We can blame politicians all we like for their lack of direction (Boris Johnson) or their crass misdirection (Trump) but it is we the people, to quote the opening words to the US constitution, who must ultimately take the blame.
Events
Time passes slowly till we reach that elusive horizon
My LinkedIn network is now heavily punctuated with that now familiar white out of green hashtag, ‘#Open to work’. When are those vaccines due again?
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Airports
How Changi Airport turned itself into the ultimate destination
The whole concept is the best example I have seen yet of an airport adapting to crisis and one that has the added benefit of permanently underlining the allure of Changi as a destination in its own right.
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Airports
Why I ain’t going nowhere
For now, like the bubble itself, the celebratory balloons at Hong Kong International Airport will have to be deflated, the Heinemann welcoming gifts set aside.
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Fashion
Masked Men unveiled – and Mask Maker revealed
Colm mistook – quite understandably – the chap on the right for American actor and heartthrob George Clooney…
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Lifestyle
Celebrating Diwali and the triumph of light over dark and good over evil
In this year that has brought so much darkness, the spirit of Diwali is perhaps more important than ever to our sector.
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Miscellaneous
Out of the darkness and into light
As autumn bathes the northern hemisphere in golden leaves and spring brings rebirth to the south, a pitch-black shadow that has hung over the whole world throughout all seasons may soon be lifting.
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Events
Timpani, flutes, clarinets, piccolo and strings – How Beam Suntory composed an international symphony
We would taste the whiskies from the individual countries and then compare them with the final blend, right? Wrong. Miyamoto san had a better way to show us what each constituent brought to the party.
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Lifestyle
Reaching into the sole of sustainability
Let’s not flip-flop in our industry’s commitment to sustainability. Let’s focus on business for good, not just for growth. Let’s show our soul with some sole. Some Ocean Sole.
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Miscellaneous
Job losses in black & white and blurring lines in grey
We should stop talking about when travel retail as an industry or sector will recover but break it out country by country, or more accurately country to country.
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Events
Flying a virtual A380 through a pandemic
It was like being the Captain of the just relaunched Singapore Airlines A380 flight from New York to Singapore (9,536.5 miles from JFK to Changi), switching over occasionally to my excellent Irish co-pilot Dermot Davitt on the Knowledge Hub sessions.
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Events
Blowing up a real storm in Hong Kong and a Virtual one at the Travel Retail Expo
It’s been wonderful to chat with some of the leading Chinese retailers in their own language, similarly so for the teams from Lotte and Shilla in South Korea.
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Events
The slayer who ran looked a lot like me
Roll on ten years and my business is fighting, like so many others, for its life, but I am in rollicking good health. I know which scenario I prefer.