Luxe Consumer IQ

Studying luxury is one thing. Building a career in it is another.

For international graduates in particular, the path into the industry can feel surprisingly opaque. What do luxury maisons actually look for when you don’t yet have years of experience? How do you stand out among equally qualified candidates? And once you’re inside, what does it take to build credibility and progress?

In this episode of Luxe Consumer IQ, I’m joined by Kaela Imani, who studied luxury management across Spain, France, the US and Australia and is now working in sales and co...

Luxury isn’t in a simple downturn. It’s moving into a new era, and the old growth model is starting to work against the very things luxury is meant to protect: craft, trust, exclusivity, and meaning.

In this episode, host Emilia Simonin speaks with Éric Briones (CEO of Journal du Luxe, co-founder of the Paris School of Luxury, and co-author of Luxe Renaissance) about why the current luxury “crisis” is systemic, not cyclical. We discuss what happened post-COVID, why price-led value has triggered backlash across both affluent and ultra-rich clients, and why the industry needs to shift fro...

High-net-worth consumers are as diverse in what they value, desire and expect from luxury as any other audience. Understanding those differences is where smarter luxury strategy begins.

In this episode of the Luxe Consumer IQ Podcast, host Emilia Simonin is joined by Chris Wisson and Meryam Schneider from Altiant, a specialist luxury consumer research agency focused on affluent and high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs). We explore what HNW consumers value today, how motivations and expectations differ across markets and wealth segments, and what these insights mean for the future of luxury marketing, personalisation, AI and client experience.

...

You can be brilliant in luxury business and still be invisible. Not because your work isn’t excellent, but because competence alone doesn’t build trust or accelerate your career.

In this episode of the Luxe Consumer IQ Podcast, we break down what actually separates high performers from true leaders in luxury businesses, and why influence is built on a balance most ambitious professionals underplay: competence plus warmth.

Host Emilia Simonin speaks with Celeste Halliday, workplace connections expert, about the trust equation, the self-awareness gap, and the practical behaviours that earn trust, build influence, and make...

Luxury pricing isn’t simply about increasing margins. It’s about protecting the desirability that gives brands pricing power in the first place. So why do some luxury brands strengthen demand through pricing, while others erode trust and long-term brand equity?

In this episode, Daimien Aimon, a revenue growth management expert and former LVMH leader, explains why price is far more than a commercial decision in luxury—it’s part of the product itself.

Drawing on his experience leading revenue growth management for global luxury brands, Daimien explains how luxury marketers can build pricing power, protect...

Most luxury professionals think they need more research. In reality, they often need to make better use of the intelligence that already exists.

In this solo episode of Luxe Consumer IQ, I break down how luxury strategists use secondary research to understand affluent consumers, identify growth opportunities, and build stronger brand strategies — often before spending a single dollar on primary research.

You’ll learn how to find credible luxury market insight without commissioning a new study, buying expensive subscriptions, or relying on opinions in the room.

You’ll learn what secondary research actually is, wh...

Africa may be luxury’s biggest long-term growth opportunity. So why do so many global brands still approach it as a single market?

In this episode, Aimee Kellen, Regional Marketing Director at Moët Hennessy Middle East & Africa, explains what international luxury houses often misunderstand about growth, cultural nuance, and consumer behaviour across Africa’s rapidly evolving luxury landscape.

Drawing on her experience across emerging markets, Aimee unpacks why traditional data segmentation models often fail in regions with highly localised cultural dynamics, and how luxury brands can scale internationally without diluting their heritage or brand equit...

Most marketers are asking the wrong question about AI. You can invest in the most sophisticated systems — and still deliver a customer experience that fails completely.

In this episode, we break down where to actually start with AI in marketing, and why applying it too quickly can damage the very relationship you’re trying to build.

I speak with Dr Cecilia Dones, founder of 3 Standard Deviations and an expert who has worked within global luxury houses such as L’Oréal and LVMH. We break down why luxury leaders must move beyond treating AI as a verb...

Most prestige skincare brands are trying to win the category the same way everyone else is: louder launches, faster trends, more content, more claims.

