Future Summit TheNewNow: «When brands lose relevance, it's rarely due to the material»

Luxury is in a phase of profound realignment. Technological acceleration, changing customer values and new generations are calling established assumptions into question. The Future Summit creates the space to think through these changes together - honestly, across industries and at eye level. As a further development of the Swiss Deluxe Hotels Media Summit, the format brings the entire Swiss luxury industry together for the first time: hospitality, watch brands, private banks, the healthcare sector and luxury retail. Around 350 decision-makers, creatives and innovators will organize their own day - with more than 100 sessions in the areas of media, business, AI and new work. Five keynote speeches will set the tone, supplemented by workshops, panels and open discussion formats. The venue reflects the concept: the headquarters network in Zurich offers not only infrastructure, but also atmosphere. What should remain are new connections - to people, ideas and concrete next steps. We asked initiator Evelyn Gorgos what's behind it all.

What distinguishes the Future Summit from traditional conferences in the field of business and innovation?

At the Future Summit, there is no master plan that we announce from the stage. Instead, we create a space in which real encounters are possible - with friction, a change of perspective and open dialog. The participants design their own day and choose from over 100 sessions what will really help them move forward. Less frontal teaching and more collective intelligence in action.

Why does the Future Summit focus on „relevance instead of status“?

Today, luxury is no longer defined by price but by meaning, authenticity and cultural connection. When brands lose relevance, it is rarely due to the material. It is because they have lost the emotional connection to people. This is precisely the question we want to ask together: What makes a brand truly meaningful today?

What specific role does AI play for luxury, brand management and communication?

AI is fundamentally changing creative processes. A good example is Oliver Rust, a former star photographer who now actively uses AI. And Sébastien Félix (Influence Society) analyzes how AI triggers creative disruption and what this means for the attitude and mindset of leaders. The key question is not: What can AI do? But rather: What remains deeply human and how can we protect this in the future?

How is the definition of luxury changing according to the experts at the Future Summit?

We are experiencing a phase of self-examination in the luxury segment. Relevance is created through authentic stories and genuine connection. To understand the term «new luxury», it is also worth looking to Asia - where this movement has been underway for some time - with a different dynamic and a native connection between technology, culture and consumption. We cannot ignore this.

Which sectors particularly benefit from interdisciplinary exchange?

Whether watch brand, private bank, mobility provider, healthcare sector or luxury retail, the strategic issues are the same and that is precisely why we bring them together. Solutions that would never have emerged within a single segment are created when different perspectives come together.

Why is the Future Summit deliberately focusing on dialog formats instead of pure lectures?

Because a lecture transfers knowledge, but a conversation changes thinking. We don't want people to go home with a notebook full of inputs and then return to their everyday lives. We want ideas and formats that provide space for what arises in human interaction. That's why we deliberately use the workshop format: with Claudio Del Principe, with a pasta workshop for a team-building experience, packaging artist Manuela Menzi, who shows what working with colors and collages can do, Gaudenz Looser, who starts an open Q&A session, and fitness coach Stefan Cerny. Craft, community, real action - this is also a form of dialog.

What concrete insights and „next steps“ can participants expect?

Participants get inspiration from other industries and from people who are already where many are just getting to. At the same time, they meet people with whom something can be created - a project, a collaboration, a new perspective on their own business. As Anil Varghese, CEO of Headsquarter, puts it in a nutshell: "It's about the right person at the right time. This is exactly what we want to make possible: concrete points of contact, initial approaches to solutions and the feeling that you have really taken something away with you.

How are new work and leadership dealt with in the context of technological change?

It's not about new work buzzwords, but about the question: What does leadership really need when technology accelerates everything and reliability has to be redefined? At the same time, we look at what culture means, how spaces and structures are created in which people can work really well.

What significance do personal encounters have in a digital world?

For me, TheNewNow is a statement: connection beats reach. In a fast-moving world of information, relevance comes from trust and trust comes from personal encounters.

For whom is the Future Summit particularly relevant - and who should not miss it?

All those who don't want to wait for others to formulate the answers for them and are open to perspectives beyond their own bubble.

Further information on the Future Summit TheNewNow can be found at www.thenewnow.ch.