1. Introduction

The defining attribute of services for rich people in Japan has been the face to face interaction in exclusive shops not meant for the normal middle class consumer. Before the economic bubble in the 1980s, luxury companies were defining their customers predominantly by income level. Their numbers were therefore fixed to a small elite and business could not be expanded beyond this scope without the danger of losing exclusivity. With the commodification of luxury and rising mass affluence, a change in the perception of the term occurred (Takahashi 2005: 10). In recent years the long taken-for-granted distinction between domestic and foreign brands is blurring and there is a greater tolerance for nontraditional lifestyle paths (Nikkei Weekly, July 16th, 2007, Debbie Howard, Japan's evolving consumer psyche creating opportunities, p. 32; Hirano and Miles 2006). Luxury consumers are turning into unpredictable  shoppers that combine different brands and styles to form distinctive and personal lifestyles, and in response to that the variations between offerings are becoming ever more subtle (SIGMA 2005: 10; see also Ishiwata 2006: 7; Nunes et al. 2004: 57). A new demand for authenticity, corporate social responsibility (CSR), and an increasing translation of culture and arts into consumer products indicate a shift away from simple conspicuous consumption towards informed consumption (Currid 2007: 36; see also Scott 2000; Anterior Insight 2008; Nikkei Weekly, October 15th, 2007: 26).
Global Insight predicts that premium brands will grow 89.3% in Japan between 2005 and 2010, while volume brands will only grow 0.9% in the same period (Treece 2006). How can such an expansion in the luxury market be explained? Takahashi (2005) notes that if we take a look at the statistics of high taxpayers in Japan the market of rich people is expanding, but not in a way that would justify the rise in luxury sales that was experienced in the last decade. These new consumption patterns are attributed to the appearance of the “new rich” who, as a market, hold tremendous potential for luxury companies. The transformation of wealth from the traditional old rich families of entrepreneurs and real estate owners, to the newly affluent young business professionals, IT-entrepreneurs and retirement rich happened within the last 15 years, during and after the economic bubble of the 1980s.
As their major share of profit now comes from a much more diversified consumer, many premium companies that used to sell to a conservative, elitist, and upper-class group of luxury customers now face the challenge of how to satisfy the new demand for mass luxury while at the same time taking care not to devaluate the brand and lose their more upscale clients. I will argue that because of these developments, premium companies have to change their relationship with their most valuable customers: from an impersonal to one that will create the opportunity for long-term cooperation and trust. New ways to transmit an image of exclusivity are needed to keep the aspirational appeal of brands and products. The affluent consumers have become increasingly immune to the normal channels of mass marketing and now demand real communication and added value. In order to reach them, luxury companies have to get access to the most exclusive of all marketing environments: personal communication between consumers about luxury brands (word of mouth).
The paper is structured as follows: Paragraph 2 introduces briefly customer groups that are of special interest within “new rich” market. Paragraph 3 deals with marketing issues. Section 3.1 and 3.2 explain the basic approach to luxury marketing. Section 3.3 introduces companies that are essential cooperation partners for a successful strategy within the Japanese premium market and outlines the importance of creating a marketing environment for the most exclusive customers. In section 3.4 I will explain how to work with word of mouth marketing techniques in a HNWI environment.