I am writing this column from an airplane departing from Zimbabwe, Africa, where I was invited to present a luxury masterclass at the world’s leading congress of destination wedding planners.
Soon, I will head to Asia to discuss with brands across various sectors how to prepare for the future of luxury, before returning home to Los Angeles to present a masterclass to luxury real estate agents.
This whirlwind schedule demonstrates the high demand for masterclasses in a world experiencing unprecedented change, which I refer to as the era of hyper-acceleration. In just over a decade, luxury brands have faced the most significant disruption in the sector’s history. They’ve had to evolve from being creators of exceptional products and services (“manufacturers”) to creators of cultural capital (“storytellers”), completely transforming the value creation model.
The speed of change is increasing exponentially, challenging even the most experienced organizations to close their knowledge gaps. This is crucial for making critical decisions driven not by FOMO but by strategic mastery.
In the new game of luxury, Generation Z and soon Generation Alpha are rapidly gaining influence. Their demand for genuine sustainable solutions has compelled brands to reconsider their assumptions and strategies. Social media algorithms have emerged as the gatekeepers between brands and clients, fundamentally altering the way companies craft brand narratives and content.
At the same time, the metaverse and AI are generating opportunities and risks. Despite brands investing millions to stay ahead, many find themselves ensnared in the trap of commoditization rather than pursuing strategic differentiation and extreme value creation. Pricing has also become increasingly complex, even for the most experienced brands. As value creation shifts towards cultural capital, deficits in brand storytelling are affecting pricing strategies.
Moreover, many luxury salespeople are grappling with clients who have significantly higher expectations. They’re realizing that unlocking the emotional keys of their clients and creating meaningful, empathetic connections is hard. It doesn’t help that growth rates in China are decelerating, putting enormous pressure on most brands. In this context, maintaining a global perspective has become paramount for successfully managing luxury brands.
For brands and managers, mastering this new reality is a significant challenge. It demands continuous learning and skill updating across all levels, from mastering the fundamentals of luxury’s extreme value creation to excelling in the art of selling luxury.
For many years, it has been my dream to establish a learning platform accessible to all managers of luxury brands at their convenience. This platform would continuously expand with new content, including training modules that cover all relevant aspects of brand management, interviews and fireside chats with industry experts, and regular virtual masterclasses on critical topics that I will host, giving platform members access to insights and strategies on emerging topics.
I am proud to announce the official launch of the Jing Academy, powered by brand strategy and development firm Équité, on Monday, April 29, 2024. Larry Warsh, the publisher of Jing Daily, and his team have joined forces with mine to create a truly relevant platform that redefines luxury masterclasses. More than two years have been dedicated to the conceptualization and realization of this training platform. Our goal is to cultivate a community of luxury professionals who share a passion for excellence and lifelong learning.
The Jing Academy will significantly widen access to critical insights and help organizations and managers to lead the change. Are you ready?