and Kering Portfolio RecalibrationComing soon
3. 03 Case StudyGucci: What Happens When a Brand Loses Its StoryComing soon
4. 04 Case StudyKering Jewelry: Portfolio Logic in Practice