Understanding the role technology has in luxury
In a time when luxury shopping had finally made the decision to start becoming accessible online and meet the needs of their new, younger consumers.
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Our CEO asked the strategy team to help navigate McLaren Applied into the luxury market and build new alliances with McLaren racing and Automotive in order to find new strategic partnerships.
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I was asked to lead the project with a mission to uncover opportunities in luxury that showcased our technologies value and capability to the luxury consumer.
Innovation
Defined strategies to uncover market needs that delivered category defining propositions
Champion the luxury consumer
Provided consumer empathy during strategic decisions
Facilitate insight process
Managed teams of different disciplines through the insight process to uncover relevant market needs
Build alliances
Worked with McLaren Group to build relationships and connect strengths
Luxury tech visions
Led ideation workshops and synthesised visions that demonstrated McLaren Applied value in luxury tech
Luxury consultant
Shared knowledge with luxury project teams to define and evaluate McLaren Applied luxury propositions
01 My role
02 Our learning
The digital revolution has created new luxury consumers, which are both changing the luxury business landscape significantly
03 What we delivered
Luxury consumer archetypes:
McLaren Applied Luxury Principles
Consumer descriptions of luxury that have been written as filters to ensure McLaren Applied create pioneering and category defining luxury products.
Purposeful
Is it genuinely useful to the owner?
Does it make their life better? Is it intelligent, relevant and is everything there for a reason?
Beauty
Is it eye-catching?
Is it immediately captivating and compelling? Is it functionally beautiful, is every curve there for a reason?
Personal
Is it personally significant?
Does it consider the endeavour overcome in obtaining it? Will it respond to how owners think, feel and act?
Discreet
Can it be discreet?
Is it tasteful but not dull? Will it allow normality when needed?
Maintainable
Is it long-lasting & considered?
Is it therefore a pleasure to use, to maintain and to own?
Rarity
Will owners feel they belong?
Is it exclusive? Will it enable our users to lead not follow? Will they feel part of the McLaren family?
04 Applying our luxury principles
Luxury scooter proposition
Our understanding of the new luxury consumer, their needs and aspirations helped shape and navigate McLaren's first luxury proposition and its high-level functionality. The luxury principles ensured our overarching proposition, packaging and delivery resonated with our luxury consumers and brand values.
Luxury scooter renders
Purposeful
Personal
Beauty
Maintainable
Rarity
Purposeful
Personal
Rarity
Beauty
Purposeful
Discreet
Maintainable
Discreet
05 What is luxury tech?
Luxury tech is not about tech products or adding a single instance of technology into a luxury good. Luxury tech is about catering to the needs of 'new luxury consumers' and transforming how brands reach out to customers, how consumers interact with brands (online and retail), and how consumers experience luxury (online and retail).
A luxury consumers journey
Opportunities for McLaren Applied to elevate a luxury consumers experience
Luxury tech opportunities
We delivered seven strong market needs that inspired exciting use of McLaren Applied technology and capability. During a series of ideation workshops several ideas were incubated and four are currently in development.
Checking the providence of online luxury purchases
Supporting consumers look after the condition of their luxury assets
Design and integrate registered tags into products so potential owners can search online
Storage chambers that adapt their environment to care for asset and notify consumers about its condition
Exciting consumers around a potential purchase
Giving control to consumers to prevent theft or vandalism
Simulating real-size augmented models and bring to life what a potential purchase may look like or feel like in its environment.
Smart security systems that alerts consumers if unusual activity is happening around the asset and providing remote functionality like deactivating use.
06 Approach
A broad discovery phase was planned as luxury was a new market for us. We used research reports and trends to target consumer profiles, markets and conversation topics of interest.
We then engaged with luxury consumers and experts in their home and retail environments across London and York. Together we explored the British meaning of luxury and the role technology has within it.
Milestone collaboration workshops with CEO, Marketing, McLaren Automotive and McLaren Racing partners were paramount in synthesising opportunities, building relationships, and establishing confidence in our approach. Being open in our work strengthened our alliance and ensured we delivered value.
07 Research photos
08 Process highlights
1. Luxury market immersion
We targeted a breadth of luxury consumers including; 'Reachers', 'Rising Middle Class', 'High Earners' and 'Ultra-high net-worth individuals. We spoke with experts in growing luxury markets e.g luxury goods, hospitality, vintage cars, cosmetic surgery, yachts and private jets.
500 observations and clues were captured and synthesised into 33 Luxury Tech opportunity areas. During a range of workshops we selected 12 brand relevant opportunity areas for McLaren Applied.
2. McLaren Group collaboration
Building on the insight captured from research we facilitated workshops with business units, portfolio teams and group partners to gain input on luxury product categories and luxury opportunities that were exciting, on brand, and within our capability to develop within two to three years.
3. External reporting
I presented the output of the research to McLaren group partners and McLaren Applied directors. Printable leaflets were designed for the audience to take away and use in future discussions to reflect and build on the learnings from the research.
©Melissa Butterworth 2022