MOF Launches New Whitepaper ‘Redefining Luxury in the Era of Thoughtful Travel’

Luxury travel runs deep in our veins. So, when the pandemic threw the sector into crisis, we were keen to understand the long-term impact it would have on guests’ expectations of luxury travel and how brands would redefine the travel experience to meet them.

Follow this link to download our whitepaper and discover our findings.

Reassurance and recovery have been central tenets of the travel industry’s survival. But for many luxury brands - and importantly their customers - the pandemic afforded the opportunity to craft new meaning. A chance to build a revitalised understanding of luxury travel that’s culturally relevant, soulful and sensitive to what’s important for the here and now.

This moment in time has been described as a “reset” by travel brands due to the combination of a) accelerating the diversification of their offering in response to already changing customer lifestyles and expectations and b) a fundamental, post pandemic emotional shift that has led us to place our personal wellbeing, our community, and our planet, at the forefront of the decisions we make in our everyday lives.

Now, we expect the brands we align with to share in this agenda.

"The whole industry needed a reset. As we redefine our brand philosophy across our foundational pillars; Customers, People, Culture, Technology, we continue to innovate and think about how we can impact the lives of our customers and fulfil their needs. Are we giving them a sense of safety and emotional comfort, versus tactical business-orientated brand communication?" Aditi Sud, Chief Marketing Officer, Travco Group.

We combined the insightful views of our industry experts with our own findings, to provide you with a summary of the strategies that enabled brands to adapt quickly to ever- changing circumstances, redefine how they connect to customers, infuse internal culture and embrace digitisation in a traditionally high touch, human experience.

It has been both humbling and inspiring to hear how travel brands have been surviving in the short term and their plans for thriving in the long term. Certainly, we can be optimistic about the future of adventure and exploration, and how, with people and planet front-of- mind, luxury travel brands will innovate and diversify their experiences to truly integrate with the way people now want to live, work and move. 

'Redefining Luxury in the Era of Thoughtful Travel’ looks to discuss the following drivers: travelling less, but staying longer, mindful travelling, empathetic digitisation, agile diversification, new forms of connection, credibility and authenticity.

With special thanks to the Belmond, Wilderness Safaris, Roseate, The Pig Hotels, Shangri-La Hotels, Accor Hotels, Hermitage Bay, Marriott International, Travco Group, Carrier Hotels, Within the Wild Alaska Adventure Lodges, JORO Experiences, Pelorus Travel Agents, Soneva Hotels and Corinthia Hotels for their contributions. 

If you'd like to discuss how we partner with timeless luxury brands to provide brand strategy, digital experience design and innovation consultancy, please get in touch via hello@matterofform.com to arrange a time to speak with our team of consultants about our services.