Scott Kerr sits down with Uma Subramanian, CEO of Aero, which is a newly launched luxury semi-private air travel service from Uber co-founder Garrett Camp. Subramanian, an aerospace engineer veteran, discusses the gap Aero fills between private aviation and flying on a luxurious commercial airline, why she thinks Aero is the "perfect solution for the post-COVID world," and how discovering the way people book air travel made Aero rethink its mobile app strategy. She also talks about building the ...
Jun 01, 2021•28 min
Scott Kerr talks with Maximilian Riedel, President and CEO of Riedel, which is one of the world's leading manufacturers of luxury glassware designed specifically for wine or spirits. Sitting at the helm of a company with 265 years of heritage, 11th generation Riedel discusses how it continues to innovate in a competitive wine glass market and how the uptick in premium alcohol sales during the pandemic drove more consumers to purchase high-end glassware. He also shares Riedel's philosophy for des...
May 18, 2021•48 min
Scott Kerr sits down with Laurent Claquin, President of Kering Americas. Claquin heads the North and Latin American expansion of Kering’s 12 iconic luxury houses including Gucci, Saint Laurent, Bottega Venetta, Alexander McQueen and Balenciaga. Claquin discusses how the luxury conglomerate nurtures a culture of innovation and entrepreneurship to stay agile and creative, and how its signature "Empower Imagination" permeates through each of the brands. He also talks about how the pandemic has put ...
May 04, 2021•35 min
Scott Kerr talks with Zornitza Stefanova, Founder and CEO of BSPK , a global clienteling platform for luxury brands that personalizes the shopping experience between sales associate and customer. Stefanova, recently named one of Luxury Daily's "Luxury Women to Watch 2021", discusses how she saw a gap in the way luxury brands were using technology to drive customer engagement and retention that drove her to create the BSPK platform. She also talks about how COVID exposed the luxury leaders and la...
Apr 20, 2021•41 min
Scott Kerr talks with Natural Diamond Council CEO David Kellie about how the $80 billion diamond industry is regaining its sparkle thanks to stuck-at-home consumers and "emotional asset" seekers. He also discusses how the pandemic ignited new and faster ways of doing business, the importance of understanding consumer sentiment, the radical digital transformation of the diamond industry, and the NDC's new program offering $1 million to BIPOC designers. Plus: New insights on why Millennials and Ge...
Apr 13, 2021•40 min
Rémy Cointreau USA Chief Executive Officer Ian McLernon sits down with The Luxury Item's Scott Kerr to discuss navigating the French wine & spirits company through a world of "volatility, uncertainty, chaos, and ambiguity" and which alcohol industry trends will persist amidst a slow return to pre-covid life. McLernon talks about the expansion of Rémy Cointreau's e-commerce strategy, including its partnership with online alcohol delivery service Drizly and launch of an immersive "e-boutique" ...
Mar 23, 2021•43 min
Alessandro Farmeschi, CEO Americas at Lamborghini talks with The Luxury Item's Scott Kerr about the factors contributing to the Italian luxury sports-car company's record-breaking 2020 sales, and why its best-selling Urus "super-sport utility vehicle" has changed the perception of Lamborghini. Farmeschi also discusses how Lamborghini's strategic focus on digital marketing has paid off in areas like social media, virtual reality, video, and CRM. He also talks about Lamborghini's collaborations wi...
Mar 09, 2021•43 min
François-Xavier Hotier, President of Ulysse Nardin Americas talks with The Luxury Item's Scott Kerr about how the 175-year-old Swiss luxury watch brand has shown resilience through the crisis and the accelerated transformation of the industry. Hotier discusses the importance of Kering's acquisition of Ulysse Nardin, his role of maintaining desirability for the brand, its new digital platforms to reach younger buyers, and the shifting attitudes and behaviors of luxury watch customers. He also exp...
Feb 23, 2021•36 min
Laurence Lim Dally, Founder and Managing Director, Cherry Blossoms Intercultural Branding talks with Scott Kerr about what it means to be feminine in China today and what luxury marketers can do to resonate with the new generation of Chinese women. Lim Dally discusses how she launched her agency to help brands to improve their cultural intelligence, how Chinese femininities are evolving, the cultural gap between China and the West, and the emerging "loneliness economy" as well as other important...
Feb 09, 2021•38 min
Scott Kerr sits down with Nadia Tuma-Weldon, senior vice president of McCann Worldgroup's Truth Central, its global intelligence unit — she also leads the company's global luxury practice. Tuma-Weldon was recently named as one of the "Luxury Women to Watch in 2021" by Luxury Daily and she joined the podcast to talk about the changing luxury consumer. Tuma-Weldon talks about how Truth Central helps clients understand "enduring truths" that shape consumer behaviors and attitudes and how a Tastemak...
