Luxury Institute European Survey -- Wealthy European Consumers Rate the Most Prestigious Luxury Women's Fashion Brands: Hermes, Chanel, and Yves Saint Laurent

Wealthy European consumers rated Hermes the most prestigious luxury women's fashion brand in the 2009 Luxury Brand Status Index (LBSI) survey from the independent Luxury Institute (www.LuxuryInstitute.com). The survey was conducted in France, the U.K., Germany and Italy, as a proxy for Europe. Chanel and Yves Saint Laurent ranked second and third, respectively.

"Many luxury brands are playing defense in the U.S. and in Europe during this economic downturn. They should be playing offense. The high demand for our impartial research is driving our expansion into Europe," said Milton Pedraza, CEO of the Luxury Institute. "Almost every week we present ratings results to senior management teams, boards of directors, advisory boards, or annual staff meetings of major luxury brands. Luxury leaders are demanding our impartially derived actionable insights from high net-worth consumers to determine where they rank, and ask us to help them through the rigorous process of differentiating their customer experience from their competitors."

Following are the 24 luxury women's fashion brands rated by wealthy consumers (alphabetical order):

Alexander McQueen
Armani
Bottega Veneta
Burberry
Calvin Klein
Chanel
Chloe
Christian Dior
Dolce & Gabbana
Donna Karan
Fendi
Ferragamo
Givenchy
Gucci
Hermes
Jil Sander
Louis Vuitton
Marc Jacobs
Prada
Ralph Lauren
Roberto Cavalli
Stella McCartney
Versace
Yves Saint Laurent

The proprietary Luxury Brand Status Index (LBSI) survey is the only measure of the prestige of leading brands among wealthy Europeans. A sample of 752 wealthy women, 188 each from the United Kingdom, Germany, France, and Italy, were surveyed in-depth online about their opinions. Respondents were recruited and screened to only include those age 21 or older with a minimum gross annual income of EUR 60,000 or 70,000 pounds.

The LBSI asks respondents to rate the brands along four main "pillars" of brand stature:

--  Consistently superior quality
--  Uniqueness and exclusivity
--  Social status as a product consumed by people who are admired and
    respected
--  Self enhancement, in that the brand makes the consumer "feel special"
    across all aspects of the customer experience
    

In addition, the survey also measures three key "outcome" metrics, which are compared to the category LBSI:

--  Worthiness of a significant price premium
--  Willingness to recommend the brand to people they care about and why,
    or why not
--  Brand preference as the brand most likely to be considered the next
    time a purchase is made
    

About the Luxury Institute

The Luxury Institute is the uniquely independent and impartial ratings, reviews and research institution that is the trusted and respected voice of the high net-worth consumer. The Institute provides a portfolio of proprietary publications and research that guides and educates high net-worth individuals and the companies that cater to them on leading edge trends, high net-worth consumer rankings and ratings of luxury brands, and best practices. The Luxury Institute also operates the Luxury Board (www.LuxuryBoard.com), the world's first global, membership-based online community for luxury goods and services executives, professionals and entrepreneurs. To reach the Luxury Institute, please call 646-792-2669 or go to www.LuxuryInstitute.com.