Hail Hermes, Full of Chanel

Luxury brands are shaking in their stilettos at the moment—what with the Lehman Brothers breakdown in the States, a threat of recession in China and an overall shift in what people want to buy. "There's an anti-status point of view right now," says luxury marketing consultant Pam Danziger. So what's an age-old luxury label to do?

Treat it like a religion, says Lucian James, founder of brand strategy firm Agenda, Inc., which has offices in both San Francisco and Paris. "Religions have everything a luxury brand wants: devotion, membership and sacrifice," says the consultant, who has worked with luxury brands to create a sense of belonging, where consumers are willing to spend that extra money in order to be a certified member of the club.

"Luxury brands have gotten off-track," says James. To get back on, many are taking a new marketing approach. Within the last year, Louis Vuitton capitalized on its travel roots with a quirky campaign featuring Mikhail Gorbachev and Keith Richards, while Hermès has focused on its internet presence, creating a spiffy "World of Hermès" interactive web site that allows those unfamiliar with the brand to learn more about its doctrine.

We can't be sure whether or not these marketing efforts will have a lasting effect. But if these brands can make consumers feel guilty for opting out of a purchase, they might last even longer than the Catholic church.

—Jessica Arthur