The Future of Luxury Conference NY Nov 2018

The Global Luxury Goods industry is poised to have the best growth year of the past 5 years, attributed to expanding audience affluence and product accessibility. Brands have a tremendous opportunity to capture this growth, but face mounting complexities as technology disrupts consumer behavior in profound ways.

Leveraging proprietary data and intelligence as only Bloomberg can, we present The Year Ahead in Luxury – a premium new chapter to the already-successful franchise designed to uncover what’s really ahead in luxury.

Welcome Remarks Speaker Chris Rovzar Editorial Director, Bloomberg Pursuits

https://www.bloomberglive.com/

https://www.bloomberglive.com/agenda-pdf-2/

Chris Rovzar is the editorial director of Bloomberg Pursuits, overseeing Bloomberg’s luxury franchise across all platforms, including print, digital, TV and radio.

Rovzar joined Bloomberg from Vanity Fair, where he served as Digital Editor and oversaw the award-winning website, VF.com. Previously, Rovzar was the editor of Daily Intel at New York Magazine, which won an MPA Digital award for Best Magazine Blog. He has also worked at the New York Daily News and the New York Sun, and his writing has appeared in Vanity Fair, GQ, New York, Bloomberg Businessweek, Out, and The Advocate. Rovzar graduated from Yale and in 2006 was a Fulbright Journalism Fellow in Madrid, Spain.

The Future of Luxury - Talk and Q&A Speaker Ian Schrager Founder & Chairman, 

Ian Schrager Company 

 Since the 70's, entrepreneur Ian Schrager, Founder and Chairman of Ian Schrager Company, has achieved international recognition for concepts that have revolutionised the entertainment, residential and hospitality industries. His passionate commitment to the modern lifestyle has been expressed through a series of pioneering concepts: The hotel as home away from home, the hotel as theater, "cheap chic", "lobby socialising", the indoor/outdoor lobby, the urban resort, and the urban spa.

His keen instincts for the mood and feel of popular culture were honed during the 70's and 80's, when he and his late business partner, Steve Rubell, created the legendary Studio 54 and Palladium nightclubs. They soon turned their attention to the hotel business opening Morgans Hotel in 1984, introducing the concept of the "boutique hotel" to the world. Following this were the equally well received and highly successful Royalton Hotel and Paramount Hotel, in which Schrager again broke with industry convention by introducing "lobby socialising", where the hotel lobby became a new kind of gathering place for guests and New York City residents alike, and "cheap chic", where affordable luxury was offered in a stylish and sophisticated environment. Schrager also received international recognition and acclaim for his one-of-a-kind "urban resorts" - the Delano Hotel in Miami and Mondrian Hotel in West Hollywood. This was followed by the Hudson Hotel in New York, where Schrager realised his "hotel as lifestyle", and continued to refine his concept of "cheap chic", as well as expanding to cities such as San Francisco with the Clift Hotel and London with St. Martins Lane Hotel and the Sanderson Hotel.

In 2005, Schrager sold Morgans Hotel Group, a company he founded, to create Ian Schrager Company which owns, develops and manages hotels, residential and mixed use projects. Since then, he has transformed the fabled Gramercy Park Hotel in New York City and created two ground-breaking residential properties, 40 Bond and 50 Gramercy Park North.

He is currently working on two new hotel brands. The first brand, PUBLIC, is a new genre of hotel offering great value, great service and great style that will set a new industry standard. Ian Schrager has taken the best from the luxury set, the best from the boutique/lifestyle set and the best from select service and created a new breed of hotel where everything has been rethought and every original idea updated. Located at 215 Chrystie Street, Public New York launched in June 2017 with its fundamental premise of luxury for all.

EDITION Hotels, Ian Schrager’s partnership with Marriott International, marks the next chapter in the lifestyle hotel story. This brand combines the personal, intimate, individualized and unique lodging experience that Ian Schrager is known for with the global reach, operational expertise and scale of Marriott. This delicate balancing act encompasses not only great design and true innovation, but also personal, friendly, modern service and outstanding, one-of-a-kind food, beverage and entertainment offerings... all “under one roof."

