Which countries spend the most on luxury goods? Millennials and Gen Z account for 70% of global luxury purchases

Despite the luxury crisis, and more specifically the sale of products belonging to the fashion segment, those who still possess strong purchasing power continue to influence market survey analytics. This is demonstrated by the Luxury Love Index created by FashioNica, a vintage goods store that analyzed which countries purchase the highest number of branded items and spend the most in luxury boutiques.

The research examined twenty countries to identify where the desire for luxury goods is most widespread. The study is built on several factors: annual per-capita spending on designer products, the frequency with which users search online for luxury brands, and the growth of their respective markets over a five-year period. These elements were compared in the report, where the highest score indicates a greater "collective obsession" with luxury consumption.

The Big Spenders podium

At the top of the report’s podium we find Switzerland, considered the most luxury-obsessed country. Here, each resident spends an average of over 560 dollars per year on high-end goods, including fashion, accessories, and boutique shopping. The data is also accompanied by strong digital interest: about one in five people searches online every month for brands such as Louis Vuitton, Hermès, or Dior. Making the phenomenon even more significant is the growth of the Swiss luxury market, which has increased by almost 25% over the past five years. Switzerland is therefore not only a strong economic market, but also one of the places where luxury is experienced as an integral part of lifestyle.

According to the findings, Hong Kong (in second place in the ranking) holds the absolute record when it comes to individual luxury spending: the figure exceeds 730 dollars per year per person, a number that shows how, although it does not top the Luxury Love Index, Hong Kong represents the market with consumers most willing to invest in exclusive items. Despite the local market having experienced an economic decline in recent years, here too about one in five residents searches online for luxury brands every month, demonstrating how the desire for luxury remains deeply rooted in the city’s contemporary culture.

In third place in the ranking are the United Arab Emirates, one of the fastest-growing markets. Over the past five years, the luxury sector has grown by almost 50%, rising from about 2.7 billion to 4 billion dollars in revenue. Residents spend an average of over 420 dollars per year on high-end products, a very high figure that confirms the strong link between lifestyle, exclusivity, and luxury consumption in the country. Online behavior also reflects this trend: searches for luxury brands are extremely frequent and highlight a younger and increasingly digital-savvy audience.

Gen Z is also ready to spend

Australia ranks fourth in the list. In five years, the luxury market has increased by 30%, reaching over 7 billion dollars in revenue. Australians spend an average of more than 260 dollars per year on luxury goods and are among the users who most frequently search for high-end brands online, showing how luxury is no longer seen only as an elite symbol, but also as an aspirational good.

Closing the top five is the United Kingdom, one of the most important European markets for contemporary luxury. British residents spend an average of around 240 dollars per year on exclusive products, but what stands out most from the report is the enormous online activity: about one in four people searches for luxury brands every month on the web, the highest figure recorded in the study together with Australia. The UK market also continues to grow rapidly, reaching over 16 billion dollars in annual revenue.

The research also highlights an important shift in the luxury audience. According to FashioNica’s Luxury Love Index, Millennials and Gen Z today account for about 70% of global luxury purchases. A significant figure suggesting how the perception of luxury is changing: new generations discover brands through Instagram, TikTok, and other digital platforms, experiencing luxury very differently from the past. If desire once arose exclusively within physical boutiques, today the relationship with luxury is constant, immediate, and deeply influenced by digital channels, making luxury not only a matter of ownership, but also aspirational and identity-shaping.