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Beyond a worldwide popular culture or sporting event, and even that has limits, the pandemic has been a prolonged, shared experience like no other.
All of humankind going through the same thing at the same time – albeit in different ways – with a shared endeavour to get to the other side of this global ‘pause’.
It was against that background that we held our second Modern Affluence Summit in partnership with Porsche and Deloitte in September to address how affluence is being redefined by a new generation of consumers who are:
Christopher Kenna,
FOUNDER & CEO,BRAND ADVANCE
Over 4 concentrated hours and 6 focused sessions, 200 attendees and 22 speakers turned their minds to the challenges and opportunities we face as individuals, as a society and as brands.
That rich dialogue continued into lunch and the long overdue, for many participants, in-person interaction with all of the serendipitous sparks that created, fuelling our drive to make the most out of the opportunities ahead.
We applied as much attention to creating an audience as we did the panels. We welcomed c-suite and director level influence from a diverse list of sectors, bringing individuals and industries together around a common consumer. Based on the vibe and energy on the day we think we made the right call – thank you to everyone who attended and contributed to that and to our event partners.
The Summit and this report are not the end of the conversation, quite the opposite but we hope this summary proves a helpful resource in the weeks and months ahead and acts as a catalyst within your own organisations.
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Experts in the people who are shaping our futures.
Becky Galea is a Retail and Consumer strategist at Monitor Deloitte, with a background in helping traditional corporates and start-ups to radically re-think the way they operate.
Becky has worked with some of the UK’s best known brands, and specialises in taking a customer and employee-centric approach towards designing and delivering industry leading customer experiences and services.
An accomplished data science, research and insight leader experienced in combining traditional research methods with data analytics to answer complex business problems.
Phil currently leads Data Science and Insights for Bloomberg Media across EMEA. He spends the majority of time understanding audience behaviour and analysing content topics to ensure all marketing recommendations are based on evidence. He is a big advocate towards data informed storytelling and promotes a data driven mentality.
Ben is the Founder of Seedlip and Æcorn Drinks, the world’s first distilled non-alcoholic spirits and aperitifs
His mission is two-fold: Solve the dilemma of ‘what to drink when you’re not drinking’ and continue his family’s 300 years of farming heritage.
With offices in the Chilterns, Los Angeles and Sydney, Seedlip is now available in 29 cities including New York, Barcelona, Shanghai & Singapore and served in many of the world’s most awarded bars, restaurants and hotels including 350x Michelin * Restaurants & 9/10 of the world’s best cocktail bars.
Ben was named as one of the Top 50 most influential people in food and drink by The Telegraph and awarded Young Achiever of The Year by The Drinks Business. He continues to pioneer the non-alcoholic category forward with the launch of Æcorn Drinks in Selfridges and The Savoy in May 2019
Chloe is CEO and Founder of award-winning impact PR consultancy Franses – working with individuals and brands on a mission to solve some of the world’s biggest problems, through culture-led campaigns.
With clients ranging from tech companies, VC firms, start-ups and global funds to FMCG, entertainment, luxury and lifestyle brands and social impact organisations, Chloe is passionate about building engagement, audience, reputation, authenticity and legacy for brands, and delivering real-world impact.
Chris Gorell Barnes is a social entrepreneur. He is Founding partner of Ocean14 capital a leading impact fund focused on ensuring a healthy ocean for everyone through a sustainable & regenerative blue economy and Co-founder of the Blue marine foundation a world leading marine charity dedicated to creating marine reserves and establishing sustainable models of fishing.
Christopher Kenna is CEO and Founder of Brand Advance (BA), a startup 100 2020 company which connects brands with diverse audiences globally, through Insights, Media and Creative that more authentically engages these communities.
Christopher is also the Director of Diversity and Inclusion at OUTvertising, the Advertising industry Lobbying Group and as a mixed race, out gay father – is a strong advocate for diversity and representation within the Media and Advertising industry as a member of the WFA Diversity Advisory Board and is also on the advisory board for the V&A Museums.
An award winning entrepreneur having received the Innovator of the Year Award at the second annual Ex-Forces in Business Awards and was recently named on EMPower’s 100 Ethnic Minority Executives 2020.