"Together Marriott and I have a new vision and plan to radically rethink and catapult the boutique/lifestyle category hotel into the present by capturing the spirit of the times," says Schrager.

The London EDITION opened in September 2013 in the UK, succeeded by the debut of The Residences at The Miami Beach EDITION in spring 2014, The Miami Beach EDITION in December 2014, the New York EDITION in May 2015 and The Sanya EDITION in China in December 2016. These will be joined by The Bangkok EDITION, The Barcelona EDITION, The Shanghai EDITION, The Bodrum EDITION, The Times Square EDITION, The West Hollywood EDITION and The Abu Dhabi EDITION in 2018.

The Residences, a collection of 26 limited edition beachfront ‘Homes in the Sky’ designed by John Pawson, sit on the top floors or the existing landmarked 1950s building that is now The Miami Beach EDITION hotel. Dedicated to the “Good Life”, The Residences offer the best of all worlds: the privacy and individuality of a custom, one-of-a-kind home; the benefit of ownership; and exclusive access to all the services, privileges and amenities of a unique world-class urban resort, including a myriad of exciting and dynamic food, beverage and entertainment options. Schrager takes this concept to the next level by introducing ‘Residential Pret-a-Porter’ which offers residences in complete move-in condition.

Ian Schrager's ground-breaking concepts have changed the business and set industry standards that continue to be imitated throughout the world.

For more information, please visit the website www.ianschragercompany.com

Innovating in Luxury Travel in 2019 

Moderator Nikki Ekstein Travel Editor, Bloomberg Pursuits 

As Bloomberg's travel editor since 2016, Nikki Ekstein oversees luxury travel content that spans all seven continents. Previously, she worked as Travel News Editor at Travel + Leisure and Travel Correspondent at Food & Wine; in 2018, she was awarded the honorable mention for Travel Journalist of the Year by the Society for American Travel Writers.

Panelists Tom Marchant Owner & Co-Founder, The Black Tomato 

Tom Marchant is an entrepreneur known for launching some of the fastest growing, award-winning brands in the luxury travel and lifestyle sector. He is owner and co-founder of The Black Tomato Group, parent company of the travel brands Black Tomato and Epic Tomato. Additionally, he oversees Studio Black Tomato, that provides experiential content creation, marketing, branding and strategy to destinations and leading luxury brands around the world. Black Tomato has grown to be recognized as the leading authority in the world on luxury travel and caters to a global list of discerning clients, a veritable who’s who from titans of the financial industry to creative powerhouses. Consistently awarded for extraordinary service and a tailored approach, Black Tomato executes exceptional travel experiences for customers around the world, cater to clients’ passions and every desire. The company has experienced unprecedented growth, seeing a 140% increase in sales YOY, with the average trip spend increased by 55% in the last two years. The US market has accounted for the biggest surge, growing over 250% in the last two years. Black Tomato is recognized as a pioneer for reinventing the luxury travel sphere, where trailblazing products and services created are never innovation for innovation’s sake; instead, they are built to enhance travelers. Unearthing clients’ passions and making these a reality is paramount to Black Tomato’s core and have inspired Tom and his team to create groundbreaking products like blink, the ultimate bespoke, pop-up luxury accommodations in remote parts of the world, an industry- first and lauded in Bloomberg as “the coolest thing to hit the travel world.” Recently launched Get Lost, a program challenging travelers to totally disconnect and explore their way out of unknown destinations, earned Black Tomato a nod from Forbes as “the travel industry’s most innovative disruptor.”

Tom regularly writes and speaks on trends and the future of the luxury travel and lifestyle industries at conferences around the world and was named young entrepreneur of the year by the British Travel Industry Hall of Fame. Tom and Black Tomato have been identified in the media by publications such as Vogue, The NY Times, Conde Nast Traveller, Travel & Leisure, CNBC, Esquire and GQ as leaders in shaping the future of the luxury travel and lifestyle industries. Tom is a member of AFAR and Preferred Hotels & Resorts Travel Advisory Boards and is part of the Vanity Fair 500, a collection of the leading tastemakers in luxury and recently included in Travel + Leisure’s 2017 A List as one of the best travel experts in the US.

