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"We are witnessing a rapid accumulation of wealth in Finland, with more millionaires than ever before." As an expert, Kivilahti is self-taught. "Either you have the eye for fashion, or you don't," she says. "As far as luxury is concerned, quality and design are the key. They define a luxury product." One third of Kivilahti's customers come from abroad, the rest are local. "Labels include the design and status. People are ready to pay for luxury labels because they know that true quality is never cheap." Managing director Jaakko Savander of Helsinki jeweller Lindroos has also noticed an increase in the interest for luxury goods. Many international customers come to Helsinki, because the waiting lists for the most popular luxury watches are not as long here as in many other European countries. New customers groups are also buying luxury products to build their image. Now it is customary for young women to buy cheap designer imitations from retail chains like H&M or Zara and invest in a real Louis Vuitton bag. Traditional watch manufacturer Cartier is currently contemplating on how to attract the "Diesel generation," as they call the brand conscious youth. "We are doing what we have always done, but we also listen to the trends. For example, we manufacture larger-size models of our signature products when there is market for bigger watches," says Cartier sales director Gerrit Jan Vermeulen. JUMPING ON THE BANDWAGON For businesses, one of the biggest deterrents to entering the luxury market is the high startup cost. "Significant investment is needed in developing the product and building the brand. To justify the luxury feel, a lot is demanded in terms of service, which must be first class," says Lahti. "But when you have the brand and client base in place, then things get easier. There is the potential to obtain better margins and greater optimisation than in other business models." "It takes five years at least for a boutique to make any profit," says Kivilahti. BCG consultant Silverstein says that the luxury market is well-represented across a variety of categories, such as cars, housewares, food and wine, apparel and travel. The untapped growth categories are home services, medical services and financial services. "These will grow dramatically as providers create custom offerings for upper middle class consumers," says Silverstein. He adds that the luxury market is highly competitive, but there is reason to smile: "Suppliers are creative and well funded. The good news is that consumers welcome new products and are open to new uses of their cash." The ultimate indulgence: free time "SO ARI, how do you squeeze free time into your busy schedule?" The 44-year-old investment banker thinks for a moment. This is a harder question than it seems. "Well, I'm involved in so many things. If `free time' means time off from work, I try to leave work at work," responds Ari Lahti, managing director and partner of Icecapital Securities Ltd. "People can reach me 24 hours a day, but generally speaking, I try to leave the office around 6 pm. I travel once every two weeks, on average. I buy flexible tickets when travelling and try to schedule meetings in an efficient manner, so that I can go home as quickly as possible." For many busy professionals, the ultimate luxury is free time. "Physical exercise, eating (nutrition) and rest are a crucial part of our survival and well-being, and are traditionally considered free time," says Juhani Väkiparta, a coach and lecturer on teamwork, well-being, productivity and life management, and author of 2006's Life Management: Hallitse itse elämääsi (available in Finnish). In addition to working, time spent studying, attending conferences and networking are what Väkiparta considers "productive time." "The present day 'always-on' society, connected by email, SMS, internet and mobile chat, has existed for just over a decade. We are not used to these tools, and are struggling to find
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