César Val, known to some as “Mr. Luxury,” is a global leader in the application of luxury strategies. With more than two decades at the helm of iconic brands such as Prada, Carolina Herrera, Paco Rabanne, and Valentino, he has transformed his experience into a model of thinking, the Luxury Mindset, and a working method, LuxMap™. This mindset and method are already being applied by hundreds of business leaders. A consultant to global firms, lecturer, founder of VAL Consulting and VAL Academy, and now author of Secrets of Luxury, he presents a work that democratizes knowledge about how to create value and desire beyond price.
Let’s start with the presentation of your book in Zaragoza. Why did you choose Zaragoza as the first city to present Secrets of Luxury, and what does this event mean to you?
I was born in Zaragoza, although I have been living abroad for almost three decades. Doing it in my hometown helps me to make it more than just a publishing event: it is a reunion with the essential. I wanted my family and childhood friends to accompany me on this milestone in my life. Zaragoza is my origin. And in life, as in true luxury, origin is the first symbol of identity. True luxury is not measured by price, but by how it connects with what really matters.
You have worked for more than two decades with brands such as Prada, Carolina Herrera, Christian Louboutin, and Valentino. What are the key lessons you have learned from your career in the world of luxury?
That good luxury is not a product or a service, it is an experience that leaves a mark. Big brands don’t sell functionality, they sell meaning. They don’t compete on price, they compete on identity. They are not comparative, they are superlative. I also learned that simple necessity sells cheaply. To create and deliver luxury value, you must target unfulfilled desires.
“Luxury brands are not about positioning, they are about identity.”
After so many years of international experience, what prompted you to write Secrets of Luxury? What specific need were you seeking to address with this publication?
I wrote it because I feel it is another way to share what I have learned after more than two decades working in senior management at major global brands and five years as an entrepreneur. It helps me fulfill my new purpose as a disseminator of the luxury business model. I don’t want to “democratize” luxury, but rather the knowledge of its business model. This is a purpose I pursue as a speaker, consultant, and also as a mentor and advisor to business leaders.
The book proposes applying the logic of luxury beyond its traditional sector. What kind of reader is it aimed at, and what tools or ideas will those who delve into it find?
Beyond a sector or lifestyle, luxury is a business model applicable to any sector or industry. Knowing the strategies and tactics of luxury brands allows businesspeople, entrepreneurs, and business leaders to stop competing on price and become preferred for their value proposition. This book is for them.
In “Secrets of Luxury,” I share, in a simple and applicable way, the keys to the luxury business model. Reading it activates the reader’s “Luxury Mindset”: a mindset of abundance, capable of connecting with people’s desires. The key is to build value that is perceived as legitimate. It is not about justifying high prices, but about creating a proposition that the customer perceives, values, and desires. In the book, I develop LuxMap™, a strategic map that teaches how to increase a brand’s desirability by working on three dimensions: Aspiration (journey to uniqueness), Theatricality (journey to emotionality), Inspiration (journey to transcendence). Within each journey, strategies and tactics applied by luxury brands are proposed. When a brand activates these dimensions, it stops chasing customers… and starts attracting them.
“I don’t want to ‘democratize’ luxury, but rather the understanding of its business model.”
From your strategic perspective, how would you define luxury today and what distinguishes it from the more classic or conventional perception?
In terms of consumers or “enjoyers,” luxury has gone from representing the lifestyle of a minority (the “happy few”) to offering exceptional moments or indulgences for a majority (the “happy many”). It’s not that luxury has lost its function as a “social differentiator,” but it is no longer the most relevant one. This “democratization of luxury” has occurred in parallel with the process of globalization and the development of large corporations that bring together brands from different categories. In recent years, post-pandemic, we are seeing the growth of a more intimate, experiential, profound, and conscious luxury.
You insist that luxury is essentially emotional. Why do you believe that this emotional connection prevails over the functional value of the product?
If you base your entire commercial proposition on tangible attributes, you will end up competing on price, because your differentiation will be limited. In fact, mass-market brands compete on price because their positioning is based primarily on functionality: I wash whiter, I have more vitamins, I run faster, etc.
Luxury brands are not about positioning, they are about identity. And identity is built on intangibles: symbolic value, the creation of memorable experiences, and cultural credibility. That’s why we’ll never see a Chanel bag claiming to have more capacity than a Prada bag or a Rolls Royce advertising that it consumes less fuel than a Ferrari. They have built a unique, non-comparative identity. And that identity, which makes a brand unique, is built beyond the functional.
In your opinion, what are the essential intangible elements for a brand to be perceived as truly luxurious?
Having a story that connects with its essence and telling it in such a way that the consumer, in turn, connects with it and wants to share it. To do this, the brand must be authentic and master its narrative. The brand must explain “who it is” and not “what it does.” Having the superpower and applying strategies to make the consumer feel special and managing its offer so that it is not always available to everyone completes the foundation of “strategic desirability.”
“It’s not about justifying high prices, but about creating a proposition that the customer perceives, values, and desires.”