Tom has been tapped as a thought leader and columnist for Harper’s Bazaar where he curates the world’s best destinations, hotels, and luxury travel experiences. Additionally, he is a columnist for Inc., where he explores innovation and how it impacts entrepreneurs, businesses and economies all over the world. Most recently, Tom was selected to join the American Express Platinum Collective, an exclusive advisory board comprised of industry leaders tasked to inspire and inform the continued development of access and experiences for card members, providing a fresh perspective and creative guidance to the storied brand.

Group Gillian Morris Founder & CEO, Hitlist 

Gillian Morris is the founder and CEO of Hitlist, an app that alerts you when there are cheap flights for your dream trips. TIME named Hitlist one of the 50 Best Apps of 2016 and the app has been recognized as a 'Best New App' by the app store in 83 countries. Gillian has been named one of the Young Leaders to watch in the travel industry by PhoCusWright and has been invited to speak about travel innovation and distribution trends at SXSW, the Skift Global Forum, IATA's Annual General Meeting, and Travel Tech Con.

Before entering the start-up world, Gillian worked as a consultant, journalist, and educator in Turkey, China, the Gulf states, and Syria. Her work has appeared in/on the New York Times, Harvard Business Review, Buzzfeed, CNN, CNBC, TechCrunch, The Next Web, and LifeHacker.

Gillian's work in emerging markets has made her a passionate advocate for entrepreneurship and private sector investment in the developing world. She is a proud mentor with the School of Leadership Afghanistan and Gaza Sky Geeks. She also serves on the board of Data4America, a nonprofit, nonpartisan think tank dedicated to bringing data and conversations to advance the understanding of policy.

Suzanne Cohen Vice President, Luxury Brands, Americas, Marriott International

Suzanne Cohen is the Vice President of Marriott Luxury Brands for the Americas.  In this role, she leads overall brand strategy, brand marketing and positioning. Her focus is on growth and development of the brands, activation of brand passions and innovation for a portfolio of nearly 200 hotels across the Americas.

Prior to this role, Cohen was the Director of North America Brand Marketing for W Hotels Worldwide. In her role, Cohen was responsible for developing experiential and digital marketing programs for W Hotel guests. Cohen drew from her years of marketing experience and personal passions to create innovative fashion, music, and fitness programming for the brand – something that has become synonymous with the W hotels lifestyle.

Cohen has held several other positions at Starwood Hotels & Resorts, including Director of Brand Management, North America for Starwood’s Luxury & Design Brands where she oversaw experiential events targeted to the luxury consumers and Director of Field Marketing where she focused primarily on digital and destination marketing for all of Starwood’s brands.

Before joining Starwood in 2003, Cohen was the Executive Director of Marketing and Communications for the Jewish National Fund for several years. She began her career in advertising, working at The Bomstein Agency in Washington, DC before moving on to Grey Advertising in New York City.

Cohen received a Bachelor Degree in Marketing and Transportation-Logistics from the University of Maryland, College Park. When she is not traveling around the Americas, she lives in New York City with her husband and two children.

The 360-Degree Brand: Surrounding the Millennial Consumer

Panelists

Tom Lewand  CEO, Shinola

Detroit-area native Tom Lewand joined Shinola as CEO in 2016 where he helps guide the strategic direction and business operations of the company. Prior to Shinola, Tom was President of the NFL’s Detroit Lions, where he held various roles for over 20 years. Lewand is active in the community, acting as Past Chairman of the Detroit Metro Convention and Visitors Bureau and serving on the Boards of Directors of the Detroit Zoological Society, the Downtown Detroit Partnership, the Detroit Economic Growth Corporation and the Parade Company. Lewand also is on the Corporate Advisory Board for the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business and the Detroit Mayor’s Workforce Development Board.

