Societies #7 — September–December 2026

Welcome to the seventh edition of SOCIETIES Quarterly, our perspective on the ideas shaping hospitality, design and travel.

We are entering a period where almost everything surrounding a brand is becoming more fluid. AI is changing how people discover places, how content is created and how digital experiences are built. New materials and fabrication methods are changing what designers can make. The boundaries between hospitality, wellness, work and culture are becoming less defined.

Hospitality is changing too. Historic hotels are being restored rather than replaced. Wellness clubs are becoming places to work, eat and socialise. Technology is increasingly operating behind the scenes, removing friction and allowing experiences to become more personal.

The tools will continue to change, probably faster than any of us can follow individually.

But that makes what sits underneath them more important, not less.

When almost anyone can generate an image, build a website or produce content in minutes, execution alone becomes less distinctive. What matters is having a clear point of view. Knowing what deserves to be preserved, what should evolve and what your brand represents when everything around it is changing.

For hospitality, this may be the defining challenge of the next few years. Technology can accelerate the process, but it cannot decide what is worth saying.

The future belongs to brands with a strong enough identity to evolve without losing themselves.

Sebastien Felix, Founder and CEO, Influence Society

Hidden among the mature gardens of North Vancouver, Fred Hollingsworth’s Mahogany House is a remarkably intact expression of West Coast modernism. Completed in 1952, the single-storey residence pairs mahogany plywood with painted concrete, expansive glazing and precisely crafted cabinetry. Designed around its landscape, including a cedar tree embraced by the dining room, the house feels both rigorous and deeply connected to nature. Preserved by the same family for more than half a century, it now emerges as a quietly compelling study in material, proportion and place.

Toronto’s Reina condominium offers a different perspective on residential design, shaped by an all-women team and conversations with the people who would inhabit it. Designed by Heather Rolleston of BDP Quadrangle, the building responds to everyday realities with intergenerational homes, generous stroller storage, shared resources and play areas visible from the gym. These seemingly simple decisions reflect a broader philosophy of designing from the inside out. The result prioritises connection, flexibility and daily life, demonstrating how thoughtful architecture can create community without compromising beauty.

A hotel’s website still matters, but it may no longer be where guests first decide what feels right. AI-powered search is increasingly shaping discovery, comparing properties and building shortlists before a traveler reaches the homepage. For extraordinary hotels, visibility now depends on more than imagery and interface. Brand voice, structured information and a clearly expressed sense of place must travel beyond the website itself. The next digital challenge is ensuring that when algorithms interpret your hotel, its identity remains unmistakably yours.

On Norway’s northern coast, The Whale is taking shape as a museum that appears to emerge directly from the landscape. Designed by Dorte Mandrup, its sweeping concrete roof evokes a whale surfacing or diving into the North Atlantic, while local stone helps anchor the structure to its rugged setting. Beneath the curved shell, a column-free interior will combine science, art, sound and storytelling to explore whales and their marine environment. The walkable roof extends the experience outdoors, transforming the building itself into a viewpoint across the surrounding archipelago.

Centuries of Japanese craftsmanship meet contemporary experimentation in Craft x Tech, a new exhibition at the V&A during London Design Festival. Six artisans from Japan’s Tokai region have collaborated with international designers to reinterpret techniques spanning ceramics, washi paper, textiles, cloisonné enamel and braided cord. Founded by designer and engineer Hideki Yoshimoto, the project treats tradition as a living source of knowledge rather than something fixed in the past. The resulting objects reveal how material intelligence, technology and cross-cultural exchange can give historic craft unexpected new forms.

At 94, Dieter Rams remains one of design’s most quietly influential figures. His work at Braun helped establish a language defined not by spectacle, but by usefulness, clarity and restraint. For Rams, “less, but better” was never an aesthetic formula. It was an attitude shaped by questioning whether an object was necessary and how people would actually use it. Now, the Dieter and Ingeborg Rams Foundation is preserving the drawings, photographs and conversations behind that thinking, ensuring an approach that influenced generations of designers remains as useful as the objects themselves.

Looking to nature at its most intricate, RDAI and Creative Matters have translated microscopic structures into six finely crafted rugs. The Zoometry collection magnifies butterfly wings, spiderwebs and other organic forms into graphic compositions of Tibetan wool and Chinese silk. Developed through parametric modelling before being interpreted by hand, each piece contains some 1.8 million knots, with subtle imperfections preserving the presence of its maker. The result sits between technology and tradition, revealing an unexpected visual language hidden within the smallest details of the natural world.

