"Selling Luxury", the bible on selling in the luxury sector

By

Chenu Alexis

Published
Nov 3, 2014

Co-written by Geneviève Tour, a specialist in luxury and a training consultant at Cartier, and Robin Lent, Senior Consultant at AC3, a Paris-based company that specialises in training and communications, "Selling Luxury" explores, like a guide, all of the components in the world of luxury and puts forth 88 strategies to be adopted to better attract, seduce and enchant customers.

With a preface by Alain-Dominique Perrin, former CEO of Cartier and current President of the Fondation Cartier, and written based on personal experiences at Cartier, Lexus, The Four Seasons, Piaget, Dior, Moët Hennessy and "several other luxury brands," the work distills, in 8 chapters, a wealth of tips to transform a salesperson into a "Sales Ambassador", to offer a real experience for the customer and to increase sales performances.

Running through some of the general principles inherent to selling, the book then defines the attitudes and behaviours of a "Sales Ambassador" to make a good sale, the importance of applauding a customer and complimenting them with the proper vocabulary – "the word product does not have the same impact as creation" – right up to its phrasing: "a salesperson in a luxury house is like an actor, and the store their stage, they must thus use a special tone of voice, play with the rhythms and avoid mumbling, for example."

Other points addressed include those relative to factors that optimise sales. The atmosphere, the special attention given to details, knowledge of the stock and of events that are taking place in the city are all part of a successful sale, just like "the ability to maintain a high level of service during rushes," the authors explain, "by offering magazines to read or a refreshment, for example, and even a mobile charger service or games for children."

Fundamentals to always keep in mind when welcoming and attending to a customer, from the importance of a smile, listening and letting them know you have heard them, to the necessity of story-telling or the art of romanticising the story of an item or a price, to key advice for multiplying a sale, the book is full of advice based on real past situations.

The last chapter dedicated to gaining customer loyalty, and one of the most interesting ones, discusses the reflex of offering customers gifts and the proper use of business cards, a customer file and future communications – "at the birth of a child for example, events like Mother's Day or Valentine's Day, or the launch of a new collection…"- all good excuses to keep in touch with the customer.

Available in English, Chinese, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean and Italian from Wiley editions, "Selling Luxury" will be available in French in 2015.