Nothing demonstrates the current shift in what defines luxury more than hotel brands and property experiences.
When I started in this industry, luxury meant securing a five-star hotel, airport meet-and-greets, sedan or limo transfers, adding in a few spectacular on-property or off-property dinners and booking and delivering nightly amenities. A check-the-box success.
In the past 15 years, however, there has been a significant shift in the luxury approach.
Previously, hotels within a brand were designed to be virtually identical, whether located in Hawai’i or Chicago. The emphasis was on the brand itself rather than the unique attributes of the location, culture or local cuisine.
[Related: Lone Star to L'étoile: Navigating the European Event Industry]
What Does Luxury Look Like Now?
In 2024, this trend has completely reversed. The focus now is on the local environment, celebrating the distinct culture, traditions and culinary highlights of each specific location. Ideally, the venue supports this localization, creating a more immersive, authentic and rich experience.
This new approach to luxury experiences is trickling into the meetings, events and the hospitality industry, where the definition of luxury is broader and evolving rapidly to include destinations, experiences, formats and agendas that haven’t been considered in the past.
Although business outcomes like brand affinity, building relationships with customers or employees and pipeline growth remain the same, a shift in our collective mindset is redefining what luxury events and experiences mean globally.
In this recurring column, I’ll share my personal experiences and successes in luxury, along with insights from conversations with industry leaders and those in the trenches in the hotel, venue, design and experiential industries about the state of luxury experiences and what the future holds.
My Personal Insight and Experience
I have a lot of experience in the luxury space, and I’ve been captivated by its evolution.
Throughout my 20-plus-year career, I’ve produced immersive luxury customer events in all their forms, built and managed global event marketing teams in the B2B sector for brands like New Relic, VMware and Dolby for over 12 years, and overseen a portfolio of internal and external events, usually in the $20 million range.
The topic of how we, globally, define luxury and how it’s moving away from the traditional definition is something I find fascinating. Earlier this year, I lived and worked remotely for three months in the French Alps and had the opportunity to travel and meet with several industry leaders in Europe. I made the topic of luxury a priority in all of my conversations. I’m obsessed with identifying and delivering luxury in all its forms and learning what that means for each audience. This column is my way of sharing what I’ve learned with you.
Why Luxury Is Shifting in the Meetings and Events Industry
Traditionally, luxury corporate events were associated with incentive programs that reward sales teams and other stakeholders responsible for meeting revenue goals. But curating experiences that are perceived as exclusive, unique or luxurious is now often used to entice customers or prospects to attend events, persuade them to carve out time, network with like-minded colleagues and enjoy bespoke experiences they might not otherwise access.
Here’s why we’re seeing luxury experiences take on a new meaning:
- Generational influences and sustainability: Generational nuances and increasing awareness of sustainability are fueling the growth of these redefined luxury experiences. Millennial and Gen Z attendees prioritize sustainability and the health of the planet. They seek meeting rooms and function spaces that offer natural light, adjacent terraces for outdoor activities and an overall connection to nature. Plus, they like to know how they are somehow giving back, whether that be through initiatives offsetting their carbon footprints or working with a green property like LEED-certified hotels.
- Cultural preservation and community connection: With the homogenization of cultures, there is a rising desire to celebrate diversity in a way that preserves and protects local cultures. Offering attendees opportunities to learn and connect with the local community is now considered a component of luxury.
- Balancing budgets: The impact of inflation on budgets is significant. In addition, the event industry has seen a reduction in overall budgets and the number and size of events in many sectors. However, the requirement to ensure the highest ROI and value remains a priority, and the word “luxury” has rarely been considered budget friendly. These financial obstacles have created a need for a new approach to luxury in all its forms.
- Time, connection and nature: Many corporate event participants consider free time, authentic connection and immersion in nature to be luxury items. All three are rare and precious commodities in an AI-paced world, and even more rare in the busy life of a meeting planner.
[Related: Lone Star to L'étoile: 8 Tips for Planning On-Trend Customer-Centric Luxury Experiences]
Experiential Luxury Explained
To counterbalance technology, global unrest and the fast pace of modern life, there is a growing desire for “experiential luxury,” or luxury experiences that prioritize authentic connections, cultural immersion and memorable outcomes. Approaches to experiential luxury can include:
- Hands-on learning with artisans: Workshops with local craftsmen, artists or farm-to-table experiences oftentimes are activities your attendees wouldn’t think to have planned on their own, making them feel luxurious, unique and memorable.
- Cultural preservation: Experiences that introduce attendees to local traditions, rituals, history and architecture are becoming the epitome of modern luxury.
- Holistic wellness activities: Customized workouts, meditation sessions, wellness workshops and nutrition classes are ideal touches of luxury, especially for meetings industry professionals who are often said to have one of the most stressful jobs on the planet.
- Slower-paced agendas and nature-based experiences: Formats and activities that allow time to connect participants with nature and each other feel like a luxury. Slowing down, leveraging open-air meeting rooms, enjoying eco-experiences like guided hikes or one-on-one sessions with naturalists and including white space in the agenda for attendees to choose their own experiences are considered luxury touches.
- Exemplary service: Personalized and anticipatory service that provides comfort and meets participants’ needs is as simple as luxury gets but is expected at every luxury-labeled event. These experiences are often delivered in venues built with principles of human-centric design that enhance comfort and engagement and leverage input directly from the attendee regarding their personal expectations and preferences.
[Related: Lone Star to L'étoile: 4 Lessons Learned While Living and Working Remotely in France]
What to Know About Planning Luxury Experiences
Luxury experiences can be cost-effective, sustainable and deliver exceptional ROI if, and only if, you define what your audience wants, invest in the right research, allow time to create specialized experiences and identify venues, talent, artists, vendors and partners who can support you in executing your vision.
When it comes time to plan your next luxury event, here are some things to keep in mind:
- Audience feedback and personalized experiences: To know what your audience considers a valuable luxury experience; you need to ask them and quantify what they value. This is where pre-event surveys become pivotal.
- Budget: Not all luxury is created equal. You can create a personalized experience without exceeding your budget and still deliver something luxurious.
- Exclusivity: C-level customer events often leverage destination, location and unique experiences to entice executives to attend and enjoy VIP-type experiences they might not otherwise access. Today’s luxury events should prioritize creating exclusive itineraries that leverage destinations and unique activities to entice executives to qualify.
- Memorable artifacts: This isn’t your grandmother’s spoon collection. Providing unique tokens or artifacts that reflect the local culture or experiences from the event increases the “linger effect” of the event and is often a more sustainable strategy to traditional gifting.
Luxury in corporate events is no longer about five-star resorts, excess and extravagance—although that may be appropriate for the right audience. It is about creating meaningful, personalized and sustainable experiences that resonate deeply with attendees.
By understanding and embracing these shifts, we can deliver luxurious experiences that are both impactful and memorable, and deliver brand awareness, impact revenue and empower thought leadership. And every installment, I’ll provide you with the tools and advice to do just that.
With love and luxury, Laurie
Connect with Laurie
www.linkedin.com/in/lauriesharp
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