Status trends: planes, bikes, coffins?
Jinfo Blog

By Jan Knight

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Sometimes a news story or article strikes me as an interesting basis for a posting but I struggle with making its pertinence obvious. So, here we go! “New Vegas Airline to Feature Casino Décor, Celebrity Holographs.” Well, maybe it wouldn’t be quite as pertinent had I not just read an Economist article, The Status Seekers on how businesses that help consumers to “flaunt their status” are now seen as a new trend.

In order to attract more gamblers from the Northeastern US, a Las Vegas company is launching a “Sin City-themed” charter airline linking New York City to Las Vegas. The airline will present a club-like atmosphere featuring casino type flatbed seats, mood lighting, and recorded holographic images of Las Vegas celebrities giving onboard safety briefings. Inflight meals or “upscale meal packs” created by Las Vegas chefs will also set them apart in this time of minimal food service by many airlines.

LV Air will even provide inter-seat texting and video, and the best part, especially if you have a hangover, is that they will coordinate the delivery of luggage to the hotel. One presumes that the "party plane" flight to Las Vegas will get people in the mood for what awaits them and will scream of status as the flghts will not be cheap.

Back to The Economist article and the pertinence. It appears that Trendwatching.com, cites a variety of companies who help consumers flaunt their status and by doing so are becoming very successful and setting a trend. Most importantly they say that “emerging markets are starting to look like America in the 1950s: people are obsessed with acquiring their first fridges and cars.” Assuming that for most, a fridge or a car is no longer a status symbol, people are turning to more extravagant purchases. Some examples: a Swedish company which offers bicycles where each part of the bike can be made in a different colour of your choice, a German fashion house that allows you to buy clothes that reflect the sound of your voice  by having a computer making knitting patterns from speech patterns.

On a more personal, but related, note, I just heard from my sister in England that a friend was going to be buried in a “colourful coffin.” A quick Google search revealed a company called Colourful Coffins. I do wonder just who is going to be concerned about the status on this one!

It seems that innovation and emerging markets don’t have to revolve directly around technology. Sometimes, something simple, something functional, something that we all might need – airplanes, bicycles and coffins - can take on a new dimension and make people look and feel special. I’ll let you all decide what all of these three products appear to have in common!

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