Welsh designer Charlie Firth is pushing back against neutral interiors with a series of expressive 3D-printed table lamps. Inspired by the Memphis movement, Colorful Rebellion combines saturated colour, graphic geometry and modular forms to create objects that sit between functional lighting and sculpture. Firth deliberately retains the traces of digital fabrication, from visible layer lines to internal infill patterns that transform when illuminated. Developed from collaged sketches into interchangeable 3D components, the collection celebrates experimentation, allowing technology and playful imperfection to become part of the design language.

For generations of artists, the French Riviera offered more than escape. Its intense light, vivid vegetation and glittering coastline became material for experimentation. A new Royal Academy exhibition traces this enduring fascination through works by Monet, Renoir, Signac, Picasso and Matisse, each interpreting the Mediterranean landscape through a distinct visual language. From Pointillist colour and Fauvist glamour to quiet interiors framing luminous sea views, the exhibition reveals how the Côte d’Azur became both subject and studio, transforming modern art while creating an enduring image of Riviera life.

South Korea’s cultural influence is expanding from music and cinema into contemporary art. Artists including Suh Do-ho and Lee Bul are drawing international audiences, while K-pop figures such as RM have introduced a new generation to collecting and museum culture. In Seoul, established institutions are embracing this crossover as international galleries and Frieze strengthen the city’s position on the global art circuit. With Korean art increasingly appearing in major exhibitions abroad, a dynamic exchange between popular culture, artistic heritage and contemporary practice is giving the country’s creative scene new visibility.

Influence Society’s AI Studio pairs generative technology with the eye of an art director, creating photorealistic imagery and video without the constraints of a traditional shoot. Existing assets can shift from day to night, move between seasons, introduce carefully styled protagonists or expand into complete visual narratives. The approach is built around the brand, not the tool, allowing extraordinary hotels to explore more creative directions while preserving the atmosphere, design language and sense of place that make them distinctive.

Leica revisits an intriguing chapter of optical history with the Summicron-M 66 f/2, a contemporary interpretation of a lens originally developed for US Navy reconnaissance. Inspired by the rare Elcan 66 mm f/2 from the late 1960s, the new release preserves its unconventional focal length, reversed aperture ring and distinctive engravings. Its rendering shifts from soft bokeh at wider apertures to exceptional detail when stopped down, echoing its surveillance origins. Limited to 660 individually numbered examples, the lens transforms a once-secret piece of engineering into a highly collectible photographic object.

Apple enters foldable territory with iPhone Duo, pairing a compact 5.4-inch exterior display with an expansive 7.6-inch screen within. Crafted from polished grade 5 titanium, its precision hinge and unusually thin profile turn a complex piece of engineering into a refined, familiar object. Inside, the A20 Pro chip powers multitasking, gaming and new camera experiences across both displays, while iOS 27 adapts fluidly as the device opens and closes. It is a significant shift in form, designed to make the iPhone feel more versatile without losing its identity.

As running culture gathers pace, Google is bringing AI into the rituals surrounding race day. Search’s AI Mode can shape training plans around individual goals and local routes, build running playlists through YouTube Music, and navigate an increasingly crowded world of performance gear. The approach brings planning, discovery and personalization into one place, adapting recommendations to everything from weekly mileage to shoe fit. Less about replacing the runner’s instinct, it shows how technology can quietly organize the details, leaving more attention for the road ahead.

AI search is reshaping discovery. Before a traveler reaches a hotel website, an AI assistant may already have interpreted its story, compared it with alternatives and influenced consideration. Visibility increasingly depends on a coherent digital presence, built through clear brand information, credible third-party mentions and distinctive original content. For extraordinary hotels, this makes brand consistency across websites, editorial coverage, reviews and social platforms essential. The opportunity is not simply to appear in AI answers, but to ensure technology understands and represents the hotel with the same precision as the brand itself.

Maslow’s newest members’ club in Kensington brings work and wellbeing into the same carefully considered environment. Set within a mid-century Art Deco building, the space combines communal desks, private offices and meeting rooms with a gym, movement studio and wellness-focused café. Interiors by Mehrai Design use warm timber, tactile materials, planting, scent and soft lighting to create an atmosphere closer to a hotel than a conventional office. Informed by psychology and neuroaesthetics, the concept reflects a broader shift towards workplaces designed around concentration, movement and everyday wellbeing.

Everhaus is rethinking the private wellness club around a more connected vision of longevity. Opening in Las Vegas this winter, the concept brings fitness, preventative medicine and recovery therapies under one roof, supported by an AI concierge that learns from members’ health data to personalise recommendations and routines. Yet technology is only part of the proposition. Founder Justin Hibbert places equal emphasis on community, with dinners, salons and events designed to encourage meaningful interaction. The result is a wellness model where data-driven care and social connection work side by side.

