From Jacquemus to Balenciaga: Luxury fashion brands go hyperphysical

Sustainability will be luxury hospitality’s number-one sell

“Slow travel is something that will continue to grow in 2025,” says Ho Ren Yung, deputy CEO of global hospitality firm Banyan Group. “It’s the choice to travel more intentionally, with an increased focus on connection and wellbeing. Places designed primarily for aesthetic appeal in photos ... See more

The physical locations that survive this extended pause will likely reopen with a focus on high-touch clienteling and luxury service, where shop visits are appointment-only (or tightly controlled and restricted) and oriented around consumer experience rather than pure sales.

While same-day delivery and free returns are eroding much of the rest: we’ve now reached the point that it’s not clear that there is anything that cannot be bought online. But actually, the real barrier now is often not touching it, but knowing about it. These are things where a lot of the role of a physical shop is curation, recommendation and dem... See more

The shifts triggered by the crisis could also reinforce the viability for digital fashion -- clothing rendered in computer-assisted design programmes either for prototyping purposes or to be 'worn' virtually (by avatars, or via augmented reality, for example) -- in place of tangible garments. “I have seen a need for people to express a deeper sense... See more

Performance art jolts excitement in the commercial luxury environment, enriching items with experiences, meaning, purpose and a commentary. It is also a riff on the blurring lines of reality (social, virtual, physical).

Luxury is no longer about simply reviving heritage codes of the past, but rather it’s a dream space. Status is therefore found in radical solutions and ground-breaking projects.