And yet the brands that endure often do the opposite: they build credibility slowly through expertise, trust, results, and a consumer experience that feels guided rather than sold.

In this episode, we explore why professional skincare still wins in a market obsessed with speed, trends, and influencer launches, and why heritage brands can’t rely on history alone to stay relevant.

I speak with Rodrigue Chastenet de Géry, Gen...

How do global luxury brands like Parfums Christian Dior maintain consistency — while adapting to radically different local markets?

This episode explores luxury brand strategy in practice, and how Dior balances global brand discipline with local execution across regions such as Asia and Australia.

At the centre of that approach is a “glocal” model: a clear global framework, executed with precision at a local level — adapting to market nuance, legal requirements, compliance standards, and operational realities.

The result is a Dior experience that feels unmistakably consistent, while still reflecting how luxury beauty is delivered in each...

What is it actually like to start your career in luxury — in Paris, inside a consulting agency?

Because the reality is very different from what most people expect.

This episode takes you behind the scenes of early-stage life in luxury consulting — from navigating French work culture to building confidence in a fast-moving, international environment.

There are moments that feel straight out of Emily in Paris — but the real story is far more nuanced.

At the heart of this conversation is a shift many don’t anticipate:

In school, you’re rewarde...

Digital in luxury often looks like progress — more content, more storytelling, more personalisation.

But when does it start getting in the way of the experience?

In this episode, we explore one of the most common tensions in luxury e-commerce: how to build a rich brand world without disrupting the customer journey.

From autoplay video to layered storytelling, the conversation looks at how easily the experience can become overcomplicated — and what happens when it does.

We also touch on personalisation, and why more data does not always create a better experience. When over...

You can do all the research in the world — and still end up with a marketing plan that changes absolutely nothing. In this episode, I break down why that happens — and how to build an insight-led marketing plan that actually drives decisions.

I explore what an insight-led marketing plan actually looks like, and why the annual planning process is the moment where strategy either becomes visible or gets lost in activity. From context and problem definition through to measurement, strategic choices, and activations, I walk through the architecture that allows insight to move from background information to busi...

Luxury demand is still rising — but the psychology behind it is changing.

In this episode, Paris-based Simon-Kucher Partner Camille Drumel, Head of the Luxury Centre of Excellence, explains why luxury consumers are polarising, how quiet luxury and logo status can coexist, and what brands must do to stay relevant across markets like China and India.

We explore how luxury consumers are evolving across key markets, and why many maisons may need to recenter around their core audiences as consumer signals shift. Camille explains how China’s luxury psychology is maturing, why India represents a major oppo...

Behind every successful men’s luxury brand is a set of foundations that quietly shape its growth.

In luxury menswear, expansion alone is not the story. What matters is how that growth is built, measured, and sustained.

I sit down with David Aquilina — former buyer at Harrods and Harvey Nichols and now founder of Aqua Consultancy — to explore how modern men’s luxury brands are evaluated inside global retail, and how those principles now inform his work advising menswear brands on strategy, positioning, and growth.

Drawing on two decades across luxury buying, department stores...

I sat down with Sarah Martin, Commercial Director (ANZ) for Parfums Christian Dior, whose career spans some of the most iconic names in beauty, including Chanel, Estée Lauder, and L’Oréal. Sarah shares a grounded perspective on how luxury retail teams can scale without diluting desirability, and how brands can meet a consumer who now arrives informed, values-driven, and ready to be met at a higher standard.

We take a look at how data can sharpen the retail experience without replacing the human touch, why bricks and mortar still matter in a digital-first era, and how...

In this solo Inside the Method episode, we unpack how luxury brands use brand health tracking to monitor long-term brand strength — beyond short-term performance or campaign results.

We explore how metrics like awareness, consideration, preference, and emotional resonance are used in practice, why luxury brands focus so heavily on the top and middle of the funnel, and why meaningful movement in brand health takes time.

This episode is for marketers and brand leaders working in luxury or premium categories who want to understand how long-term value and desirability are measured — and defended — over time.

