Editor’s Note
This article examines the trend of frequent price increases by luxury brands, with a specific focus on Cartier’s third adjustment this year. While companies cite rising costs, the accelerating pace of these hikes is drawing scrutiny from consumers and market observers.
Global luxury brands have embarked on ‘Nth price hikes’ this year as well. Typically, the luxury industry raises product prices once a year, but in recent years, the practice of increasing prices 2-3 times annually appears to be solidifying. Luxury brands cite external factors such as rising raw material costs and high exchange rates as reasons for the price increases. However, criticism has emerged that the frequency and scale of the hikes are excessive, even when considering the rise in gold prices and exchange rates.
According to the industry, luxury jewelry brand Bulgari is known to plan a price increase after the Chuseok holiday. This comes just four months after raising prices for jewelry and other products by an average of 7-10% in June. If this price hike materializes, Bulgari will have implemented three increases this year, following those in April and June.
Cartier is not the only brand raising prices more than twice within the year. Cartier has raised prices a total of three times this year (February, May, September), and luxury watch brand IWC is also known to have raised prices three times (March, June, September).
Additionally, Boucheron (February, July), Van Cleef & Arpels (January, April), Tiffany (February, June), Damiani (February, July), Rolex (January, July), and TAG Heuer (January, July) have implemented two price hikes within the year. The increase rates are around 5-10%.
Luxury brands cite the rising price of gold, a key raw material, and high exchange rates as reasons for the price increases. According to the New York Mercantile Exchange, on the 1st (local time), the December delivery gold futures price closed at $3,897.50 per ounce (approximately 5.458 million won), reaching an all-time high on a closing basis. With the strong dollar trend continuing, the won-dollar exchange rate has remained in the 1,400 won range over the past month.
However, arguments have emerged that the pace of price increases by foreign brands is excessively fast, even when considering external variables like inflation, exchange rates, and gold prices. Taking Cartier, which raised prices three times this year, as an example, it increased prices by 6% in February and May, and by about 2-5% last month. Calculated arithmetically, the total increase rate reaches 14-17%.
Some products are known to have risen by nearly 20% this year alone. A domestic jewelry industry official explained:
Some interpretations suggest that Korean consumers’ demand for luxury goods is influencing the price hikes. According to Asian distribution specialist Bluebell Group, 73% of domestic consumers responded that they “have the intention to purchase even if luxury brand product prices rise.” The response recognizing luxury goods as investment products was 76%, and the response valuing brand reputation reached 80%.
In reality, the domestic performance of overseas luxury brands is soaring. Richemont Korea, the Korean subsidiary of the Richemont Group which owns Cartier and Van Cleef & Arpels, recorded sales of 1.7952 trillion won in the last fiscal year (April 2024 – March 2025). This is a 19.6% increase compared to the previous year. Tiffany Korea and Bulgari Korea recorded sales of 378 billion won and 419.1 billion won last year, respectively, increasing by 7% and 23% compared to the previous year.
The problem is that product defect controversies continue amidst these price increases. In luxury online communities, reviews stating ‘the durability of products purchased from Cartier is not as good as before’ have been shared multiple times. Representative cases include a Love bracelet that tarnished even though it was only purchased and stored, and a case where a watch was purchased with a defect in the movement, and when an exchange was requested, it was processed as a repair.
According to the current Consumer Dispute Resolution Standards recommendation, defects occurring within 6 months of purchase are considered manufacturer defects, making exchange/refund possible. However, in Cartier’s case, they demand paid repair fees or require sending the product to the headquarters in France to confirm repair/exchange possibilities. Regarding this, consumers are known to be considering applying for collective dispute mediation, saying:
