Experiential luxury shopping at the Louis Vuitton Flagship in Paris: Dramas of identity

Purpose: Outline the dimensions of the luxury shopping experience that distinguish it from hedonic shopping in other contexts. Focus on the meaning the luxury flagship shopping experience has to consumers at the point of purchase.

Design: Ethnographic field study. Observation, interviews and analysis of responses of twenty shoppers at the Louis Vuitton flagship on the Champs-Élysées in Paris.

Findings: Identification of seven general types of experience, the most prevalent having to do with the Paris location and French cultural associations that the brand connotes through the store. Shoppers respond to the symbolic attributes of the brand in defining and enacting a self in the store environment.

Research Limitations: An exploratory study with a small sample and brief interviews. Larger samples at this and other locations will provide us with more data on the key attributes of luxury shopping.

Practical implications: Furthers knowledge on experiential shopping by allowing customers to share their motivations. Of interest to academics and luxury retailers as it illustrates the importance of the store environment and location to customers.

Social implications: Furthers our understanding of the individual in contemporary consumer society within a branded context where the self is dramatically put into play.

Originality/value: Louis Vuitton occupies an important place within the rarified world of luxury brands catering to the aspirations and fantasies of customers. Understanding subjective meanings provided by shoppers as they exist, the store provides a greater depth of understanding of the customer response to luxury brands.