In your model, storytelling plays a fundamental role. How can a well-constructed narrative transform the perception of a brand and awaken desire?
The danger of storytelling is that it becomes an exercise in brand ego that contributes nothing to the consumer. My daughter doesn’t care that Louis Vuitton has more than a hundred years of history, no matter how many times she is told. But she does care about a narrative that helps her connect with her values or personal aspirations. Beyond storytelling, it’s about giving consumers a story to tell (talkability).
You have worked in Europe, the Middle East, and Latin America. What cultural differences have you found most revealing in terms of how luxury is understood and consumed?
Each market has its moment of maturity. Younger markets in global luxury tend to value brand exposure more: logos, patterns, designs that shout out which brand they are wearing (we are talking about “loud luxury”). This is the case in the Middle East: consider that the United Arab Emirates was founded as a country in 1971. And this is also the case in countries where global brands entered later than in “old Europe”: Eastern European countries, China, and Latin American countries where access to luxury for the middle class is more recent. You see more logos. In Western Europe, there is a greater tendency towards more “quiet,” more discreet luxury: most global luxury brands were born there and are better known; consumers are more knowledgeable about them and tend to dispense with excessive symbols; in fact, the absence of a logo is considered an act of luxury “connoisseurship.”
Do you think that, today, internationalization is a strategic necessity for luxury brands? What risks and opportunities does this process involve?
The opportunity is growth. The risk is that the “dream equation” will be diluted. Massification is to luxury what Kryptonite is to Superman. And beyond the massification of “presence in homes” is the massification of “presence in places.” Before, going to Khiels was a must in New York. Now you have stores of the brand in all airports and major cities around the world, and that makes it lose the essence of exclusivity and uniqueness.
In an increasingly global environment, how can luxury brands balance cultural adaptation with the need to preserve a coherent and solid identity?
By acting as a cultural ambassador rather than a commercial conqueror. In my book, Secrets of Luxury, I describe the example of Louis Vuitton’s entry into Japan: it turned it into a tribute to the local culture (even hiring local architects to design its boutiques). The global essence is maintained, as is the brand’s DNA, but local cultural patterns and features are integrated. This must be done with respect and authenticity: the line between homage and cultural appropriation is a delicate one.
From your perspective, what are the major trends that will shape the future of the luxury sector? What role will digitalization, sustainability, and experience play in relation to the physical product?
In terms of new attributes or “superpowers,” 21st-century luxury must be identity-based, dematerialized, and tribal. “Identity-based” because the brand acts as a builder of identity or personal branding for people (people will consume the brand that defines who they want to be through the values they share). “Dematerialized” because creating unforgettable experiences and memories is more important than the materiality or possession of a product itself. And tribal because people will consume less to “stand out from the crowd” and more to “be part of a select few.” Luxury, paradoxically, as an element of inclusivity. Those who buy a Ferrari are not so much seeking to differentiate themselves from the masses as to be a “Ferrarista,” sharing passion, lifestyle, and experiences with the global “tribe” of Ferraristi. Digital must be at the service of the human; it may sound cliché, but what I mean is that if digital is detrimental to craftsmanship, we are detracting from the value of luxury. AI (Artificial Intelligence) is subordinate to AI (Artisanal Intelligence). Sustainability is already very present in luxury and will continue to be a rising value: you can’t be “good for the person” and “bad for the planet.”
“21st-century luxury must be identity-based, dematerialized, and tribal.”
For those who want to apply the Luxury Mindset to their projects or companies, what would be the first steps you recommend to build a high-value brand?
I propose a change of perspective: moving from managing scarcity to creating abundance. Some businesses remain obsessed with reducing costs or competing on price: luxury focuses on creating extreme value that can be monetized. And that abundance is not only financial. It translates into brands with greater identity, proposals that generate more impact, and customers who are willing to pay more because that higher price is aligned with greater real and perceived value.
In “Secrets of Luxury,” I explain in detail that the Luxury Mindset is based on three key ideas: that luxury is a business model applicable to any sector, that cost is objective but value is subjective, and that value is built beyond the functional.
To build on VALue rather than low price, you need vision and consistency over time. Above all, you need to understand that certain tactical decisions—such as starting with low prices, promotions, or overexposure of the brand—can become structural. In luxury, not everything can be undone without pain. Choosing well at the beginning does not speed things up… but it does prevent setbacks.
To conclude, you define yourself as an “eternal learner.” What is the latest thing you have learned that you can tell us about?
How to properly manage social networks such as Instagram or LinkedIn. I didn’t have them active until 2020, and I don’t like digital exposure without a specific purpose. But I have understood that mastering them and using them must be part of my outreach work. Beyond relying on the support of external professionals, I am learning on my own. It is also necessary to support the people I mentor, because it is equally critical for them. In the last two years, I have been working continuously to optimize the way I use AI. It should streamline my work without dehumanizing it. I need it, and so do my clients. If you don’t ride this wave, it will pass you by.
