In our economics lectures, we recently delved deep into the world of demand and supply, and came across a form called the “conspicuous consumption” goods. These two words were the first things to strike me when I read my classmate Katherine Caverly’s blog about Walmart trying to introduce luxury brands into its shelves, rather than adapting their age-old tactic of “discounts” throughout the year.

So what is “conspicuous consumption”? In brief, it is a product that is attractive for its “snob appeal”. In other words, it is something that is wanted because it is expensive (a little strayed away from our concept of demand). Think about diamonds- would it be as craved for as it is now, if it cost 50 dollars per gram? Sierra Leon would be a much peaceful nation.

The group of customers that Walmart is trying to attract now with this project are the types that only enter a shop if they know that the products have an outrageously high price tag- in other words, people who like to show off their wealth. Will Walmart, with a brand image of selling products for bargain deals- be successful in this high end niche??