Andy Katz-Mayfield Co-Founder and CEO, Harry's Inc.

Andy Katz-Mayfield is the Co-Founder and CEO of Harry’s Inc., an organization building the next great consumer product brands.

Harry's, the company's flagship brand, was founded in 2013 after Andy had a bad experience trying to buy razor blades. Harry’s ambition is to create exceptional shaving and personal care products that better meet the needs of modern men. Harry's Inc. also recently launched an organization called Harry’s Labs, which leverages the Harry’s platform to support exceptional entrepreneurs in building and scaling the next great consumer brands.

Formerly, Andy worked at private equity firm Charlesbank Capital Partners and Bain & Company. He graduated from Duke University with a BA in Public Policy and has an MBA from Stanford Graduate School of Business.

Elise Loehnen Fissmer  Chief Content Officer, goop

Elise Loehnen Fissmer is the chief content officer of goop, the lifestyle and e-commerce company established by Gwyneth Paltrow in 2008.

Prior to goop, she was the editorial projects director of Conde Nast Traveler. Before Traveler, she was the editor at large and ultimately deputy editor of Lucky Magazine, where she also served as the on-air spokesperson, appearing regularly on shows like Today, E!, Good Morning America, and The Early Show.She's also the co-author of eight books, including three New York Times Best Sellers. Titles include: Nasty Galaxy by Sophia Amoruso (2016); HOME by Ellen DeGeneres (2015); You First by Lea Michelle (2015); Cupcakes & Cashmere at Home by Emily Schuman (2015); Brunette Ambition by Lea Michele (NYT Best Seller); Interior designer Celerie Kemble's Black, White & a Bit In Between; and Lauren Conrad Style and Lauren Conrad Beauty (NYT Best Sellers).

Originally from Missoula, Montana, Elise now lives in Los Angeles with her husband, Rob, and their sons, Max and Sam.

Harvey Spevak Executive Chairman and Managing Partner, Equinox Holdings, Inc.

Since 1999, Harvey Spevak has driven the creative vision and led the strategic growth of Equinox Fitness Clubs and its portfolio of iconic lifestyle brands, first as CEO and President, and now as Executive Chairman and Managing Partner.

In his role as Executive Chairman and Managing Partner, Mr. Spevak is responsible for fueling continued success, building long-term strategy and  identifying growth opportunities for Equinox Fitness Clubs, which currently operates 95 global locations in the United States, London, Toronto and Vancouver, and for the Company's portfolio of brands, which include Soul Cycle, Blink Fitness, Pure Yoga, Equinox Hotels, PROJECT by Equinox and E by Equinox.

Mr. Spevak has been the driving force behind the recent announcement of Equinox Hotels, which will open its first location in New York City in 2019.  Conceived to offer an entirely new hotel experience to meet the needs of the high performance traveler, Equinox Hotels is poised for international growth.

Over the course of Mr. Spevak’s tenure, he has initiated several key strategic growth initiatives across the brand portfolio. In December 2000, as CEO, Mr. Spevak led a management buyout of Equinox to two private equity firms, North Castle Partners and J.W. Childs.  In 2006, the Related Companies—one of the nation’s most prestigious real estate development firms— acquired Equinox when he partnered with Related Chairman Stephen Ross and CEO Jeff Blau.

Mr. Spevak is also the Executive Chairman of Soul Cycle, a rapidly growing lifestyle brand that empowers its riders in a community driven fitness experience. Equinox acquired SoulCycle in May of 2011 and currently has 86 studios around the U.S.   He also launched Blink Fitness in 2011, a brand of innovative, value oriented gyms, which now has 90 locations open or in development throughout New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and California. Mr. Spevak also launched the first American outpost of Pure Yoga, Asia’s premiere yoga studio, which now has two locations in New York City.

