Unlock Opportunities with London’s Healthy Prime Housing Market

As a whole London’s property market is stagnant, but the prime market is flourishing.

The Office for National Statistics housing market data suggests the London property market fell 4.4 per cent as a whole in the year to May 2019.

But while the overall London property market has been stagnating to say the least, in more positive news for the luxury property sector, the Capital’s prime housing market is showing strong signs of life. In fact, in 2019, the sector has held stable for the first time in nearly four years.

And the future could look even brighter with PwC forecasting that prime properties could be set to increase in value across London throughout 2020.

What does all of this mean for property design professionals? Well, at Creative Oates we’re optimistic about the property landscape and think the time is ripe to seize the opportunities in a buoyant London prime property market. Throughout this article we’ll lay out just how to do that. But to get serious, you’ve got to get specific.

Today we’ll help you answer the question:

‘Is it time to move beyond a generic understanding of ‘luxury’ in your property branding specifications?’

 

Could it be time to reassess your branding strategy?

Tastes, styles and preferences in luxury design are constantly shifting. It’s worth reassessing how you portray your brand to your customers.

The property industry is always in flux, property prices fluctuate wildly from quarter to quarter – and even sometimes within each quarter; investor interest waxes and wanes and new government legislation is regularly pushed through, all of which can have an impact on your bottom line.

A stark example of the fast-moving nature of the property sector is the decline of Chinese property investment in London. In the first quarter of 2018 Chinese buyers spent £482 million on London property, this figure is the lowest spend since 2015.

This is significant when you consider that Chinese property investors have been a huge driving force in the marketplace for decades, but their influence seems to have steadily fallen away since 2015 – the year when Chinese buyers purchased the Leadenhall building aka ‘The Cheesegrater’ and 20 Fenchurch Street aka ‘The Walkie Talkie’. This fall off of Chinese investment will prompt savvy property developers and their partners to reassess their target market.

Luxury in property as in any sector means different things across cultures; a Chinese investor or homeowner will most likely have very different aesthetic ideas to a British buyer in London for instance. The property sector is incredibly diverse and that means your clients are diverse, to add value to them and reap the rewards you must cater to their individual tastes.

To do this, you will need a closer understanding of your target clients’ ideas of what defines luxury for them.

With this information in hand, then, maybe, it’s time to refocus your brand.

 

Powerful reasons to refocus your branding for a new luxury audience

Refocusing your brand positioning = more loyal customers

When you focus your branding and design on your audience’s specific tastes you sow the seeds for long term business growth. You will turn your customers into loyal fans who’ll come back to you time and time again because of the positive customer experience you’ve created – and there’s nothing more valuable than loyal customers in a market as challenging and tumultuous as the property sector.

 

Refocusing your brand positioning = understanding your customers

By understanding your customers and potential clients’ views on luxury you can position your brand to exemplify your approach to luxury property design which – if you’ve drilled down into your market research – will go hand in hand with your clients’ tastes.

 

What can you do to now to engage your clients?

At Creative Oates we can help you assess how to portray your brand in a way which will truly engage and delight your customers, and as a result grow your brand.

 

Consider:

1. Overhauling your brand identity
2. Tweaking your visual identity; logo, brand colours, website design
3. Optimising your marketing collateral (brand leaflets, pamphlets)

 

 

Tailor your branding to your specific audience

Target your brand identity to match your individual audiences’ tastes, because what is luxury to some is vulgar to others.

To truly flourish in the property market, where every brand claims an intimate and unique understanding of luxury, it’s important to truly get to grips with what your audience considers luxury.

 

Opulent to some vulgar to others

Luxury is a catch all term, but it’s increasingly clear that in the information age luxury is a multifaceted concept across the luxury property sector. The overwhelming choice available to consumers today allows clients to be more selective and particular than ever in their pursuit of luxury property design. Luxury is no longer a concept pushed from influential designers onto consumers, it’s informed by ever more niche tastes and demographics.

Some design elements can be polarising:

• Silver foil
• Use of metals or imitation metal
• Chandeliers

An overuse of metal can be polarising – particularly gold and brass. Take for example Trump Tower New York, the height of overblown 80s extravagance. Yes, gold is a sign of luxury, but its overuse, far from looking elegant, can come across as unrefined.

It pays to know your audience and target market well before potentially scaring them off. We’re not saying metal and metallic tones cannot be stylish, indeed a combination of metals in interior design can be incredibly stylish. Interior design brand Luxdeco show that metal can be an appealing design element in luxe properties. But it needs to strike a careful balance; unless of course your target market is Donald Trump.

 

Use of colour

Colour is central to the property sector, whether you’re a furniture designer or building developer. From your brochure and branding, to the decoration and design of your showcase apartments, choosing the right colours can help your audience identify with your building, furniture or development, leading to higher levels of investment and sales.

Cultural perceptions on colour can be vastly different and are ingrained in the fabric of a culture. Chinese and Malaysian buyers prefer minimalist living and clean colour palettes, so muted tones like shades of whites and grey will work for these demographics.

On the other hand, Middle Eastern homeowners looking for property in London tend to prefer a more opulent style, with colourful rugs and carpets, in rich shades of red and gold.

 

Residential v commercial

What works in a residential property does not always work in commercial office space, and vice versa. This might seem obvious, but ask yourself: ‘Are my design choices driven by the expectations of my target audience, or am I just falling back on an inherited idea of what represents luxury design?’

 

Cultural differences

Interior designers Elicyon are experts in cultural design differences, having worked on projects all over the world including London, New York and Shanghai.

Elicyon’s One Hyde Park Parkside Apartment project contrasts with their design for a luxury Shanghai apartment, both of which are showcased on their website homepage. But, perhaps neither end result is typical from cultural design assumptions.

Elicyon were commissioned to create a Shanghai apartment in a contemporary British style. For their Hyde Park project the interior design firm refurbished a four bedroom flat in an industrial luxe style.

Designers cannot assume they understand what a culture or client considers luxury; instead it pays to do thorough market research and to take the time to understand your clients’ specific needs.