| Lifestyle Brand |
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A successful lifestyle brand speaks to the core Identity of its customers. Individuals each have their own sense of self, based on their background (e.g. ethnicity, social class, subculture, nationality, etc.). A lifestyle brand provides a powerful supplement to this core identity, by allowing the individual to publicly associate themselves with the brand. A prototypical lifestyle brand is Polo Ralph Lauren . Ralph Lauren has created a lifestyle based on upper class country clubs. Their retail outlets reflect this lifestyle through their luxurious wood panelling, and color photographs of happy and wealthy people. In doing so, Ralph Lauren has created an implicit brand promise: if you buy our products, you too can aspire to this lifestyle. SOURCES Many lifestyle brands purposely evoke existing groups or cultures. One popular source for lifestyle brands is national identity. Victoria's Secret purposely evoked the English upper class in its initial branding efforts, while Louis Vuitton continues to draw on the opulent tradition of the French aristocracy. Another source of lifestyle brands is Subcultures . Burton has built its lifestyle brand by drawing on the Snowboarding subculture, while Quiksilver has done the same with the Surfing community. SUCCESS One key indication that a brand has become a lifestyle is when it successfully extends beyond its original product category. For example, Nike used to be a product-focused company focusing on making running shoes. But over time, it became a lifestyle brand based on the athlete subculture. This has allowed it to expand into related athletic categories, such as sports equipment and apparel. A successful merchandising and licensing program is one of the key indicators of a lifestyle brand. Examples include Calvin Klein licensing its name to a perfume called CKOne, and Harley Davidson selling branded merchandise to its customers. By this measure, other successful lifestyle brands include Caterpillar , Abercrombie & Fitch , and Gucci . LUXURY Lifestyle brands are an increasingly important part of the luxury market. Luxury-based lifestyle brands allow consumers to aspire to a better, more luxurious life. Lifestyle Brands like Gucci , Armani , and Louis Vuitton have allowed their owners to expand well beyond their original markets of fashion or handbags. DANGERS Many companies have unsuccessfully attempted to turn their brands into lifestyle brands. Certain brands simply lack the cachet or excitement to make the transition. Both McDonalds and Microsoft have attempted to become lifestyle brands in the last decade, and had marginal success at best. Even Starbucks has struggled on this front, with failed or struggling attempts to expand into music, magazines, and merchandising. It is crucial that a lifestyle brand speak to the core identity of its audience. Brands that fail to do so will struggle or fail to become a lifestyle brand. EXTERNAL LINKS
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