Mr. Spevak is a member of the Ross School Advisory Board (RSAB) at the University of Michigan’s Stephen M. Ross School of Business. The RSAB plays an important role in helping craft the vision for the Stephen M. Ross School of Business, and serves to redefine business education at the world’s best business school. He is also on the board at The Shed, New York City’s newest center for artistic invention located in Hudson Yards.

Mr. Spevak contributes to several charitable organizations including Cycle for Survival, of which Equinox is a founding partner.  He has been featured in numerous business, lifestyle and trade publications including the The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, Bloomberg News, CNBC and CNN. Spevak is a principal and board member of Motivate Bikeshare Holdings LLC, a global bike share operator, including Citi Bike in New York City.

Moderator Rebecca Greenfield Reporter, Bloomberg

Greenfield is a reporter at Bloomberg, where she covers race, class, and gender in the workplace. She is also the host of The Pay Check, a new Bloomberg podcast mini-series about the pay gap. Her coverage focuses on the post work/life balance world in which work and life are constantly integrated. Many of her stories explore the growing gap between those in that world, with its high demand, highly educated workers, and everyone else. She also covers women in the workplace and leadership. She previously worked at The Atlantic and Fast Company, and has appeared on Marketplace, WNYC, WSJ Radio, and Bloomberg TV, among other outlets.

Fashion Tech Forum Presents: Looking Past the Past - Taking Heritage Brands Into the Future

Moderator Karen Harvey

Founder, Fashion Tech Forum. CEO, Karen Harvey Consulting.

Karen Harvey is the CEO and Founder of Karen Harvey Consulting, Fashion Tech Forum and INDX, a digital marketplace between creative talent and brands. Karen has spent her career working with global brands across luxury, retail, fashion and innovation. Her ability to work in both traditional and non-traditional ways has earned her firm international recognition for bringing some of the industry’s most successful CEOs and creative leaders to the most powerful global brands in Fashion and Retail. In 2013, Karen was one of the first to identify a global and seismic shift, where she could see that technology companies would be revolutionizing fashion and retail, and she felt that a forum was needed, where leaders from both technology and fashion could work through their differences and find common ground to form the companies and partnerships of the future. She felt that the void created by the disparity between these two sectors created the need for a new conversation, so that these leaders could find new ways to work together, in order to create partnerships and new companies that would serve the consumers of the future. In that spirit, Karen founded Fashion Tech Forum for these leaders to both share their vision and the challenges created by this new reality. From a talent perspective, as Karen considered these dynamics, she realized that the traditional skill sets required for leaders to compete would change radically, creating an identity crisis for fashion and retail.

Inspired by these major shifts and the broad need to discover new talent and emerging technologies, Karen has pivoted her companies and devoted her consulting and advisory services to identifying the next generation of leaders, while supporting the most powerful brands in bridging the gap between luxury and emerging technologies. Fashion Tech Forum will go to the next level in 2019, by creating further programs and platforms to help sector specific leaders develop new skills to build the companies of the future.

Some of the company’s clients include: Tapestry, lululemon, Tory Burch, Techstyle, Versace, FarFetch, Everlane, Tommy Hilfiger, Olivela, and Ralph Lauren. The firm’s other division, Advisory Services, engages with entrepreneurial ventures in technology, investors, and other companies looking to transition to direct-to-consumer models. Karen is a graduate of the OPM program of Harvard Business School. She is also the Founder of The Blue Project, a mentorship program for disadvantaged women.

Panelists

Mercedes Abramo President and CEO, Cartier North America

Mercedes Abramo began her career at Cartier as director of the flagship Fifth Avenue Mansion, after a successful career in the luxury hospitality industry. She then served as assistant vice president of New York retail, overseeing all New York boutiques, and as vice president of retail for all of North America. She was appointed as the first female president and CEO of Cartier North America, in 2014.

She currently serves on the board of directors of Jewelers of America and the advisory board of the Luxury Education Foundation, a public not-for-profit organization that focuses on educational programs for students in design and business. She is also a key advocate for the Cartier Women’s Initiative Awards, an international business plan competition for women entrepreneurs, created in 2006 to identify, support and encourage projects that solve contemporary global challenges.

