GOLD Magazine: The Luxury Forum – From product to experience
After our exciting tour of the EHL, the second part of the day took us to the Luxury Forum. Leading personalities from the international luxury travel industry gathered here. These include representatives of renowned brands such as Four Seasons, Aman Hotels, Orient Express and Ritz-Carlton. The forum offered the opportunity to learn about current developments and challenges in the industry at first hand and to take away new ideas that go far beyond traditional travel concepts.
A central theme of the Luxury Forum was the noticeable change in the luxury industry. There was a slight decline of around 3% in most segments in 2024, particularly in the area of classic luxury products. This was due to the fact that after the pandemic, many people initially focused heavily on consuming products to satisfy pent-up demand. Now, however, the focus is increasingly shifting to experiences. So while the luxury product market is declining slightly, the luxury travel and experiences sector is recording an increase of around 5%. One example mentioned in the presentation was the Blue Box Café by Tiffany & Co. which opened in 2017 to meet the
reinterpreting the magic of Breakfast at Tiffany’s as a modern experience. Instead of just selling jewelry, a place was created where the brand identity merges into an experience.
The new role of hospitality
During the discussions, it became clear that brands such as Ritz-Carlton and Four Seasons are no longer just selling travel, but are focusing on the entire experience. It is no longer just about offering luxurious yachts or private jets. In theory, many providers could do this. The decisive factor is whoever manages to create truly new incentives and offer customers a well thought-out experience from start to finish. The experience begins at the time of booking and does not end when the guest disembarks – it extends to the escort home and beyond. Follow-ups, personal contacts and genuine customer service make all the difference. This creates a seamless customer journey that takes the brand to a new level. An exemplary quote from Alex Oswalder sums it up aptly: “It’s a continuous dance of reinvention.
If you don’t constantly readjust to your target group, your business will die.”
This idea was a recurring theme throughout the forum: Only those who are prepared to keep tradition and innovation in balance will remain relevant.
At Orient Express, history, design and staging are combined to create a unique brand world. Here, the ticket is just the beginning – the actual experience is created through atmosphere, service, storytelling and interaction with local partners.
New generation, new understanding of luxury
Another key topic was the influence of Generation Z. This target group travels more consciously, sustainably and emotionally and is also willing to invest large sums of money in the travel experience. She is looking less for status symbols and more for authenticity and personal connection. Jens Gorka from Ritz-Carlton put it in a nutshell: “Our guests give us the luxury of their time – our job is to turn it into a real experience.”
This shifts the perspective on hospitality: it is no longer about impressing guests, but about genuinely welcoming them – almost as if you were inviting them into your own home. In this context, it is more important than ever not only to impress technologically, but also to use technology as a supporting assistant to put the human experience in the foreground. This is what makes true luxury today: creating an atmosphere in which guests feel truly welcome and understood.The discussions showed that the future of luxury lies in emotional sensitivity, storytelling and going the extra mile.
Hospitality thus becomes an art form – a symbiosis of business, emotion and humanity.
