Luxury supply chain management: a framework proposal based on a systematic literature review

Abstract

PurposeThis study aims to identify the main elements that describe the luxury supply chain. It discusses the relationship between them in a framework that organises and summarises the literature.Design/methodology/approachA systematic literature review was conducted that returned 288 papers, which were selected based on specific quality and theme criteria. Content analysis was used to investigate the alignment of critical success factors with the performance goals and configuration elements of luxury supply chains in the final sample of 66 papers.FindingsThe results provide a framework that clarifies the relationship between the configuration elements and supply chain performance goals and the critical success factors for three different levels of the luxury market. Depending on the level of luxury, performance goals and configuration elements assume a different importance and different characteristics. An understanding of these differences is relevant for defining strategies and managing luxury supply chains properly. The three different configurations also reveal new research avenues to be further investigated.Research limitations/implicationsThe study is limited in terms of its data source as the papers reviewed were collected from only three academic databases.Practical implicationsThe findings of this work help incorporate knowledge about luxury supply chain management into a framework that can be easily used for defining strategies and organising the supply chain according to the different levels of luxury.Originality/valueThis study represents an important evolution in organising the current literature on luxury supply chain management into a framework that covers critical success factors, supply chain performance goals and configuration elements for three different levels of luxury, which in turn creates promising opportunities for future enquiry.