Luminaire’s Sukeena Rao: 'VICs are the driving force of the luxury business'

“VICs are the driving force of the luxury business,” Sukeena Rao, co-founder of London-based personal shopping firm Luminaire, told Glossy. “They count for a large percentage of global sales with pretty much every brand.”

VICs, or "very important customers," is shorthand in the luxury market for a growing subset of high-end, wealthy shoppers that are “very low key, very off the radar [and] not known to the public,” Rao told Glossy. It’s part of what she calls a shifting market where, 15-20 years ago, the luxury shopper was mostly well-known celebrities or very wealthy public figures. Whereas now, luxury shopping has become more curated and discreet. To wit: The internet calls this "quiet luxury." 

“It’s not always about wearing [a luxury piece] on a red carpet or being shown to the public,” Rao said. “It's done in a much more stealth way.” 

This changing luxury customer also has changing needs. Whereas a high-profile individual or celebrity may not need an introduction to a luxury brand or referral to an in-demand makeup artist or hairstylist, today’s VIC is looking for access to top lifestyle, beauty, wellness, fitness and health brands and experts, as well as the fashion, jewelry and accessory markets. 

On today’s episode of the Glossy Beauty Podcast, Rao shares the ins and outs of this growing demographic, which she reaches through her London-based personal shopping firm, Luminaire. 

“We have a waitlist right now. … [We’re] very selective about new clients, because we never want to under-deliver,” she says. “We do keep people waiting until we really have the capacity to look after them.” 

Rao launched Luminaire in 2022 with co-founder Harriet Quick, a former fashion features director at British Vogue. While billed as personal shopping, the company is more nuanced than that. For around $57,307 (£45,000) per year, clients receive high-touch appointments with Luminaire’s stylists, personalized mood boards, unlimited sourcing and gift procurement, as well as brokerage of just about anything one can desire, from apartments to cars. 

Meanwhile, entry-level membership starts at $6,367 (£5,000) per year and includes recommendations, mood boards, unlimited sourcing, fashion edits and basic access to luxury wardrobe and gift procurement and planning. 

However, Rao told Glossy that beauty, wellness and health products and services are the fastest-growing requests from clients, whether that is a haircut with a celeb stylist, an appointment with a holistic doctor, a masterclass with a renowned makeup artist or a private shopping experience. “If you really drill down on the data, you will see that, for us, beauty and wellness — alongside jewelry, which is a hugely growing category — is leading,” Rao said. 

Rao discusses these topics, as well as her predictions for the future of the luxury industry, in today’s episode.