Diana Verde Nieto is the Co-Founder and CEO of Positive Luxury, the company behind the Butterfly Mark, a unique interactive trust mark awarded to luxury lifestyle brands in recognition of their commitment to having a positive impact on people and our planet. The Mark provides wordless reassurance that a brand can be trusted.
Positive Luxury was founded in partnership with Karen Hanton MBE, founder of toptable.com. The two trailblazing entrepreneurs combined their experience and knowledge to use technology to demystify sustainability and positively communicate a brand’s actions directly to the consumer.
Diana’s entrepreneurial spirit has driven innovation in the way that brands communicate their commitment to social and environmental sustainability, enabling organisations to unlock the value of their investment in this area.
This began with founding the first international sustainability communications consultancy in 2002 which Diana built to international success with a presence in five markets, including China and the USA, at the time of exiting the business in 2008.
Diana holds a degree in Global Leadership & Public Policy from Harvard Kennedy School. Diana is a globally recognised figure in the sustainability field, honoured by the World Economic Forum as a Young Global Leader in 2011 and subsequently being trained by former US Vice President, Al Gore.
Diana serves on many advisory boards, frequently teaches at Cambridge Judge School and Oxford Said School and was recently given an honorary professorship at Glasgow Caledonian University.
Emmanuel Lawal is a 29-year-old Sound Designer, Brand Ambassador and co-host of cult radio show The ACS Show. 1/2 of AUDI0COMINGS00N, who have produced music (sync) across tv, film and fashion as well as creating sound and playlists for restaurants such as Nobu, The Soho House Group and Sexy Fish.
Through his respected catalogue of music projects, Emmanuel quickly found himself in front of the camera working with brands such as Mr Porter, Gucci, Bang & Olufsen, Zegna, AMEX, Cartier and Bentley Motors among others. In London and Milan, Emmanuel serves as an ambassador throughout Fashion Week working with British Fashion Council and Camera Moda to not only heighten menswear but to push forward the importance of sustainable fashion.
From music to fashion, work is play and play is work for Emmanuel. The two entities are fused together, serving to produce one of London’s fastest growing taste makers.
James is an entrepreneur with a background in the events industry, and the creative soul of the Mr & Mrs Smith brand. With his wife, Tamara, he conceived the first Mr & Mrs Smith guidebook in 2003, inspired by a disastrous weekend away together at a spa hotel in the Lake District, where the accuracy of an existing guidebook had been so laughably wide of the mark, they decided to write their own. Instead of trouser presses and parking spaces, it focused on more intimate, useful details such as the best table in the restaurant, or whether two can fit in the bathtub. It surprised publishers by selling 20,000 copies in its first three months and several volumes followed. As the hotels included experienced an increase in bookings, the couple decided to capitalise by becoming a boutique travel agency, servicing their growing membership base by helping them book their trips, too. Today, ‘the travel club for hotel lovers’ has over a million members worldwide able to choose from a carefully curated, 1,500-strong collection of hotels, villas and experiences – all bookable online or by phone with Smith24, its round-the-clock team of in-house travel specialists, based in London, New York, LA and Singapore. Each hotel is personally vetted by Smith’s globetrotting experts and then reviewed (anonymously) by a range of actors, writers, influencers, entrepreneurs, chefs, DJs and other personalities. Past reviewers have included Lauren Laverne, Raymond Blanc, Olivia von Halle, Tom Dixon, Pandora Sykes, Tom Aikens and Stella McCartney. This year, he teamed up with foresight consultancy the Future Laboratory to create a report, Modern Love: Exploring the next decade of romantic travel. James ensures consistent, high-quality execution across every Smith initiative, as well as bringing a keen strategic mind to the board and acting as global ambassador for the business. In 2014, James received an MBE for services to the British travel industry.
Jamie Burke is the Founder & CEO of Outlier Ventures, Europe’s first dedicated blockchain VC and Accelerator. An early investor in cryptocurrencies, Jamie founded Outlier Ventures in 2014 with the belief that decentralized technologies would introduce new paradigms for the web and create a more equitable and open economic system. Today, Jamie is at the forefront of an investment landscape that spans various Web3 technologies as they converge with media, commerce and culture to lay the foundation for the Metaverse. Jamie and his team at Outlier Ventures have grown a portfolio of nearly 100 startups, facilitated over $130 million in seed funding for its portfolio companies, and have helped to jump start multiple billion-dollar crypto ecosystems.
