The first episode of Karryon’s luxury podcast Luxury Unpacked is live with industry stalwarts Anthony Goldman of Goldman Travel, and Regent Seven Seas and Oceania Cruises Senior VP Steve Odell calling out luxewashing and talking top trends.
“My definition of lux-jacking is brands and companies that use the word as a marketing term and not delivery,” says Anthony Goldman on Karry’s inaugural episode of luxury podcast Luxury Unpacked.
“That comes with a whole lot of issues. It creates disappointed customers and people get disenfranchised on the whole segment.
“It undervalues the brands that are delivering that superior, beautiful experience, and it causes a loss in client trust.”
Steve Odell agrees, saying there’s no better example than cruise.
“The word luxury is really abused in the cruise sector. Is something that’s 3,500 people luxury or 100 to 200 luxury? I think it’s very hard to deliver to the kind of expectation with 3,500 people that it is to 200 to 500 people. And yet there are cruise lines that call themselves luxury when they shouldn’t be.
“It’s about making sure the right customer gets the right experience. It is a very broad term, and you have to make sure that you make the right recommendations.”
The rise of hotels turning to the high seas
“If you look at the number of new ships that are coming, there are 52 new ships coming between 2024 and 2028 and these are new builds… and the interesting thing is that a third of the new ships will carry under 1,000 passengers, so we’re seeing the emergence of a more boutique style cruise,” says Odell.
He says in addition to that, there are new hotel products coming into cruise.
“The Ritz-Carlton, Four Seasons, you’re seeing Accor coming into the space; Aman At Sea. Hotels are showing a very strong interest in the cruise sector because the high-end hotels definitely lose customers to the cruise lines when it comes to broadening their travel. So they’re really working hard to develop cruise.
“The interesting thing for all of us in the luxury sector is that they’re marketing to the hotel databases. And if you talk about The Ritz-Carlton alone, they’re marketing to 185 million Bonvoy members.
“A lot of those people who belong to those hotel loyalty programs have never thought about cruise before. But now they’re getting introduced by their trusted brand, and I think that’s going to benefit all of us.”
Silver screen promises
“The interesting one I think that may be questionable, is people following recommendations from films and TV”, says Goldman.
“You know, I love the story that people turned up to Four Seasons in Taormina after watching White Lotus and then went to the reception staff because they were disappointed that there was no beautiful white beach.
“The hotel staff had to explain that no, there are rocks here. That beach was somewhere else. It was a fictional TV show, so we’ve got to be careful, but I do like that as a trend.”
Attracting a new market
“We’re starting to get Gen X and Millennials [in luxury cruise], but they’re not the majority. The majority are still a 55, 60-plus group,” says Odell.
“I don’t necessarily think in the ultra-luxury category we’re seeing it, but we are seeing it in the yacht brands, and we’re definitely seeing it in the contemporary market.
“I don’t think there’s a problem with spending money. The problem is convincing them what to spend their money on. And in their case, it might not just be travel, it might be a car or a watch. I think the younger generation spends differently and we’ve got to get them into experiences now.
“That’s why expedition does well with the younger generation because people want the experience of going to unique places. And I think that sort of 30-40-something wants an element of that in their travel.”
To listen the full episode search Karryon Luxury Unpacked wherever you listen to your favourite podcasts.
For more information, advertising opportunities, or to be a guest on the show, contact Karryon’s Partnership Manager Carolyn Nightingale at carolyn@karryon.com.au.
For the latest luxury travel trade news, visit Karryon Luxury.
