Higher education: A luxury good brand model

Abstract

External economic pressure continues to challenge institutions of higher education. The ability for institutions to navigate this pressure successfully is reliant on a sustainable business model. This paper extends luxury goods research to include the market for higher education through the application of luxury goods attributes such as pricing, scarcity, conspicuous consumption and context. A brand model for the study of higher education as a luxury good is proposed and operationalised in the context of an American higher education institution Implications for higher education institutions, administrators and society are discussed.