Jamie is an influential figure in the burgeoning NFT space and a notable media commentator on all things AR/VR, gaming, and DeFi. Jamie is the host of the The Metaverse Podcast, The Metaverse Show in VR, and the NFTs.WTF podcast, where he interviews the top minds in Web3, the Metaverse and beyond. He is an active collector of NFTs, co-founding 100xARt, a community of the Top 200 collectors. Jamie’s exposure to founders, investors and builders makes him an expert on the most important trends across Web3, media, commerce, and culture.
Jamie started his career in music and music media, spending over 14 years at MTV Networks international, culminating in the role of SVP for talent, music and events for the world ex US. Having built extensive experience in experiential activations, communications, marketing and partnerships he moved into hospitality.
Joining Soho House in 2008, he was tasked with structuring and building all the customer and member facing functions of the company, working closely with Nick Jones, ultimately as CMO, to roll out the business internationally, tripling its revenues, and helping steer the brand to become one of the most powerful and influential in the sector.
In 2015, Jamie launched his own boutique consultancy, Sevengage to provide guidance and expertise to companies in the hospitality and real estate industries, with a specific focus on brand development and community building. An expert on clubs he has supported the development and success of many of the world’s most innovative social communities, as well as consulting for leading workspaces, and pioneering co-living concepts.
More recently Jamie has made a significant foray into the worlds of hotels and major mixed use developments, and is currently working on projects in San Diego, Hong Kong, Johannesburg, Saigon, Miami and Singapore, as well as 5 new club openings in London between 2022 and 2024.
Karina Abramova grew up on the internet somewhere between Russia and Canada, and cut her teeth analysing and strategizing for global smartphone rivals back when iPhone was in single digits. She has been bringing future-forward culture and innovations into the board room ever since she began penning a consumer tech trends newsletter in 2013. Always sensitive to shifts in humans’ experience, their needs and desires, she developed marketing strategies and built brands like BMW, NIVEA, Starbucks for digital where consumer-centricity is King.
Most recently at Bacardi, Karina has been developing future consumer narratives, creative ideas and pivot points for the spirits portfolio (focusing on premium Grey Goose, St Germain, Santa Teresa 1796), while inspiring action from the Innovation, Digital Commerce and On Trade teams.
She has been involved in the crypto sphere since 2018 and has built a network of experts to support her professional as well as creative and environmental personal projects across the globe. She is perpetually bullish and is betting on digital and sustainability to shift humanity into the next chapter.
Katherine’s connects creative and science ecosystems. Creating cross discipline dialogue she accelerates insight out of the labs and to the public realm through creative projects that explores the future of humans and connection. With an extensive background in neuroscience and cognitive psychology she is affiliated with some of the leading neuroscience labs including UCL, Goldsmiths and Imperial College, is cofounder of the female led neuroaesthetics studio Kinda Studios and has worked with a range of award winning creatives including John Hopkins, Example, Morcheeba, Hannah Marshall and Marshmallow Laser Feast.
An experienced science communicator and speaker she has delivered keynotes across the globe exploring the effect of new technology on the human condition. Most recently FutureFest, CogX, the SHE Summit and Master & Robots. She also appears regularly as a science and tech expert & across a range of broadcast media including BBC Radio 4, 5Live, Radio X, Sky News, NBC Sport and NBC’s The TODAY Show and her writing can be found across VICE Motherboard, VICE Broadly and The Creators Project and the Huffington Post.
Liam is Global Head of Knight Frank’s market leading research team. Based in London, Liam writes and presents on property market trends around the world with a particular focus on residential markets. He also leads Knight Frank’s flagship publication, The Wealth Report – which tracks private wealth investment into property. Over the past decade, Liam has grown and deepened the market insight offered by Knight Frank’s research team and now runs a global team of over 100 people covering: residential and commercial property; geospatial insight; data and analytics and customer intelligence.
Matteo is an established brand and value creator, shaping the luxury world for the next decade. Currently the, leading a global marketing team in charge of the entire customer journey, harnessing insights about its UHNWI to introduce exciting innovation programs.