For years, the hotel restaurant was treated as an amenity. Now, it is increasingly becoming the destination itself. Prestige dining can lift occupancy, strengthen a property’s identity and give both travelers and locals a reason to return. The most compelling restaurants go beyond the menu, expressing a distinct point of view about the place they inhabit. A famous chef may attract attention, but what ultimately matters is a culinary experience with enough character to shape how guests remember the hotel, and why they choose to stay there.

In a city defined by constant motion, New York’s most compelling spas offer something increasingly precious: space to disconnect. Across Manhattan and beyond, wellness takes many forms, from ancient thermal rituals and Japanese-inspired minimalism to clinical facials, breathwork and biohacking. Aman creates a quiet sanctuary above Fifth Avenue, while Aire retreats beneath Tribeca’s streets and QC NY transforms Governors Island into an urban escape. Together, these destinations reveal a new expression of city luxury, where considered design, restorative rituals and innovative treatments make slowing down feel distinctly New York.

Set apart from Venice’s crowds on Giudecca Island, Hotel Cipriani has cultivated a particular kind of glamour since opening in 1958. Founded by Giuseppe Cipriani, creator of Harry’s Bar and the Bellini, the hotel was conceived as a secluded retreat for the cultural figures and jetsetters of the dolce vita era. Arrival by mahogany speedboat remains part of its allure, revealing a colourful waterfront of striped mooring poles, blue parasols and peach façades. Decades later, its cinematic setting continues to draw Hollywood’s A-list, particularly during the Venice Film Festival.

At Farnborough Airport, Flexjet is rethinking what a private aviation terminal can feel like. Its new London hub places hospitality and design at the centre of the journey, with interiors by Carver Hain Art + Design inspired by landscapes seen from above. Warm oak, tactile textiles, sculptural lighting and commissioned artworks replace the familiar language of the airport lounge with something more residential. Part terminal, part workplace and part gathering space, the result brings a considered sense of place to every stage of departure and arrival.

BAZ Yacht Design’s 33-metre MOBU 33 challenges the conventions of the performance yacht with an architectural approach shaped around social living. At its centre, a soaring 3.8-metre atrium connects the aft cockpit and main salon, while half-level transitions create an effortless flow between decks. Wide terraces and generous glazing dissolve the boundaries between interior, exterior and sea. The result is a yacht conceived less as a sequence of rooms and more as one fluid environment, bringing a distinctly contemporary sensibility to life on the water.

Kyoto’s creative renaissance is emerging through evolution rather than reinvention. Across fashion, hospitality, food and art, a new generation is drawing on the city’s deep traditions while introducing distinctly contemporary ideas. Textile maker Hosoo is bringing centuries of craft into menswear, historic townhouses are becoming galleries and restaurants, and new hotels reinterpret familiar architectural forms. What connects these projects is a respect for materials, provenance and longevity. As once-separate creative disciplines begin to overlap, Kyoto is shaping a fresh identity without losing the cultural foundations that make it distinctive.

From the polished glamour of Carbone to the intimate charm of Casa Tua, Miami has cultivated an Italian dining scene with a character distinctly its own. Michelin-recognized kitchens sit alongside neighborhood institutions, while coastal cooking, handmade pasta and tableside rituals bring different expressions of Italy to the city. Dōma introduces contemporary energy in Wynwood, Forte dei Marmi channels refined seaside living, and Le Specialità brings Milanese craft to the Design District. Together, they reveal a city where Italian tradition is continually reinterpreted through Miami’s appetite for design, atmosphere and experience.

Set within 31 acres of Berkshire parkland, Chaddleworth House carries a story stretching back centuries. The Grade II-listed Regency residence was built between 1809 and 1811, yet the estate’s lineage reaches to the Norman Conquest. For decades, it was home to Guinness heiress Lady Eliza Mays-Smith, a lifelong racehorse owner closely connected to Lambourn’s celebrated gallops. Now offered for £7 million after some 60 years in the same family, Chaddleworth brings architecture, equestrian culture and English heritage into one quietly remarkable estate.

Each September, Old Forester turns founder George Garvin Brown’s birthday into an annual expression of patience and craft. The 2026 Birthday Bourbon draws from 212 barrels distilled in 2015, aged for 11 years in Warehouse B and bottled at 97 proof. More than a limited release, it shows how heritage can remain desirable when every edition carries its own character. A familiar tradition, subtly reinterpreted each year and made compelling by the simple fact that it cannot be repeated.

At The Wolfsonian-FIU, Foot Notes: Shoes, Symbolism & Society considers footwear as far more than an object of fashion. Across 150 pieces, the exhibition traces how shoes have reflected changing ideas around design, identity, technology and culture since the early 20th century. Highlights range from Salvatore Ferragamo’s 1938 rainbow platforms for Judy Garland to Jeremy Scott’s sculptural Adidas sneakers. Unexpected objects and provocative artworks reveal how something as familiar as a shoe can capture the aesthetics, innovations and social attitudes of its time.

