Premium fashion companies across Europe have intensified their efforts to capture America’s affluent market, launching numerous boutique locations and high-profile runway presentations to attract wealthy consumers who have benefited from artificial intelligence and technology sector growth, while addressing declining consumer confidence worldwide.
Following a two-year downturn, the premium goods industry had begun showing recovery signals until conflict involving Iran started in late February, disrupting international travel and reducing luxury purchases well beyond Middle Eastern borders.
China, which had driven luxury market expansion for twenty years, continues grappling with deflationary pressures and ongoing real estate sector difficulties, making affluent American consumers more crucial than ever for the industry.
“The U.S. high-end consumer has been much more resilient than we are seeing elsewhere, especially in Europe,” stated Marcus Morris-Eyton, portfolio manager at AllianceBernstein in London, noting that the ongoing AI market surge and strong wage increases have strengthened this spending demographic.
Premium brands including LVMH, Moncler and Gucci have responded swiftly to this opportunity.
Dior and Gucci presented their cruise collections in America last month, while Italian label Zegna plans to unveil its Summer 2027 collection this Friday in Los Angeles.
North America claimed the leading position for new boutique launches for the first time last year, based on real estate company Savills’ international luxury retail analysis, which has monitored this data since 2016.
The analysis revealed North America represented approximately 27% of worldwide luxury boutique openings in 2025, versus 26% in Europe and 19% in China. Internationally, new luxury store launches dropped to their lowest point since 2020.
America maintains fewer luxury boutiques relative to its ultra-wealthy population compared to China, according to Savills analysis.
“Many brands still view the U.S. as unpenetrated relative to the scale of its wealth base,” explained Todd Siegel, Chicago-based president of U.S. retail at real estate company Savills.
Store investments target not only primary East and West Coast metropolitan areas, but extend to secondary states and cities where wealthy individuals have relocated, drawn by more favorable tax structures than California or New York, Siegel noted.
Italian premium outerwear company Moncler, for example, announced most of its new locations will be in America this year.
The company launched a boutique in luxury ski destination Aspen in January and intends to open its largest flagship location worldwide on New York’s Fifth Avenue during the year’s second half, plus new sites in California’s Valley Fair and Dallas, Texas, among other cities.
French luxury company Hermes established its inaugural stores in Nashville, Tennessee, and Scottsdale, Arizona, last year. The brand plans to open in Plaza del Lago shopping center in Wilmette, north of Chicago this summer, and in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, in September.
Consulting firm Bain described the luxury industry as reflecting a “two‑speed world” with the United States and certain Asian regions expanding, while Europe and the Middle East face reduced tourist spending amid the continuing Iran conflict.
Most luxury companies do not publish U.S. data separately, but their first-quarter earnings demonstrate growth in the broader Americas region significantly exceeded other areas.
Cartier parent company Richemont’s revenue increased 18% in the Americas from January through March, marking the company’s ninth straight quarter of double-digit sales expansion in the region.
The robust U.S. luxury market has also benefited American companies Ralph Lauren and Coach parent Tapestry, whose revenue has surpassed competitors.
“Our core customers are loyal and resilient,” Ralph Lauren Chief Product & Merchandising Officer Halide Alagoz told Reuters. “What we see so far is that their behaviours are not changing. On the contrary, consumers during these turbulent times want to come to brands that they can trust.”
Tapestry CEO Joanne Crevoiserat indicated growth opportunities exist in North America. “We’re building emotional connections and bringing new, younger consumers into the market in North America and beyond,” she stated.
Morgan Stanley analyst Edouard Aubin suggested forthcoming U.S. IPOs might stimulate spending on premium timepieces and jewelry, but warned that U.S. citizens represent approximately 20% to 22% of global luxury expenditure.
“It’s nice, it’s helpful, but you need China to get better as well for the sector to really recover,” he concluded.
