The Festival opened with a rallying cry from Farrah Storr, award-winning Editor-in-Chief of ELLE UK, social mobility commissioner and author of The Discomfort Zone. Farrah, in conversation with Walpole’s CEO Helen Brocklebank, discussed how to build a luxury brand with heart – an ambition she has poured into her first year at the helm of ELLE UK, the world’s leading authority on fashion and style.
In this session we heard the latest insights from The Future Laboratory and Bain & Company. The Bain team opened the session with an overview on how COVID-19 has impacted consumer trends in the fashion-luxury industry, discussing what's new vs. what is an acceleration of an already ongoing shift of paradigm, what is "here for now" and what "here to stay". Chris Sanderson, Founder of The Future Laboratory was up next, and examined the luxury consumers of the future with a presentation of their new Tribes Report. The report spotlights 12 affluent consumers who are pioneering an innovative approach to luxury. Challenging what it means to be wealthy, this mindful group of luxury consumers have chosen a lifestyle that prioritises freedom and self-fulfilment over a settled existence.
Download Bain & Company's Report here: Read the Bain Report
Kevin Chesters has 25 years' of experience marketing great British brands globally in his role as Strategic Head of some of the most famous advertising agencies in the world. His talk helped us separate the “baggage” from the “assets” and give a point of view of how best to leverage the modern version of the “Best of Britain” to sell our brands more effectively. This is a new updated version of his talk to take into account data and learnings from lockdown and the impact of COVID-19. Following Kevin's talk there was a Q&A with Dan Ramsay, Director of the UK's GREAT Campaign.
Download the Britishness & Brand Identity Report here.
Watch Highlights of Day 1 here: