How 2025 Became the Year VICs Redefined Luxury Experiences

With aspirational customers evaporating by the millions, 2025 was the year of the VIC.

An acronym for “very important customer,” the term designates a cohort that was seemingly immune to economic gloom, as witnessed by the $50 million wedding of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez in Venice.

As the luxury sector grappled with its first slowdown in 15 years, excluding the coronavirus pandemic, brands and retailers pulled out the stops to entertain their biggest spenders, wining and dining them, taking them on cultural adventures and offering up “once in a lifetime” experiences.

“Now the focus is really towards acquiring VICs and driving that relationship,” said Robert Burke, principal of the fashion, retail and hospitality consultancy Robert Burke Associates. “The brands have realized that at the luxury level, acquiring a few VICs can make a significant difference in their business, and so the VICs are more important than ever before.”

Brands work with specialized agencies like 1889 in Paris, which has helped the likes of Valentino, Gucci, Cartier and Saint Laurent to craft custom events for high-net-worth individuals. From a private dinner in the apartment of a prominent art collector to a helicopter ride to a castle ruin, anything is possible.

Top clients qualify for all-expenses-paid trips to Paris during the ready-to-wear and haute couture fashion weeks. Think five-star hotels, fancy restaurants and tailor-made experiences, not to mention the little extras: flowers, gifts, hair and makeup before the show.

“A VIC should never have to take out their credit card,” said Aurélie de Royer, the agency’s cofounder.

Online retailer Mytheresa has been courting these top clients for years, organizing around 50 events annually, ranging from afternoon tea with Guillaume Henry, artistic director of Patou, at his Paris apartment, to a recent two-day jaunt with Zegna. 

The trip included a tour in vintage Fiat 500 convertibles through the historic center of Turin, and a private dinner on the stage of the Teatro Regio, followed by a live performance of arias from “La Bohème” and “La Traviata.”

The Luxury of Time 

“We always claim that we invite customers to money-can’t-buy experiences. What we have done over the last 12 months is really increase the variety,” said Michael Kliger, the longtime chief executive officer of Mytheresa who will soon take on a similar role at its parent LuxExperience. “It’s clear that the expectation of clients is constantly going up.”

The retailer just launched a first-of-its-kind private club in Saint Moritz that promises a blizzard of cultural moments, trunk shows, personal styling appointments and chances to unwind during the ski season. The invitation-only Maison Mytheresa will run through April 6 on Via Serlas, the resort’s top shopping street.

“Obviously, as an online player, a key reason of customers to shop with us is the scarcity of time, so in normal time, they prefer to be quite speedy and efficient. But when you invite them to activations in the Hamptons or in Saint Moritz, you actually have an opportunity to spend much more time, which is really beneficial and gratifying for us,” Kliger said.

“At that level, to convince a client to buy a coat for $10,000 may be easier than to convince a client to spend the time, to spend one day with you, because that’s the even more scarce resource with these high-end clients,” he added.

In the fiscal year ended June 30, 3.8 percent of Mytheresa’s clients accounted for 42.6 percent of its revenue, Kliger noted. 

“That is an increase. We started with this program six years ago at 35 percent,” he said, adding that in recent years, top customers’ average spend has risen in the double digits year-on-year. “We have increased the number of top customers, but the spend of our top customers has outpaced the increase in the numbers.”

By contrast, the luxury industry has lost around 50 million aspirational consumers amid growing resistance to price increases, according to a Bain-Altagamma study.

With China struggling to emerge from its economic slump, brands are increasingly turning their attention to the U.S., home to the world’s highest number of billionaires, with Forbes counting 902 this year, up from 813 in 2024.

Louis Vuitton and Gucci are set to present their cruise 2027 collections in New York City next May, while Dior opted for Los Angeles. In addition, Moncler Grenoble plans to unveil its fall 2026 collection in Aspen on Jan. 31, representing the first American ski destination show for the Italian brand.

Meanwhile, Chanel recently staged its Métiers d’Art show in New York City — though the location, an actual subway station on a day filled with pouring rain, had some of those high-end customers squirming. 

Untapped Potential

“There’s still a lot of untapped business,” said Burke, noting that regions like the Southern states have been underserved. “There are VICs in other cities that have not had the opportunity to necessarily be invited to special events.”

He cited Moda Operandi as a brand that has successfully tapped into those pockets of business. Earlier this year the luxury online retailer took over the Brazilian Court Hotel in Palm Beach for five days of curated designer events, in tandem with a pop-up store. 

These included a facial masterclass with Fatma Shaheen, founder and CEO of skin care line Skin Design London, and a shopping party with Colombian designer Johanna Ortiz. “I think you’re going to see more of the brands or the multibrand retailers going to a destination to court the VIC customers,” Burke said. 

Many brands are taking their cues from high jewelers, who have years of expertise in organizing hyper-exclusive events for the 1 percent in locations like Kyoto and Bellver Castle on Majorca. Dior presented its Diorexquis line in May at the Château de La Colle Noire, founder Christian Dior‘s former home in the south of France.

In such a competitive environment, the key is to stand out — and bigger is not necessarily better. “We always try to be the more personal, the more intimate, the more special. We’re not competing on size and ‘grandesse,’ but we are trying to compete on emotional benefits,” said Kliger.

“What we have seen over the recent months is that the element of community is also quite important, and clients love to meet other clients, and so we try to set up events so that there is actually a moment for clients to engage amongst each other so they’re not just spectators of something,” he added. 

The growing focus on VICs has direct consequences for media outlets covering fashion shows. As brands trim budgets and try to convey a feeling of exclusivity with intimate venues, fashion editors and influencers are increasingly being edged out by the super-exclusive club of top clients. 

The trend shows no signs of abating, even though luxury labels hope to tease back aspirational consumers thanks to a slew of designer debut collections hitting store shelves in spring. With the Bezos couple becoming the main sponsors of next year’s Met Gala, billionaires are cementing their status as fashion’s new rainmakers.

“I anticipate seeing even more of a focus in 2026 on this VIC customer,” said Burke. “It’s going to be a real race for the brands to outdo one another and get their attention.”