A Heterodox Approach to Masstige: Brand Fetishism, Corporate Pricing, and Rules of Consumer Choice

Marko Lah and Andrej Sušjan

Review of Radical Political Economics, 2024, vol. 56, issue 2, 214-232

Abstract: Masstige, or luxury for the masses, is a phenomenon that requires a heterodox economic approach based on Original Institutional Economics view of corporate power combined with Marxian concept of brand fetishism and post-Keynesian theories of pricing and consumer choice. The attitude toward luxury in classical works on political economy is briefly outlined. By applying the post-Keynesian theory of oligopolistic pricing, we show how the power of luxury brands enables high profits of luxury conglomerates. We use the post-Keynesian theory of consumer choice to differentiate between various types of masstige buyers. JEL Classification: B52, D11, D21, D43

Keywords: consumption; luxury; masstige; Original Institutional Economics; post-Keynesian economics (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:sae:reorpe:v:56:y:2024:i:2:p:214-232

DOI: 10.1177/04866134231184939

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