Exclusivity still sells

Exclusionary and elusive experiences still appeal to consumers and remains at the top of what is appealing and sexy in the minds of consumers, despite the recession. They want to feel as if they are a part of a select elite group, even if it’s only a temporary illusion. The more privileged a consumer feels for having access to a product or service, the more the added level of mystique will sell. Here are some nifty examples of selling the mystique factor:

In-house hidden Passageways: Creative Home Engineering is a company that specializes in designing and installing hidden doors and rooms. They can disguise an entryway in almost anywhere: the classic door, behind-the-bookcase hideaway, as a dresser in your bedroom, inside of a fireplace, or even underneath your staircase.

Dark Dining: Foodies can take their dining experience to a whole new level when they dine at the recently opened O’Noir in Toronto, the sister location to O’Noir in Montreal. O’Noir allows patrons to dine in the dark. The picture (left) is from the lounge, as the actual dining rooms are so dark, a person cannot even see their hand in front of their face. To take this dining experience even further, patrons can select what they would like to eat or opt for a ‘surprise’ meal.

Invite-Only Jewelry Shops: One way to market your product is to make it exclusive. Achieving that can be difficult. Restricting access to your product is the most extreme way to do so. Scott Kay’s Exclusive ‘SK66′ Flagship Boutique is going to open a new jewelry shop, but you have to earn your way in to drop your bucks. So far nobody knows where it is or when it will be open. To shop there, you need an invitation. The store will be Scott Kay’s personal museum of fine arts and jewelry, some of which will be on sale. The website features exquisite jewelry for both men and women. The bar is set very high with this shop; this should be fun to watch. 

Couture Clubs: Invite-Only HauteLook.com  Holds Premium Private Fashion Sales of premium fashion and luxury lifestyle brands. Each day, Haute Look sends an e-mail notifying members of the latest sales, which can be as high as 90% off. According to the website, “HAUTELOOK is an exclusive platform where premium brands reach their consumers directly.” Members can select five friends to send an e-mail invitation to join. While joining is free, the invitation creates a level of exclusivity and plays a significant role.

Top designers have been bringing their designs to the typical consumer with special lines at discount and department stores. Isaac Mizrahi was the trendsetting designer who did this first; his line for Target was an immense hit and smashed the stereotype that clothing from discount retailers couldn’t be trendy or fashionable. However, this is no longer new, and the exclusivity factor is missing.

Secret Location Dining: It may be hard to find a restaurant where the locations are hidden, the menus change and the invitations are top secret, but Charlie’s Burgers offers a mysteriously exclusive dining experience (which dubs itself as an anti-restaurant) isn’t about making it easy for you. In fact, the website makes it difficult to even understand what Charlie’s Burgers is. The site displays an ominous door with the letters ‘C’ and ‘B’ scrawled in red paint. After clicking on this you are taken to a black page that reads, “Enter your email and well get back to you.” Eventually you’ll be sent a short survey about your love of food. Once you have sent this back, you may be added to the evite list for Charlie’s Burgers events… or maybe not.

Exclusive Ongoing Fiestas: If you think your parties are epic, try the invite-only ‘50 Parties’ project from Ryan McGinness Studios on for size. These super-exclusive soirees require a guest card for admittance and have a Twitter page, YouTube channel and blog.

According to Ryan McGinness Studios, creators of the concept behind the 50 Parties project is simple: “50 parties. 50 themes. 50 weeks. In a row. No sponsors. No strangers,” is the mantra. It’s a return to what parties used to be about—connecting with friends—only cranked up a few notches. They noticed that in New York City, there has never been a shortage of parties. Parties celebrating a new product or publication or development have been rampant. Those celebrating or nurturing a meaningful social exchange, however, had been noticeably absent. Until now.