Robert Chavez President and CEO, Hermès of Paris, Inc.

Robert Chavez was appointed President and Chief Executive Officer of Hermès of Paris, Inc. in the U.S. in August 2000.

A native of San Antonio, TX, Chavez is a graduate of Princeton University. In 1977, he joined the Executive Training Program at Bloomingdale’s in New York City, and took on the role of Assistant Buyer in the Cosmetics department. Shortly after, he became a Buyer in the Home Furnishings area.

In 1986, Chavez served as Merchandise Administrator for Cosmetics and Fragrances at Macy’s. In 1989, he was appointed Senior Vice President of Merchandising. By 1991, he was promoted to President of Merchandising and oversaw several departments that included Fashion Accessories, Shoes and Ready to Wear.

Chavez joined Etienne Aigner as Chief Executive Officer in 1992. He was instrumental in Etienne Aigner’s significant increase in growth and profitability as well as re-building and re-positioning the brand.

As President and Chief Executive Officer of Hermès of Paris, Inc., Chavez oversees all business aspects in the U.S. and Latin America. Under his direction, Hermès became the premier luxury house to lead in the revitalization of lower Manhattan with the opening of a new store on Wall Street in June of 2007. He has continued the geographic expansion of Hermès in the U.S. with several new boutiques. Chavez also opened the very first Hermès Boutique for Men in the World, in New York in February 2010. There are now 28 Hermès Boutiques in the U.S. and a .com site.

Chavez’s outstanding service and achievements have been recognized by numerous institutions and organizations. He is committed to various causes that include the March of Dimes, God’s Love We Deliver, Housing Works and the Luxury Education Foundation.

Robert Chavez resides in Manhattan.

The Next Level of Performance 

Moderator Hannah Elliott Car Columnist, Bloomberg Pursuits 

Hannah is the car columnist for Bloomberg, writing reviews and covering the automotive industry from the consumer perspective. Previously, she was a staff writer at Forbes.

Fireside Chat Maurizio Reggiani Chief Technical Officer, Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A.

After his studies in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Modena, Maurizio Reggiani began his career in the automotive sector at Maserati, where he was in charge of engine construction and assembly from 1982 to 1987. From 1987 to 1995 he was in charge of Engine and Transmission at Bugatti, where he was responsible for the powertrain of the EB110.

Maurizio Reggiani joined Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A. in 1998 as Project Leader for the Murciélago until 2001, when he became Responsible of the R&D Powertrain and Suspension Division. Since July 2006 Maurizio Reggiani has been Chief Technical Officer at Lamborghini, where he is in charge of developing long term strategies, including body and chassis technologies, powertrain, suspension and electronics. He also supervises all the product-driven technologies on the 12-cylinder Aventador and 10-cylinder Huracán models.

From January 2011, the Research and Development team has taken over also the direction of the Centro Stile Lamborghini. Since 2013 he also has the responsibility of Lamborghini Squadra Corse, the Motorsport division of Automobili Lamborghini that boasts the Lamborghini Super Trofeo and the GT3 Championships.

He is also involved in several professional societies, such as SAE International (Society of Automotive Engineers) and ATA (Associazione Tecnica dell’Automobile).

Collecting and the Luxury Lifestyle

Moderator James Tarmy Arts Columnist, Bloomberg Pursuits

Tarmy is an arts columnist for Bloomberg News and Businessweek Magazine. A graduate of the University of Chicago and UCL in London, Tarmy has written about art and culture for a range of magazines and newspapers, lectured extensively on the art market, and appeared as a TV commentator for close to a decade

Panelists

Peter Marino

Principal, Peter Marino Architect

Dominique Lévy

Owner, Lévy-Gorvy Gallery

Noted collector, advisor, and gallerist Dominique Lévy is considered a foremost authority on the global art market and is regarded as one of its most influential figures. In September 2013, Lévy opened her eponymous gallery in New York, which has since hosted a dynamic program of exhibitions, performances, and publications.