Jan 28, 2021•48 min
The Luxury Item's Scott Kerr sits down with Rebecca Foerster, President of Alrosa USA — the world's leading diamond mining company. Foerster talks about the pandemic crippling the global diamond supply chain, and how the "responsible behavior" of Alrosa and other diamond mining companies helped keep the industry afloat. Foerster also discusses how the crisis forced the slow evolving diamond industry to quickly embrace digital solutions, why young people are still buying diamonds, how lab-grown d...
Jan 12, 2021•43 min
Hi. This is Scott Kerr, creator and host of The Luxury Item podcast. Happy New Year! This past December, we wrapped up our second season of the show. I don’t have to tell you that 2020 was a year like no other - a pivotal one in history. The coronavirus pandemic transformed how we live and work in ways we hardly imagined at the beginning of 2020. It significantly impacted businesses and the economy, and pressed companies to rethink and reconfigure their strategies for a changed world. The luxury...
Jan 05, 2021•3 min
Six Senses CEO Neil Jacobs talks with Scott Kerr about navigating the wellness-driven global luxury resort brand during the pandemic and how it's innovating to meet new guest expectations. Jacobs, who took the helm of Six Senses in 2012, talks about how wellness and sustainability values are in the DNA of the company's culture, right down to the way it builds and designs its properties. He also explains why affluent travelers have been more resilient, what the new meaning of luxury travel is, wh...
Dec 15, 2020•54 min
Nicola Nice, founder and CEO of craft spirits brand Pomp & Whimsy, joins The Luxury Item's Scott Kerr to talk about how her research on the female consumer inspired her to create and launch a gin cordial targeted singularly to women. Nicola also discusses her journey and hurdles in growing the business, why "the brand is everything" in premium spirits, and how Pomp & Whimsy doubled its sales in midst of the pandemic. She talks about gender stereotyping in spirits marketing and why women ...
Dec 07, 2020•59 min
Cleo Anderson, founder and CEO of award-winning luxury PR agency The Anderson Media Group, talks with The Luxury Item's Scott Kerr about the state of the public relations business; how her law and French degrees helped get her company off the ground; changes in the business over the last 10 years and how she's been advising clients during the pandemic. Anderson also talks about the agency's new innovative services to assist cash-strapped clients, getting clients' products into Oscars gift bags, ...
Nov 24, 2020•50 min
Patrick Knowles, one of the world's leading luxury yacht designers, talks with Scott Kerr about what the ultra-wealthy are dreaming up for their vessels as the pandemic has brought about a spike in yacht sales. Patrick discusses why billionaires are buying bigger boats, how the pre-pandemic in-person design process has shifted to video and yielding more "concise" results, and why wealthy Millennials have a "disposable luxury" mindset when designing their yachts. Plus: Knowles shares why he hasn'...
Nov 17, 2020•59 min
Annie Wang, vice president, head of marketing at Artnet talks with Scott Kerr about why the art world has been stubbornly slow to embrace the digital realm and why its forced shift online by the pandemic could be permanent. Wang also discusses how artists are successfully using D2C strategies to sell their work through social platforms like Instagram and the surprising affinity of high net worth Millennials to the art market. Plus: Wang explains why female artists remain at a severe disadvantage...
Nov 03, 2020•39 min
Ryan Serhant, real estate industry mogul and star of Bravo TV's two-time Emmy-nominated 'Million Dollar Listing New York' talks with Scott Kerr about the launch of his new real estate brokerage SERHANT and how it will disrupt the traditional model. Serhant discusses how their digital and social set-up put them in a better position to sell during quarantine, and why New York City real estate will rebound in 2021 for a good "seven to ten year run." He also talks about using data and predictive ana...
Oct 20, 2020•44 min
Top-ranked luxury sector analyst and author Erwan Rambourg talks with The Luxury Item's Scott Kerr about his new book “Future Luxe: What's Ahead for the Business of Luxury", and trends that will reshape luxury over the next decade. Rambourg discusses how evidence of "survival spending" is helping fuel luxury's rebound and why women's influence on luxury spending and representation on company boards will continue to intensify. He predicts a new era of M&A frenzy of big luxury players gobbling...
Oct 13, 2020•51 min
Highsnobiety co-founder Jeff Carvalho talks with The Luxury Item's Scott Kerr about how streetwear and sneakers have not only infiltrated luxury fashion, but became it. Carvalho discusses Highsnobiety's recent capsule collection with H&M, the luxury industry's retreat from tailored menswear back to streetwear due to the pandemic, the history of luxury's love affair with street fashion, and how the Highsnobiety business model and content have evolved since it launched in 2005 as a niche sneak...