His expertise was built working with leading global brands in luxury, fashion and telecommunications. Matteo began his career in Gucci during the Tom Ford tenure, followed by Mandarina Duck as Brand Manager. He has led Nokia retail campaigns for over 30,000 shops as well as headed the business development team for Bottega Veneta, catering to the luxury fashion’s elite. In London, he worked alongside Sir Paul Smith to refocus the business around its core attributes, products and brand.
In the past few years his projects have been featured on the WSJ, Robb Report, NYT, Business Insider and he has been a contributor to Forbes magazine. His ideas won the “Legends Award” from Departure magazine in 2019 and 2020. He has created books on fine wine and private dining and contributed to several innovation books.
Matteo holds an MA in Communication Science from Bologna University and a Exec MBA from Insead. He is also a professor in Luxury Business Development and a Member of the Academic Board at the International University of Monaco.
Born in Guangzhou, China, Ning Yuan was given the last name of her mother, a controversial choice at the time, which reflected the liberal and feminist values her family would raise her with. As a rebellious teenage girl, Ning often felt defiant of the conservative standards women were subjected to and found her escape in American hip hop. An obsession that remains a great inspiration for her today.
Growing up, her mother would tell stories of how her ancestors used to be master silk manufacturers, crafting fine silk goods for the emperors of the time. Already then, Ning dreamt of creating a Chinese brand that would celebrate the 5,000-year-old rich heritage of her culture. From that point, Ning was determined to acquire the skills and experiences to realize her dream of a Chinese luxury brand.
Following her love for hip-hop and Americana, she moved to the culturally significant North Carolina where she majored in strategic communication. Going on to fulfilling a course at the Condé Nast College of Fashion and Design. She has since worked in marketing, PR and data strategy for several luxury brands and agencies. Having lived in China, Hong Kong, Canada, America and the UK, Ning has witnessed the global rise of streetwear first-hand. Today, NING runs her eponymous brand from London, a city she fell in love with for its extraordinary nightlife and for being a globally recognized fashion hub.
Rebecca has more than 15 years’ government and advisory experience in China and Asia, specializing in climate and political risk analysis. She has designed and managed multi-stakeholder climate change and sustainable development initiatives led climate risk and vulnerability assessments and policy formulation at the national and sectoral level. Rebecca was the Co-Chair of the Building Resilience and Adaptation to Climate Extremes and Disasters (BRACED) steering committee, a FCDO-funded £110 million, 3-year programme, focused on South and South East Asia and in the African Sahel, that seeks to improve the integration of disaster risk reduction and climate adaptation methods into development approaches. She is currently on the steering committee of SPARC, a FCDO Funded £10 million, 5- year programme supporting resilience and conflict prevention in the Sahel.
Rebecca is also a China policy expert with a focus on China’s emerging geopolitical strategy, national security and climate policy. Her current focus is on understanding Chinese approaches to risk management of Belt and Road projects and analysis of the potential environmental, social and political risks that may arise for host countries and other key stakeholders.
Before joining ODI, Rebecca was Director of the Adapting to Climate Change in China Project (ACCC Phase I and II), the largest climate risk policy project of its kind in China. Previously, Rebecca worked in the British Embassy Beijing’s political section, covering VIP visits, Japan-China relations, Central Asia and energy security. She served as the Deputy Director of the British Council’s Global Climate Change Programme, leading roll out in 60 countries. She was also the British Council’s China Director, Climate Change & Science, leading the UK’s Climate Change Public Diplomacy Campaign in China. She is an adjunct lecturer at the Centre for Environment & Population Health, Griffith University Australia.
Rebecca holds a PhD in Chinese foreign policy in Central Asia, MA in International Relations, BA in Politics from the University of Sheffield. She studied Chinese at Peking University and is working towards an LLM in International Law.
Tia is a multi award-winning entrepreneur. The youngest to ever receive the Royal Institute British Architects honorary fellowship, she is the co-founder of Kansara Hackney Ltd, the first ISO-certified sustainable lifestyle consultancy, and CEO of Replenish Earth Ltd, a cause and a collective action to protect the global commons. Hailed amongst the Top 100 most influential leaders in Tech by the Financial Times and Inclusive Boards, her clients include Coca Cola, Bloomberg, the European Commission, Forbes, Formula One, MIT, and Siemens.
