We recently connected with Suze Renner and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Suze thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to start by getting your thoughts on what you are seeing as some the biggest trends emerging in your industry

The most profound change in luxury involves the pivot from product ownership to experiential engagement. Industry forecasts suggest that experience-focused offerings will represent half of the luxury travel sector by 2025, demonstrating consumers’ growing preference for meaningful encounters over material acquisitions.

We experienced this first-hand at Saint Lucia’s Rabot Hotel by Hotel Chocolat. Visitors engage in comprehensive chocolate creation workshops. The experience includes learning about cacao cultivation, sampling fresh chocolate products, and crafting personalized chocolate bars tailored to individual preferences. This hands-on educational journey exemplifies luxury’s new direction—moving beyond passive consumption toward active participation and learning.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

LuxuryColumnist is an award-winning online luxury lifestyle magazine that I founded in 2014. What started as a passion project has evolved into a trusted authority in the luxury space, reaching a discerning worldwide audience who appreciates the finer things in life.

My journey into luxury publishing began with a deep appreciation for quality, craftsmanship, and exceptional experiences. Coming from a marketing background, I understood the importance of identifying what makes each product or service truly special – their Unique Selling Proposition. This expertise allows us to cut through the noise and focus on what genuinely sets luxury brands apart.

Our team of seasoned writers and industry experts curates premium content across multiple luxury verticals. We provide carefully researched coverage of exclusive hotel and resort reviews from around the globe, fine dining experiences and culinary trends, luxury fashion and accessories, high-end real estate and interior design, premium automotive trends, art and culture, luxury watches and jewelry, and upscale fragrances, beauty and grooming.

I’m particularly proud of our award-winning photography and drone videography – visual storytelling is crucial in the luxury space, and we invest heavily in creating content that matches the caliber of the brands we feature. Our marketing background means we understand luxury brands from both the consumer and business perspective, allowing us to create content that resonates with readers while respecting the craftsmanship and heritage behind each product or experience.

We solve the problem of information overload in the luxury market. With so many options available, our readers rely on us to identify truly exceptional experiences, products, and destinations worth their investment. We’re not just reviewers – we’re curators who understand that luxury isn’t just about price point, but about quality, exclusivity, and the stories behind the brands.

Beyond LuxuryColumnist.com, we maintain an active presence on social media channels such as Instagram and Facebook. After more than a decade in this space, we’ve built relationships with luxury brands worldwide and earned the trust of readers who value our discerning eye and authentic voice in luxury lifestyle coverage.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

Building LuxuryColumnist’s social media presence has been a decade-long journey of authentic engagement and strategic content creation. When I started in 2014, the luxury lifestyle space online was much less crowded, but that also meant fewer examples to follow.

I began by focusing on what we knew best – creating high-quality content. Our marketing background helped us understand that influence is the ability to inspire others to take action or to change their way of thinking, so from day one, we prioritized substance over follower counts.

Rather than just posting content, we focused on creating genuine dialogue with our audience. We asked questions through Instagram Stories and Facebook. We also discovered the power of cross-platform promotion early on. We made sure to include links on our website homepage and cross-promoted our various social channels across our networks. This created a cohesive brand experience regardless of where people discovered us.

Our content strategy focused on creating posts that either entertained, informed, or inspired sharing. We learned that certain social media platforms such as Pinterest and YouTube regularly appear at the top of Search Engine Results Pages, so we sprinkled keywords that relate to our business into our headlines on these platforms.

In terms of advice for those starting out, we recommend that you don’t rush to post daily. In the luxury space especially, one stunning post per week beats seven mediocre ones.

Social media is a two-way exchange. Respond to comments, engage with other accounts in your niche, and remember that engagement rates matter more than follower counts.

Blogs, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube are ranked by marketers as the most effective platforms, but consider which function as search engines. YouTube, Pinterest, TikTok and blogs with proper SEO will drive traffic long after your initial post.

Don’t just post the same content everywhere. Tailor your message to each platform while maintaining brand consistency.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

One of the most significant pivots in my life happened right after completing my degree in International Business and French. I made a decision to move to France immediately after graduation. While my degree had given me the language skills and theoretical knowledge of international business, nothing quite prepares you for the reality of adapting to a completely different culture while trying to establish yourself professionally for the first time.

The initial months were challenging in ways I hadn’t anticipated. Beyond the obvious language barriers in professional settings – where business French proved somewhat different to academic French – I had to navigate cultural nuances in workplace dynamics, communication styles, and professional expectations. Finding that first job abroad felt like solving a puzzle where half the pieces were invisible.

My first role was as a translator and marketing assistant for a computer games company. Working in the gaming industry taught me about emerging digital markets, localization challenges, and how to adapt marketing messages across cultures – skills that would prove essential later when I founded LuxuryColumnist and needed to understand how luxury brands communicate across different markets.

The experience that truly shaped my business acumen came when I eventually became Head of the Export Department at a French Chamber of Commerce & Industry. This role was where everything clicked together. I was helping French businesses expand internationally, advising on market entry strategies, cultural considerations, and communication approaches for different markets. I learned about luxury goods exports and the nuances of positioning premium products in various cultural contexts.

Living and working in France gave me firsthand experience of European luxury culture – from understanding French savoir-vivre to appreciating the craftsmanship traditions that many luxury brands are built upon. This cultural immersion became invaluable when I started writing about luxury hospitality, fashion, and lifestyle.

What I learned from this experience is that pivots aren’t always about dramatic career changes – sometimes they’re about saying yes to opportunities that don’t perfectly match your original plan but teach you skills you didn’t know you needed. Each role built upon the previous one in unexpected ways, creating a unique combination of international business knowledge, cultural fluency, communication skills, and luxury market expertise that I couldn’t have planned for.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://luxurycolumnist.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/luxurycolumnist
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LuxuryColumnist/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/suze-luxury-columnist/
• Twitter: https://x.com/LuxuryColumnist/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/luxurycolumnist
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@luxurycolumnist
  https://uk.pinterest.com/LuxuryColumnist/