Justin Bieber is giving SKYLRK its first dedicated physical space with a five-day pop-up in Manhattan. Opening at 60 10th Avenue, the store brings the label’s pared-back approach to streetwear off-screen, with apparel, loungewear and accessories expected to fill the space. The timing places fashion alongside one of Bieber’s biggest musical moments of the year, with the pop-up running through his FIFA World Cup Halftime Show appearance. More than temporary retail, it offers a first glimpse at how SKYLRK’s understated visual identity translates into a physical experience.

Bose is leaning into the butter-yellow trend with packaging that brings an unexpected twist to its SoundLink Plus speaker. Created with CNC, the limited-edition seeding kit transforms the familiar box into an oversized block of butter, complete with foil wrapping and a minimal paper sleeve. The concept balances internet humour with Bose’s typically restrained visual language, turning a piece of consumer technology into something deliberately tactile and playful. While the packaging is not available commercially, it demonstrates how a simple cultural reference can give an established product a fresh visual identity.

Aston Martin and Brough Superior bring their two-wheeled collaboration to the road with the AMB 002 Roadster. Designed alongside the Aston Martin Design Studio, the superbike combines a lightweight carbon-fibre body with a 130bhp V-Twin engine and an intricate titanium frame weighing just 5kg. Its sculptural form introduces sharper, more animalistic details, balanced by hand-stitched leather and precisely machined components. Limited to 300 examples and built in Toulouse, the AMB 002 translates Aston Martin’s evolving design language into a machine engineered for open roads.

British luggage maker Globe-Trotter brings the visual language of Formula One to its latest collaboration with Aston Martin Aramco. Limited to 100 pieces, the collection pairs the brand’s signature vulcanised fibreboard with Aston Martin Green, vivid lime stitching and bespoke racing-inspired details. Each case is handcrafted in Hertfordshire, balancing a tradition dating back to 1897 with the precision and energy of contemporary motorsport. Numbered plaques and co-branded finishes complete a collection designed as much for collectors as for life in motion.

The objects we desire are increasingly expected to do more than signal taste. Watches, jewelry, fine wine, classic cars and rare collectibles are being considered for their ability to preserve value as well as tell a story. Scarcity, provenance and cultural relevance give these pieces a significance that extends beyond their material worth. For luxury brands, this signals a broader shift in how value is perceived. The most compelling objects are not simply acquired. They become part of a collection, carrying craftsmanship, identity and meaning from one generation to the next.

Hotel groups spend millions renovating rooms, refreshing interiors and replacing furniture across their portfolios. Much of that work is repeatedly outsourced to designers, procurement specialists, project managers and other external partners. For owners and operators with several properties and a steady pipeline of renovations, Ad Altius proposes a different model: bringing selected functions in-house. A dedicated team can develop deeper knowledge of each property, reuse expertise across projects and reduce reliance on outside suppliers. Over time, recurring renovation spend becomes an investment in capabilities that remain within the hotel group.

If there is one idea connecting this edition, it is that change is accelerating while the need for a clear identity is becoming stronger.

AI will increasingly influence how travelers discover hotels, how experiences are personalised and how brands create and distribute content. Digital tools will make it possible to build, test and adapt ideas faster. Designers will gain new ways to experiment with materials, forms and production.

But faster creation also changes what has value. When polished images, websites and campaigns become easier to produce, simply making more will matter less. Originality will come from the thinking behind them: a distinctive aesthetic, cultural relevance, a sense of place and a clear understanding of what a brand stands for.

We believe the same principle will shape physical hospitality. Historic hotels will evolve without erasing their past. Wellness, work and social life will continue to converge. Technology will become more present but less visible, quietly removing friction while leaving human interaction at the centre of the experience.

For hospitality brands, the question is therefore not how to adopt every new technology. It is where technology genuinely improves the experience, and where the human element should remain untouched.

That distinction will become increasingly important. AI can generate, optimise and distribute. It can help understand preferences and make digital experiences more responsive. But someone still has to decide what deserves attention, what feels right and what should endure.

The mechanisms around a brand will keep changing. Discovery will change. Interfaces will change. Content creation will change. The guest journey will change.

The brand is what has to survive all of them.

Sébastien Félix, Founder and CEO, Influence Society

Influence Society is a creative agency at the intersection of design, technology, and hospitality. We help extraordinary hotels craft compelling brand narratives, blending aesthetics with cutting-edge digital strategies to shape the future of hospitality. Through visionary storytelling, innovative marketing, and deep industry expertise, we empower hotels to stay ahead in an ever-evolving landscape.

Societies Quarterly is a curated exploration of the ideas shaping the future of hospitality. Every insight, trend, and innovation featured here has been carefully selected, with original sources linked for further exploration.

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