present.intopraxis.

RESEARCH. PRACTICE.

latest.

NARRATIVE. & CONTRADICTIONS.

AP3.

2024/11/20

    “literally every aspect of our lives feels narrativized, like a TV show with no final season”.   In the new issue of appraisal we aim to start a conversation about the core aspirations and wants that drive us, exploring themes of ambition, fulfilment, and the often-complex attempt to achieve our aspirations. The distance between the ‘walk’ and the ‘talk’, between what people and organizations communicate as their ‘aspirations’ and what they actually end up doing. Misalignments are noticeable in the positions and propositions of both individuals and businesses,…

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SHOPPERS ARE DITCHING CLASSIC BRANDS THEY ONCE LOVED.

bloomberg.

2024/11/19

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luxury.

new-commerce. luxury.

2020/11/08

WHAT IS LUXURY TO US? HAS LUXURY ANYTHING TO DO WITH PRODUCTS, TODAY? IS OUR CULTURAL EXPERIENCE CHANGING THE WAY WE LOOK AT QUALITY AND VALUE? HAS OUR HIGHER EXPOSURE TO INTERNATIONAL LANDSCAPES MODIFIED OUR APPROACH TOWARD PRODUCTS AND EXPERIENCE? HAS TRAVEL AFFECTED OUR PERCEPTION OF PRODUCTS? we are changing. markets are changing. the way we talk about brands, the way we are shopping, the booming interest in food and travel, the increasing quest for authenticity and experience. the movement out of ‘mass-production’. these changes, in part, reflect the way…

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ON OBSESSIVE RETAIL “DISRUPTION’.

new-commerce.

2019/08/16

We are on a routine tour, determined to visit as many pioneers retailers of the future as we can, and I had the chance to spend some more time at FUNAN mall - reopened in Singapore last June, after a 3 year-long renovation – still trying to make up my mind about it and shape some learnings on new formats. The visit inspired a few questions about innovative retail concepts and sustainable ‘disruption’. … Funan is located in the proximity of other 5 malls - including the mighty Raffles City, 8 minutes' walk away - in a city-state sporting more than 160 shopping complexes. In this new incarnation it features a fresh and courageous approach to the architecture of the place, avoiding excessive gimmick. Sinuous corridors and mezzanines sections break the classic floor organization while inviting the visitor to a space largely inspired by a commercial version of the phalanstery – a mixed-use, community-shared environment.   The venue feels aspirational, modern, inviting – a ‘new’ space.  A welcoming mall ideally intended for the population of its office towers and service apartments together with, I imagine, a neighbourhood cycling to work and hiking during the lunch break.  And then, one wonders: what happened to the tenant mix? Why not a bold, strong, identifiable proposition? On brand: the…

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