Demand, Wealth-Distribution, Price

That Demand is a primary determinant of Price is a well-established cardinal principle of Economics.  However, rarely considered is the implication of the concept of Conspicuous Consumption that the distribution of Wealth within Demand can also influence Price. For, as has been previously discussed, Conspicuous Consumption entails that the Ostentation-Value of Purchase-Power is a function of the distribution of the latter.  That is, the price of diamonds reflects the relative scarcity of their affordability, or, conversely, that if everybody could afford diamonds, there would be no prestige in possessing them, and, so, without any Use-Value, no one would buy them.  Likewise, while some varieties of bottled water are purchased on the arguable presumption that they are 'healthier' than standard tap water, in some cases the purchase may be an instance of Conspicuous Consumption.  However, given the obscurity of the thesis that Wealth-distribution can influence Price, as the example of diamonds tends to confirm, the extent to which Conspicuous Consumption is a factor in the Price of not only bottled water, but any commodity, remains unexplored.