Mastercard is on a mission to curate and create priceless experiences that money cannot buy, says Raja Rajamannar, CMO of the technology company, on the latest episode of the Innovators podcast. At any given time, the company is hosting over 750 of such experiences globally. During this episode, Rajamannar tells us how this strategy addresses customer passion points, what he's doing to drive loyalty through purpose, and why the company is launching an industry first: its own sound.

When you start a business, you should always be thinking about what your end goal is, says Adam Brown, founder of luxury swimwear brand Orlebar Brown, on the latest episode of the Innovators podcast. In Brown’s case, it was the eventual acquisition by none other than Chanel. During this episode, Brown tells us just why the acquisition is a match made in heaven, how he is bringing sustainability into the brand in a creative way, and how brands can get the luxury consumer to forget about the price tag.

Traditional retail exists in a vortex of information, which doesn’t make sense for today, says Matt Alexander, co-founder and CEO of new department store Neighborhood Goods, on this episode of the Innovators podcast. The company’s inaugural space, which launched in Texas in late 2018, carries a selection of new and established brands and focuses on driving customer relevance through data. Join us for this episode as we explore why experiential retail needs to go beyond putting a ball pit in the store, and how modern brands are using physical space for entirely new reasons, and why legacy retailers may have the ability to play catch up after years of ignoring customer needs.

Big businesses have no excuse for not doing the right thing, says Christopher Raeburn, founder of British designer brand Raeburn and creative director of Timberland, on this episode of the Innovators podcast. Christopher is bringing his learnings from his own brand to create a responsible, innovative new Timberland. Join us as we explore why a reduced, remade and recycled model is essential for fashion, how education is a missing link and how to turn “trash” into opportunity.

A brand’s success depends on authentic relationships and good design over hype, says Rodrigo Bazan, CEO of designer label Thom Browne, on this episode of the Innovators podcast. Join us as we explore what that means in practice, including how music and celebrity help fuel its success, why the brand believes in sportswear over streetwear, and just how its thinking about the balance of data and design today.

The only way to embed technology in the store is to focus on what will benefit the customer, says Holli Rogers, CEO of Browns Fashion, on this episode of the Innovators podcast. The British luxury retailer has been experimenting with parent company Farfetch’s Store of the Future strategy since it was announced in 2017. Join us as we dive into Browns’ resulting version of augmented retail, Holli’s experience being one of the first employees at e-commerce business Net-a-Porter and what out of the box thinking she’s now applying to sustainability.

Introducing legislation along the lines of a Global Green New Deal is mandatory for the future of our planet and the existence of the fashion industry within it, says designer and activist Katharine Hamnett on this episode of the Innovators podcast. Join us as we dive into what such regulations need to include, what activism today should really look like both for businesses and for us as individuals, and why she doesn’t believe the answer is about reducing how many clothes we all actually buy.

“Being creative gives us the ability to help change the world”, says Roland Mouret, a designer on a mission to eradicate single-use plastics in the supply chain, on the latest episode of the Innovators podcast. He’s doing this by taking a small step that could add up to big change if adopted across the industry. Join us as we explore why he’s on a mission to make sustainability sexy, the major trend he thinks is dying out in fashion right now, and how the climate crisis is redefining power and the luxury industry.

Understanding cost and thinking long-term is key for fashion to become sustainable, explains Nicolaj Reffstrup, founder of Danish fashion brand, Ganni, on this episode of the Innovators podcast. After all, who is going to pay for it? Join us as we discuss how Ganni is making investments as well as flexing its muscle to drive towards a more sustainable future, the new business models its testing to do so, and why it’s focused on bringing a tech mentality to every way that it operates.

Creating retail experiences is essential for successful brick and mortar today, but it’s not a silver bullet, explains Jess Christie, chief brand officer of MatchesFashion.com, on this episode of the Innovators podcast. This is a luxury retailer that opened a new physical store in London’s Mayfair last year and hosted more than 100 different events in its first 9 months. Join us as we also explore exactly what that takes to pull off, what it means to think about personal shopping through the eyes of technology today, and the role content plays in connecting online and offline together.