Award-winning legendary chef, restauranteur (Aureole, et al.), and hospitality entrepreneur Charlie Palmer sits down with Scott Kerr to discuss his journey from a 23-year-old executive chef at one of New York City's preeminent fine dining institutions to building a company of iconic restaurants and food-focused hotels. He also talks about his signature “Progressive American” cuisine, the challenges of managing his growing brand footprint, why he has maintained so much staying power in the dining...
May 09, 2023•45 min
Family-owned and -operated Palmaz Vineyards in Napa Valley is regularly voted one of the best wineries in the region and is known for fusing the time-honored art of winemaking and cutting-edge technology. Scott Kerr sits down with Christian Palmaz, COO at Palmaz Vineyards, to discuss his father Dr. Julio Palmaz's journey from inventor of the balloon-expandable heart stent to vineyard owner. Christian also talks about the engineering marvel of the vineyard's 18-story subterranean winery "Cave", t...
May 02, 2023•52 min
In this encore episode (published May 10, 2022), Nicolas Girotto, CEO of Bally, talks to Scott Kerr about how the iconic 170-year-old Swiss luxury house is moving to boost relevance and growth these days. Nicolas talks about Bally's recent appointment of LA-based streetwear designer Rhuigi Villaseñor to oversee the creative direction of the brand, balancing heritage and cultural relevance, increasing investments in strong smaller U.S. markets, the brand's enormous digital success in China, explo...
Apr 18, 2023•39 min
In this encore episode (published January 18, 2022), Scott Kerr is joined by Shannon Knapp, president & CEO at The Leading Hotels of the World, a prestigious hotel group with a worldwide collection of more than 400 independently owned and operated luxury hotels. Shannon discusses Leading Hotel's business model, its unique selling proposition to potential member hotels and the brand standards these independent hotels must meet to join the collection. She also talks about how it's handling the...
Apr 11, 2023•42 min
CASADEI is one of the largest exporters of Made in Italy luxury shoes all over the world and its designs favored by top celebrities and models. On this episode, Scott Kerr speaks with Arianna Casadei, the third generation of the founding family and newly appointed CEO of the 65-year-old brand. Arianna discusses how growing up in the family business and learning from her father, renowned Italian shoe designer Cesare Casadei, has prepared her for leading the company. She also talks about her top p...
Apr 04, 2023•30 min
Isamaya Ffrench is a globally-renowned British makeup artist known for creating a beauty revolution with her dramatic transformations to some of luxury fashion's buzziest labels and biggest celebrities. She joins Scott Kerr on The Luxury Item to discusses launching and growing her namesake beauty brand ISAMAYA and her unconventional approach to beauty. She also talks about what she learned working alongside iconic luxury fashion brands like Burberry, YSL, Louboutin, and Tom Ford, her drop model ...
Mar 28, 2023•38 min
LVMH—Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton—is the biggest and most successful luxury goods conglomerate in the world. It's home to a constellation of prestigious luxury brands including Louis Vuitton, Bulgari, Dior, Fendi, Marc Jacobs, Tiffany & Co, Moët & Chandon, and Séphora to name a few. Scott Kerr sits down with Anish Melwani, chairman & CEO of LVMH for North America to discuss the evolving relationship between luxury and the US consumer and why LVMH is well positioned to navigate through...
Mar 14, 2023•41 min
Scott Kerr speaks to Larry Korman, president and CEO of AKA Hotels & Hotel Residences, a company that has been an integral force in the luxury extended-stay sector. Larry discusses what's driving the explosive growth of hybrid luxury hotel/residence experiences and AKA's rapid expansion in major cities. He also talks about why many celebrities and long-stay business travelers prefer AKA to traditional luxury hotels, how its brand philosophy of "providing calm in chaos" resonates with guests,...
Feb 28, 2023•51 min
D-J Hageman, vice president of marketing at super-premium tequila brand Patrón Tequila, joins Scott Kerr to discuss why tequila is so hot right now and why it's leading the spirits premiumization trend. He also talks about Patrón inventing the super-premium tequila category in the '90s, the brand's longtime popularity with the hip-hop community, its first incursion into the luxury tequila space, Web3 strategy, and the proliferation of celebrity tequila brands. Plus: Will an agave plant shortage ...
Feb 21, 2023•27 min
On the newest episode of The Luxury Item podcast, Scott Kerr speaks with Tom Marchant, owner and co-founder of award-winning bespoke luxury travel operator Black Tomato. The company has made a name for itself by pulling together expertly tailored, highly imaginative private travel experiences that give clients insider access to some of the world’s farthest-flung destinations. Tom discusses how he built and grew the Black Tomato brand in the face of crippling travel sector disruptions. He also sh...
