I posted the article because I only visit the EK forum so there.

I didn't envisage the posts of War and Peace proportions I must admit.

I would add, as many have alluded to, that there are many complex reasons why people purchase luxury goods and services and these can vary from culture to culture so what our star spangled friends might say applies in their country would most definitely not in other countries. Hedonism is more important in societies where individuality is important, there's more peer group pressure in the east where collectivism is more important, some look mainly at function and quality rather than prestige (eg Germans), others just look at prestige.

What is the difference between a plain garment made in the far east and the same plain garment but with a swoosh, 3 stripes, crocodile, etc? Answer, nothing really apart from a price premium of many hundreds of % and most people wouldn't consider the former in their wildest dreams.

I'm the OP so I can post a mini War and Peace.