Luxury brand lovers be warned: Louis Vuitton raises prices globally due to increased costs & inflation

Lovers of luxury brands will be displeased to see that Louis Vuitton, a world-famous luxury fashion brand, announced it is raising prices this week, citing increased manufacturing costs and global inflation.

The decision will see some of the increased costs passed on to the consumer, with the price of Luis Vuitton leather goods, accessories and fragrances worldwide to go up.

“The price adjustment takes into account changes in production costs, raw materials, transportation as well as inflation,” Louis Vuitton said in a statement to Reuters.

Louis Vuitton is not the only luxury fashion powerhouse to increase prices, with Hermes and Chanel having done so since the start of the pandemic to protect margins against inflation.

The pandemic, in 2020, saw production halted for a big portion of the year, resulting in worldwide delays and disruptions that continue to cause major headaches in the global supply chain system to this day.

While consumers stayed home, accumulating savings, and unable to spend money on travel and holidays, demand for luxury goods started to climb, particularly for long-term investment pieces such as a collectible Luis Vuitton leather bag.

This is evidenced by LVMH’s record 2021, reporting revenue of €64.2 billion, a 44 per cent increased compared to 2020. The Group’s fashion and leather goods division, which includes Louis Vuitton, Dior, Fendi, Celine and Loewe, also reached record highs.

A strong fourth quarter of 2021 saw the group reach organic revenues for the entire year in fashion and leather goods increase by 42 er cent from pre-pandemic levels in 2019 to €30.8 billion.