Feb 14, 2023•1 hr 3 min
Scott Kerr is joined by Martin de Dreuille, global vice president of marketing for iconic French premium vodka brand Grey Goose. Martin discusses why the super premium vodka market is surging in popularity, facing challenges from the fast-growing whisky and tequila categories, how the brand has evolved with the changing nature of luxury, why it was time for a brand refresh and new creative platform in 2019, the newest "Viva Le Martini" campaign, the role of disruptive local activations in tellin...
Dec 27, 2022•36 min
Scott Kerr sits down with Michelle Freyre, global brand president of Clinique, one of the top players in the prestige beauty market and part of The Estée Lauder Companies' portfolio of brands. Her brand oversight also extends to Origins. Michelle discusses joining Clinique at the start of the pandemic and the challenges of navigating through an altered beauty industry. She also talks about competing against indie and D2C disruptor brands, why the iconic Clinique brand is so popular with Gen Z co...
Dec 20, 2022•31 min
Famed Japanese luxury jewelry brand Mikimoto is the world leader in cultured pearls. Kentaro Nishimura, chief operating officer at Mikimoto America joins Scott Kerr to discuss the resurgence of pearls and how the 129-year-old Mikimoto brand has gained its worldwide reputation. Kentaro talks about Mikomoto's unique process of cultivating pearls, competing with other jewelers, partnering with avant-garde fashion label Comme des Garçons, why more men are wearing pearl jewelry, and how the aesthetic...
Nov 08, 2022•41 min
Scott Kerr sits down with Paul Altieri, CEO and founder of Bob's Watches, the leading online buyer and seller of pre-owned luxury watches. Paul discusses the booming secondhand luxury watch market, being a first mover in a competitive segment, why resale prices have been falling after skyrocketing growth, what's really driving the Rolex shortage, the process of authenticating pre-owned Rolex watches, and the shifting consumer behavior and demographics that are driving the market. Plus: Why Rolex...
Oct 25, 2022•37 min
In this encore episode of The Luxury Item podcast (published on October 5, 2021), Yves Saint Laurent Beauty U.S. General Manager Laetitia Raoust talks with Scott Kerr about shifting beauty customer habits, online sales strategies and key brand initiatives. Laetitia dives into the importance of Gen Z customers to YSL Beauty and how it's courting them with the launch of its NU collection of makeup-skincare hybrid products. She also discusses how YSL Beauty is using influencers and social media to ...
Oct 18, 2022•31 min
In this encore episode of The Luxury Item (published November 30, 2021) Scott Kerr is joined by Andrew Haarsager, head of Cartier's Retail Innovation Lab, to discuss how it designs and tests new forms of retail experiences for the French luxury jeweler and watchmaker, both in and beyond the boutique. Andrew also talks about Cartier's approach to the role of retail in this new world, creating an in-store vitrine to display holograms of select high jewelry pieces, working with Cartier's internal '...
Oct 11, 2022•38 min
In this encore episode of The Luxury Item (published February 15, 2022), Stefano Canali, president and CEO at Italian luxury menswear brand Canali, talks about how the 88-year-old company is shaping its future with new investments and innovations. Stefano discusses the inspiration behind its F/W22 collection, why formalwear is not dead despite the pandemic-induced working-from-homewear shift, the lessons learned from past challenges that helped him navigate the company though the COVID-19 crisis...
Oct 04, 2022•37 min
Silvio Ursini, Bulgari Group executive vice president in charge of Bulgari Hotels & Resorts division joins Scott Kerr to discuss the steady and calculated expansion of the Italian jeweler's ultra-luxury hotels. Silvio talks about the recent opening of its seventh property in Paris and breaking from the usual clichés of Parisian architecture, how ultra high net worth customers are keeping its hotel business strong, and approaching each hotel as "jewels." He also discusses the upside of being ...
Sep 13, 2022•41 min
Scott Kerr sits down with Radha Arora, president and chief development officer at Rosewood Hotels & Resorts, to discuss what it means to be an ultra-luxury hotel today and why the brand's "Sense of Place" philosophy is more relevant to 'affluent explorers' in a post-pandemic world. Radha also talks about Rosewood's ambitious global growth strategy, the summer resurgence in business despite the air travel mess, the slow return of the business traveler, shifts in luxury hotel guest expectation...
Aug 30, 2022•43 min
Sarah Davis, founder and president of leading luxury goods reseller Fashionphile, sits down with Scott Kerr for an in-depth discussion on the booming luxury resale market and the enormous success of the brand. Sarah talks about Fashionphile's rigorous authentication process, distinguishing itself from other luxury resellers, the pandemic's shot in the arm for resale, the flourishing partnership with Neiman Marcus, Gen Z trends that are fueling resale growth, and how luxury fashion house price hi...