Aside from being the UCL Bartlett’s Ambassador to the Gulf region and advisor to the Economic Times of India, she’s an economist and future cities thought leader. In 2010, she wrote the brief and appointed the architects Foster+Partners for the Saudi American Bank‘s multi-million dollar headquarters as the first female to judge a LEED platinum building in Riyadh.
During her PhD, she worked alongside MIT and the Urban Planning Council, the Executive Affairs Authority, Department of Municipal Affairs, Abu Dhabi Water and Electricity Authority, Regulation and Supervision Bureau to create the first energy baseline and comprehensive energy evaluation in the Gulf.
In 2000 she was invited to present the International Baccalaureate (IB) to Lord Adonis, Educational Policy Adviser at the UK Prime Minister’s Policy Unit, Cabinet Office. She was employed by the Japanese Ministry of Education to modernise the teaching of the English syllabus for High Schools in Japan. In 2012, Tia was invited to present her views to President Hollande and Ban Ki Moon on the UN initiative: Sustainable Energy for All and has since worked closely with the Abu Dhabi government.
She is an executive committee member of London Business School’s Global Energy Summit, and also Co-director of the international CleanTechChallenge. In association with the Club of Rome and the United Nations General Assembly she has advised the Royal family of Bhutan and Past Prime Minister Jigme Thinley and Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay on the creation of an international commission on sustainable, economic growth.
Stephan is the Founder and CEO of 3Billion Pairs Genetics, a vertically integrated, accelerated diagnostics, genomic dashboard, direct-to-your-door clinical trial development platform, where the user ALWAYS stays in control of their own genome and data thanks to blockchain technology auditing.
An internationally recognized expert in building lasting communities, Stephan Tual was the architect behind the marketing strategy for Ethereum, a platform for smart contracts and decentralized blockchain applications. As the former CCO of Ethereum, the next-generation blockchain went on to raise $18.9m as part of the world’s second-largest crowdfunding event and is now valued at over USD 250 billion.
Stephan was also the Founder and COO of venture-backed Slock.it, a project at the intersection of the IoT and blockchain. Slock.it explored how Ethereum light nodes embedded in connected cars, homes, shared white goods, etc., could revolutionize the emerging Sharing Economy infrastructure by enabling anyone to rent, sell or share their property without a middleman.
Stephan has three start-ups under his belt and brings 25 years of enterprise IT experience to his enterprises. Before becoming an entrepreneur, Stephan held CTO positions at leading data analytics companies in London, managing million pound IT budgets for clients including VISA Europe, BP, the CO-OP and dozens of other Fortune 500 companies.
Stephan lives in London, UK, with his wife, two children and three beloved pet dogs. When not busy working on a venture, he moonlights as a producer for crowdfunded, independent films.
He regularly speaks at conferences and community events.
The Future Laboratory is one of the world’s most renowned futures consultancies. With a unique blend of trend forecasting, consumer insight, foresight, brand strategy and innovation, they inspire and future-proof organisations.
Victoria specialises in strategic foresight, leading a team of researchers to anticipate change and translate global trends and cultural insight into actionable growth opportunities and creative brand concepts. Helping clients to be more prepared for the future, she leads our bespoke projects for brands in the beauty, media, tech, retail and fashion industry.
Her obsession with building resilient and culturally relevant brands has seen her run bespoke projects for Chanel, Diageo Prestige, l, and Google as well as regularly contributing to industry panel discussions and publications in the futures space. When not in The Future Laboratory studio in Shoreditch, analysing the new and the next, she can be found roaming the globe from New York to Tokyo, interviewing early adopters, viand seeking out the most exciting new innovations.
William Hutchings is the co-founder and managing partner of Ability, an investment and advisory business focused on emerging, creative, purpose driven consumer brands. Ability was founded in 2016 and has worked with over 20 consumer brands both as consultants and investors. Will was previously at Goldman Sachs (2007-16) where he led the consumer team in equity research, covering luxury goods, beauty, sporting goods, fashion and ecommerce.
