Luxury Brands’ Sites and iPads are Not a Heavenly Match

Most luxury brand sites simply asked to install Flash, and did not offer an alternative fitting the iPad

None of the top 10 luxury brands ranked by Forbes in 2009 worked well on Apple’s iPad, according to a recent test by trends research and innovation company PSFK. The main culprit is the heavy use of Flash by the sites. Apple decided to block the use of flash on the iPad.

A review by PSFK found that most luxury brands are unprepared to leverage the changes in web use that products like Apple’s iPad and iPhone are driving. Conversely, Gucci “seems to have created a site that can handle the technology requirements that Apple has placed on its mobile devices,” PSFK reported.

Apple is blocking the use of the software partly because of the drain it puts on battery life, Apple CEO Steve Jobs said. The sites, which include Cartier, Rolex, Louis Vuitton, Prada and Fendi - do not have an alternative none-Flash site or a simple HTML site.

PSFK’s conclusion is that luxury brands are failing to keep up with a gadget loving shopper who will spend between $500 and $1,000 on what may consider as a supplemental device for a user.

“Brands need to realize that the iPad offers a different experience,” the research team said. “[T]he fairly light iPad with its 9 inch screen brings some focus back to the browser driven web.”

Their recommendation is that brands and retailers create tablet friendly electronic catalogs that allow people to browse as they’re curled up on a sofa with the TV flickering in the background.