Aug 16, 2022•1 hr 6 min
Scott Kerr is joined by Harvey Moscot (CEO) and Zack Moscot (CDO), the 4th and 5th generation of Moscot who currently run renowned global luxury eyewear brand MOSCOT. They discuss the New York brand's rich heritage and how it grew from Hyman Moscot selling ready-made glasses from his pushcart on Orchard Street at the turn of the 20th century to a global fashion accessory giant whose iconic glasses adorned famous faces from Andy Warhol to John Lennon, Johnny Depp and Jeff Goldblum. Harvey and Zac...
Aug 09, 2022•31 min
Scott Kerr talks with Irvin Goldman, CEO of Acker Wines, the oldest wine sellers in the US and the world's largest wine auction house. Irv discusses how the 200-year-old family-run brand has evolved and thrived, the luck of investing in virtual auction and e-commerce technology right before the pandemic, finding enormous success in its virtual fine wine auctions, and more younger people getting into the wine education, auction, and investment game. He also talks about creating a proprietary wine...
Aug 02, 2022•39 min
On this episode, Scott Kerr talks with Alison Bringé, chief marketing officer at Launchmetrics, a brand performance platform for fashion, luxury, and beauty companies. Alison discusses how its proprietary Media Impact Value algorithm helps brands measure the impact of their marketing activities, why live fashion shows still have a strong influence on brand performance, what marketers should know about working with today's influencers, and KOL and KOC trends in China. She also talks about measuri...
Jul 19, 2022•35 min
Scott Kerr is joined by Lisa Lutoff-Perlo, president and CEO of luxury cruise line Celebrity Cruises to discuss the global restart of the cruise industry after over a year at bay under a Covid cloud. Lisa talks about dealing with the strict cruise travel CDC guidelines, the thrill of having the first post-pandemic cruise ship set sail from the States, and how it's been luring cruisers back to the high seas. She also discusses why Celebrity Cruises positions itself as a "relaxed luxury" brand for...
Jul 12, 2022•45 min
Scott Kerr speaks to Adelina Wong Ettelson, global head of residences marketing at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group, about the surging demand from ultra-high-net-worth buyers to live in luxury branded residences. Adelina discusses why more non-hotelier luxury brands like Armani, Aston Martin, and Baccarat are competing in the space and the advantages of a hospitality brand associated with the property. Adelina also talks about how Mandarin Oriental brings the same legendary service and sophisti...
Jun 28, 2022•38 min
Scott Kerr is joined by Jonathan Beckett, CEO of luxury superyacht company Burgess, to discuss what's driving the booming superyacht market, the ultra-high-net-worth individuals who are purchasing or chartering them, and the trends that are changing the business. Jonathan talks about why the surge in first-time buyers, the latest in-demand superyacht amenities, who the young wealthy buyers have different requirements and how Burgess sells to them, and what makes a great superyacht broker. Plus: ...
Jun 21, 2022•30 min
Michael Kliger, CEO of multi-brand luxury fashion e-tailer Mytheresa, talks with Scott Kerr about how its focus on curation, content and service has been driving the company's success. Michael also discusses why Mytheresa fills the void in the current US luxury retail landscape, its unique customer-centric approach, why it expanded into luxury home and lifestyle products, exploring the beauty category potential, and how it uses AI to identify and market to loyal customers. Plus: Why he sees luxu...
Jun 07, 2022•38 min
Edouard Meylan, CEO of independent Swiss luxury watchmaker H. Moser & Cie. talks with Scott Kerr about acquiring the almost 200-year-old brand in 2012 and its remarkable rise in the industry. He also talks about building brand awareness around a strategy of creating provocative timepieces and pushing out controversial marketing campaigns. Edouard discusses the entrepreneurial mindset of its customers, why Millennials are buying luxury analog watches, how the scarcity of the Big Four watch br...
May 31, 2022•37 min
Scott Kerr sits down with American fashion designer Billy Reid for a fascinating conversation about his eponymous label and how cataclysmic setbacks in the early stages were instrumental to the Alabama-based brand's growth and success. Billy talks about how his business was nearly wrecked after the 9/11 attacks, then mounting a comeback and building a sustainable global brand. He also discusses how winning GQ's Best New Menswear Designer and CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund changed the game for him, why ...
May 24, 2022•48 min
Scott Kerr speaks with Amina Porter, Co-CEO of PS, a private luxury airport terminal at Los Angeles International Airport that lets wealthy travelers skip the commercial terminal entirely. Amina discusses how PS was modeled after the successful VIP services at major international airports and how it's different from amenities-loaded high class airport lounges. She also talks about the luxury travel services available to PS members, the launch of the more accessibly-priced Salon communal lounge, ...
May 17, 2022•25 min