Sep 29, 2020•1 hr 1 min
Belvedere Vodka President & CEO Rodney Williams talks with The Luxury Item's Scott Kerr about how the pandemic has impacted Belvedere's business, emerging drinking culture trends, shifting customer attitudes & behaviors, and the recent launch of Belvedere's "Made With Nature" sustainability platform. Williams also discusses the home mixologist movement, how the Belvedere positions itself in a crowded vodka market, its collaboration with Janelle Monáe, and the company's commitment to dive...
Sep 22, 2020•47 min
On this special bonus episode, Scott Kerr is revisited by Mickey Alam Khan, founder & editor-in-chief of Luxury Daily. They discuss how luxury brands can successfully respond to industry changes after the Covid-19 contraction and recalibrate their business. Mr. Alam Khan shares his thoughts on what brands will emerge intact from the pandemic purgatory, and why coming out of the crisis luxury brands will have to expand their value prop and revisit their business models. He also skeptical of t...
Sep 15, 2020•51 min
Former Rebecca Minkoff chief brand officer and strategy executive Ana Andjelic talks with Scott Kerr about her new book "The Business of Aspiration: How Social, Cultural, and Environmental Capital Changes Brands." Andjelic discusses the modern aspiration economy and how it's no longer about striving to accumulate lavish brands and experiences— status symbols are now anchored in taste, aesthetic, innovation, communities, design, environmentalism and social influence. She also talks about how bran...
Sep 08, 2020•40 min
Nathan Lump, Vice President of Customer Marketing at Expedia talks with Scott Kerr about the turbulent times in the travel industry, and what's ahead for luxury travel once borders open restrictions are lifted, and a vaccine is developed. The pandemic has created major business challenges for the Expedia Group and Lump discusses some of the company's recent strategic moves to improve its operation, including revamping hot vacation rental site Vrbo. Plus: What wealthy consumers will have on their...
Aug 25, 2020•47 min
Rebecca Ross, a Watch Specialist at Christie's, talks with Scott Kerr about the luxury watch industry, and how the COVID-19 pandemic forced the world's top auction house to shift from live to online-only auctions; how the online auction format has found a new crop of luxury watch bidders, many of them under 40-years-old. Ross also discusses the success of Christie's recent innovative four-venue global "ONE" sale and the growing opportunities for women in the male-dominated watch industry. Plus: ...
Aug 11, 2020•34 min
Jet It founder & CEO Glenn Gonzales talks with Scott Kerr about how wealthy fliers and business executives who are worried about Coronavirus are turning to private jet services as an alternative to commercial flights. Glenn explains the growing popularity of fractional private jet ownership, and why Jet It's hybrid fractional program is a better value proposition. He also talks about how Jet It is meeting the increased demand for his services since the pandemic started, the types of customer...
Jul 28, 2020•36 min
Hello, this is Scott Kerr, your host of the Luxury Item podcast. First, I want to thank my listeners from around the world for making Season 1 of The Luxury Item a huge success. The podcast would not be where it is now if it weren’t for you. I also appreciate all the positive feedback on the show. I’m also here to tell you that Season 2 of The Luxury Item launches very soon with all new episodes, and amazing guests offering fresh perspectives on the luxury industry and its uncertain future. I’m ...
Jul 21, 2020•1 min
Founder & Editor-in-Chief of Luxury Daily Mickey Khan talks with The Luxury Item's Scott Kerr about the impact of the coronavirus crisis on the luxury industry. He discusses his reasons why the luxury industry will bounce back (again), and which consumers will most likely not return to luxury shopping for awhile. Khan shares some of the biggest lessons he's learned from covering the pandemic since it started affecting luxury goods sales in China. He also talks about the future role of depart...
May 12, 2020•59 min
Executive Editor of Wine Spectator Thomas Matthews talks with The Luxury Item's Scott Kerr about booming wines sales during the coronavirus pandemic, and if new consumption habits formed will stick around in the future; He also discusses why e-commerce is now business critical for the wine industry, and how consumers are turning to more familiar wine brands during times of crisis; He also shares his thoughts on celebrities who have wine brands or own wineries, and which celebrity wines are worth...
Apr 28, 2020•40 min
Cigar Aficionado executive editor David Savona talks with Scott Kerr about state of the cigar business, and why the market for premium cigars continues to grow; He talks about his recent trip to Cuba for the annual Habano Cigar Festival, and the how the economic pressures from the U.S. are impacting the country and the cigrar market; Savona describes what it's like to walk through Cuban cigar factories and the lure of a fine Cuban cigar; He also talks about how cigars turned from a passing hobby...
Mar 17, 2020•34 min
