Brands are a bit rich

02 December 2015 - 02:26 By Suthentira Govender

There's no cash crisis in Africa. That's according to the spending habits of African millionaires, who spare no cost when it comes to their clothing, accessories, cars and luxury watches.A new survey by Johannesburg's New World Wealth has found that the continent's super rich are splurging on the world's most expensive labels, such as those of Ermenegildo Zegna, Paul Smith, Hugo Boss, Louis Vuitton, Hermès, Gucci and Prada.Eight hundred high net worth individuals in South Africa, Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, Zambia, Angola and Mozambique were asked to rate their favourite brands based on exclusivity, quality and reputation.The survey does not reveal the identities of its respondents.Luxury Italian fashion house Ermenegildo Zegna, from which a tailored suit can cost over R90 000, has emerged as the top-rated men's clothing brand, followed by Paul Smith and Hugo Boss.For women, a Louis Vuitton handbag is a must-have.Porsche is the sports car of choice, whereas Rolls-Royce is the must-have luxury sedan and Range Rover the favourite SUV brand.The survey also looked at super-luxury watches - all Swiss crafted. The major players in this sector include Patek Philippe, Franck Muller and Audemars Piguet.New World Wealth's head researcher, Andrew Amoils, said: "Over the past 10 years the global men's super-luxury watch industry has grown by more than five times in terms of revenue, and in Africa it has grown by even more.""Watches have become to men what diamonds are to women," said one retailerJeremy Nel, of Luxury Brands, a brand-building, marketing and communications company, said the brands all "fulfil the fundamentals of luxury brands, namely absolute quality, desirable, not readily available and, in most cases, celebrity endorsement."..

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