Known for her innovative curatorial approach, Lévy inaugurated her New York gallery with the critically acclaimed exhibition Audible Presence: Lucio Fontana, Yves Klein, Cy Twombly, accompanied by the first public performance of Yves Klein’s groundbreaking Monotone-Silence Symphony in the United States. In October 2014, Lévy opened a second location on Old Bond Street in London’s Mayfair district. Among the many important exhibitions presented by the gallery have been Boris Mikhailov: Four Decades (2013–2014); the trans-Atlantic, two-city exhibition Local History: Castellani, Judd, Stella (2014–2015); Body and Matter: The Art of Kazuo Shiraga and Satoru Hoshino (2015); Alexander Calder: Multum in Parvo (2015), in a collaboration with renowned architect Santiago Calatrava; Gerhard Richter: Colour Charts (2015); and Günther Uecker: Verletzte Felder (2016).

In conjunction with the exhibition program, Lévy gallery produced a series of catalogues and monographs, including original essays by renowned art historians and writers and previously unpublished archival material. The gallery’s commitment to the arts expanded with the founding of a poetry program; it published newly commissioned work by over twenty poets. In January 2017, Lévy partnered with Brett Gorvy to create Lévy Gorvy, expanding its New York location to occupy the entirety of the historic landmark building at 909 Madison Avenue.

Lévy’s early career was defined by her experiences at world-renowned auction houses and galleries in Switzerland, France, and the UK. In the late 1980s, she was hired by Swiss auctioneer and collector Simon de Pury at Sotheby’s, where she remained for four years. She subsequently worked with French art dealer Daniel Malingue when he opened his own gallery, and then collaborated with co-director Simon Studer on an independent curatorial enterprise. In the mid-1990s, she joined the team of influential London dealer Anthony d’Offay, where she specialized in postwar American art. From 1999 to 2003, Lévy was the International Director of Private Sales at Christie’s, New York, heading the department that she had played an instrumental role in developing. During this time, she brokered the sale of numerous 19th and 20th-century masterpieces while focusing on developing relationships with cultural institutions, museums, and private collectors. In 2003, she founded Dominique Lévy Fine Art, an advisory service that allowed her to focus on building long-term relationships with clients. In 2005, Lévy co-founded L&M Arts, a gallery with locations in New York and Los Angeles. The bi-coastal gallery provided comprehensive client services and organized acclaimed exhibitions of modern and postwar art, such as Tanguy Calder: Between Surrealism and Abstraction (2010), John Chamberlain: Early Years (2009), and Tom Wesselmann: The Sixties (2006). The gallery staged three Willem de Kooning exhibitions as well as presentations of new work by visionary contemporary artists including David Hammons and Paul McCarthy.

Lévy is a dedicated champion of the arts at large and supports various philanthropic efforts. She provides critical support to arts, literature, and performance institutions including Asia Society, MoMA PS1, the Jewish Museum, the Studio Museum in Harlem, and the Israel Museum. The Swiss Institute honored Lévy in 2015 at its annual gala, celebrating her careerboth as a philanthropist and a gallerist; she is currently a member of the Institute’s board of trustees. Lévy recently joined the board of the Representation Project, an initiative that works for gender and sexual orientation equality in film.

Everything Is For Sale, Nothing Is For Sale: The Future of Luxury Retail

Moderator Kim Bhasin Luxury Reporter, Bloomberg News

Kim is the luxury retail reporter for Bloomberg News, and the host of the video series "Invitation Only," which features the most exclusive shops in America. Previously, he was a senior reporter at The Huffington Post, covering fashion and apparel companies for the business section.