LINK...

What does it really take to prove marketing effectiveness in the world of luxury automotive? Join us for an insider’s look as Gavin Merriman, Marketing Director at Jaguar Land Rover Australia, unpacks the metrics that matter, the creative strategies that move the needle, and the pitfalls that even seasoned marketers encounter.

In this episode, we go beyond surface-level reporting to explore how leading luxury brands align measurement with board-level priorities, balance long-term brand equity with short-term wins, decode the true meaning behind marketing effectiveness metrics.

Discover how creativity and data can work hand-in-hand, why un...

How do luxury brands turn raw data into meaningful action? In this episode of Luxe Consumer IQ, we reveal how leading luxury brands move beyond intuition using layered consumer insights to refine brand strategy, elevate customer experience, and drive growth.

Explore the five essential layers of luxury consumer insight: behavioural, shopper experience, cultural, category/market, and brand perception. Discover how to connect these layers to build powerful narratives that guide decision-making and set your luxury brand apart.

Inside this episode:

How do luxury brands use data without losing the intuition and creativity that define them? In this first episode of a two-part series, we explore how data has become an essential tool for luxury professionals not to replace instinct, but to sharpen it.

Discover how the most successful luxury marketers and strategists marry creative judgment with evidence-based insights to understand consumer behaviour, strengthen decision-making, and unlock growth opportunities that intuition alone might miss.

Inside this Episode:

What does it really take to get stocked in Harrods, Galeries Lafayette, or Selfridges — especially if your brand wasn’t born in the expected luxury hubs of Europe?

If you’re building a modern luxury brand without legacy, today’s episode takes you behind the scenes — with someone who does this every single day. And not just gets brands in — but gets them supported, nurtured, and set up to succeed with the right sell-through strategy.

You’ll hear what top-tier buyers are actually looking for, what makes them say yes, and the signals they...

Inside the World of Luxury: What It's Really Like to Intern in Paris | Grace Klepetka

When most people envision the luxury industry, they picture high-end fashion shows, exclusive designer ateliers, and impossibly polished showrooms. The image is one of seamless sophistication and effortless elegance.

Behind that immaculate facade lies a world that's just as dynamic and unpredictable as any other creative industry. Today, we're exploring this fascinating paradox through the experience of Grace Klepetka, an emerging voice in luxury who's navigating this world from her base in Paris.

In this episode, Grace shares...

Decoding Desire: The Symbolic Power of Luxury Brands | Dr. Anne-Flore Maman-Larraufie

Desire is the most powerful currency in luxury. It's what separates a brand from a product — and builds value that lasts across campaigns, markets, and generations.

But how is desire actually created? And what makes some brands irresistible, while others struggle to spark that emotional connection?

Today, we're unpacking the psychology of luxury with Dr. Anne-Flore Maman-Larraufie, founder of Sémioconsult, Academic Director at École Polytechnique Executive Education, and former Academic Director of ESSEC Business School's Master program, which houses the prestigious LVMH...

How do luxury brands create desire through digital strategy and e-commerce?

Today's conversation explores digital transformation at LVMH with Theresa Austin, who built one of the group's most powerful internal tools for digital transformation — reshaping how luxury brands use data and insight to drive performance, not just reporting.

You'll hear how to design digital experiences that feel luxurious and emotionally compelling while driving commercial results — from personalisation and CRM strategy to customer journey design, scaling digital without diluting brand value, and presenting insight that earns leadership buy-in.

What You'll Learn: 

→ Translating luxury...

Welcome to Luxe Consumer IQ — the global podcast for ambitious luxury and premium professionals who want to think strategically, grow with confidence, and understand how modern luxury really works.

Hosted by Emilia Simonin — a former Insights Director and global consumer & market intelligence leader with senior roles at L’Oréal and LVMH’s Moët Hennessy — the series bridges high-end industry experience with the kind of practical, real-world guidance emerging talent rarely gets access to.

This introductory trailer lays the foundation for the season:

how data and desire intersect in luxury, what truly motivates af...