Panelists

Gabriela Baiter

Founder and Creative Director, Whereabout

Gabriela Baiter is the Founder and Creative Director of Whereabout, an experiential studio that helps brands navigate the future of retail through pop-ups and in-store experiences. Sitting at the intersection of brand marketing and retail innovation, Whereabout transforms passive storefronts into meaningful brand outposts for the ever-changing consumer. With over a decade of experience, Gabriela and her team have launched dozens of integrated pop-ups and store concepts for digitally-native brands and retailers including Fellow Products, Floyd Detroit, Tom's, and Hunker

Prior to Whereabout, Gabriela spearheaded brand and experiential projects for tech giants Facebook and Uber. Her passion for retail emerged at Uber, where she overhauled the company’s Driver Support Centers, a global retail footprint spanning over 250,000 square feet

A Retail Wire contributor and XRC Retail Labs mentor, Gabriela is known as a “retail futurist,” often challenging her clients and mentees to create stores that don't look anything like stores.

www.whereabout.studio

Manish Vora

President and Co-Founder, Museum of Ice Cream

Manish Vora is the President and Co-founder of Museum of Ice Cream. He was previously CEO of experience-tech startup, Lightbox.  He co-founded the contemporary art platform GREY AREA where he developed art partnerships with Helmut Lang, Stella McCartney, Guggenheim Museum, Smart Car and Bergdorf Goodman. He was a regular culture correspondent on NBC New York and is involved with numerous non-profits including on the founding Board of UNICEF Next Generation and as an Arts Advisor to Times Square. He is a graduate of Yale University.

The 50-Course Meal: Pushing the Limits of Fine Dining

Moderator Kate Krader Food Editor, Bloomberg Pursuits

Kate Krader is the Food Editor at Bloomberg Pursuits, where she writes about news and trends around the country and all over the world for the website and the magazine. She also contributes to the Bloomberg News division.

She is the former restaurant editor at Food & Wine magazine, where she oversaw its news, trend and restaurant coverage. During her long tenure at the monthly magazine, she led Food & Wine's annual search for Food & Wine Best New Chefs. She also edited the Food & Wine Cocktails, an annual guide to the hottest cocktail recipes, the best spots and the biggest trends in nightlife.  A graduate of Kenyon College in Ohio, Krader received her formal culinary training at La Varenne in Paris.

Panelists

Nick Kokonas

Co-owner and co-founder, The Alinea Group; Tock, Inc.

Nick Kokonas is the co-owner and co-founder of The Alinea Group of restaurants -- Alinea, Next, The Aviary, Roister, and The Aviary NYC.  He is also the founder and CEO of Tock, Inc, a reservations and CRM system for restaurants with over 2.5M diners and restaurant and winery clients in 21 countries around the world.

Alinea has been named the Best Restaurant in America and in The World by ratings as diverse as The James Beard Foundation, World's 50 Best, TripAdvisor, Yelp, Gourmet Magazine, and Elite Traveler.  His restaurants have won nearly every accolade afforded to them.

A "subversive" entrepreneur and start-up angel investor since 1996, Nick spent a decade as a derivatives trader, has co-written three books, and believes in radical transparency in markets and business.  His latest effort is The Aviary Cocktail Book which has already sold nearly $1M in copies before it's release in October 2018.

Rasmus Munk Chef, Alchemist 2.0

Rasmus Munk was born in 1991 in the town of Randers in Jutland predestined, he says, “to become either a mechanic or join a biker gang.” Fine dining and intricate cooking were far away from Rasmus’ upbringing, with frozen pizzas, powdered sauces and other poor quality convenience foods. But thanks to his best friend, who persuaded Rasmus to join him in catering college, a whole new world opened up for him and his destiny took a completely different and unexpected  path. His career really took off when he was 22 and had just returned from spending several years working in the kitchens of top restaurants in London. Rasmus was appointed Head Chef at Tree Top, where he started combining ingredients, textures and tastes in new ways, which ultimately led to the opening of Alchemist in Copenhagen in 2015. With a focus beyond the plate, Rasmus creates thought-provoking, surprising and humorous meals orchestrated to initiate and support the debate on social and ethical issues while providing a complete sensory experience centered around great taste. Rasmus calls his style of cooking Holistic Cuisine.

Maria Font Trabocchi  Owner, Fabio Trabocchi Restaurants