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LUX correspondent Lamya Al Saud with Aston Martin’s newest SUV: the DBX S

Aston Martin’s new DBX S is a combination of the world’s most powerful SUV engine and luxury style from the iconic UK manufacturer. LUX’s Lamya Al-Saud takes a ride, passenger princess style, and is regally impressed

I was surprised when LUX asked me to be our correspondent to test the new Aston Martin DBX S in the Dolomites in Italy. The DBX S itself sounded like quite a machine: a new 727-horsepower SUV from one of the world’s most prestigious manufacturers. But the catch was: I can’t drive, despite my parents telling me to get my licence for years. But it wasn’t an issue, my editor said. It would be a test as a passenger. After all, the most important people in cars like this are those going along for the ride, right?

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The drive took place in South Tyrol in northern Italy. The previous night, we had stayed in a delightful hotel in the village of Brixen. Suitably refreshed in the swanky spa, we got up early and hit the road, me in the passenger seat of a black DBX S with a black interior. Shutting the door to my right, its chic, shiny black leather seats had already been warmed up by the car’s technology.

“The DBX S itself sounded like quite a machine: a new 727-horsepower SUV from one of the world’s most prestigious manufacturers”

The leather felt soft to the touch, and in the middle was an elegant screen where you could plug your phone into for directions and music, and of course, buttons for all the car’s functions. I got to work immediately, adjusted the car’s heating, and had our route ready to go.

As my driver gets in the car, I sense my nerves: would this big SUV lurch me around and make me feel ill? The drive started, the roaring engine loud at first, but my driver turned it down, a feature I wasn’t aware existed.

We started down the really daunting, curvy roads of the mountain onto our trail, and my initial nerves settled as I looked around: the sun shining, gorgeous mountain trees, and classic greenery. The longer we drove, the more ice and snow we started to see. We could even see skiers on the slopes, which made me quite excited and also jealous!

“I could actually relax and enjoy the view, sitting in the soft leather seats, surrounded by the calm, warm, and beautifully finished interior”

Aston Martin introduced the DBX S this year as a luxury car with “F1-level performance.” Fortunately, it’s far more comfortable than an F1 car. The DBX S is the most powerful gas-only SUV, hitting 0-62 mph (0-100 km/h) in just 3.3 seconds.

Read more: Grand Hotel Kronenhof Pontresina Review

Upgraded turbochargers give it even more punch, while quad stacked exhausts, a new front splitter, and rear diffuser turn heads. You can go all out with a carbon-fibre roof, honeycomb grille, and 23-inch magnesium wheels to shave weight and boost performance. Bottom line? It’s light, loud, handles like a dream, and is luxurious and classy.

“The DBX S is the most powerful gas-only SUV, hitting 0-62 mph (0-100 km/h) in just 3.3 seconds”

I got to be the passenger princess, enjoying the view, but I was assigned a very important role: passenger DJ. The DBX S comes with Aston Martin’s 800W, 14-speaker Premium Audio system and Apple CarPlay, making it easy to queue up my favourite songs. The sound was incredibly clear and powerful, with deep, rich bass you could feel through the seats and crisp vocals that felt like they were right in front of you.

Read more: Hotel Balzac Paris review

From 70s ballads to current pop songs, I really enjoyed being able to control the music. When “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart” by Elton John and Kiki Dee came on, it sounded especially amazing, the piano was bright and lively, the vocals were perfectly balanced, and the upbeat rhythm filled the entire car, making it feel like we were at a private concert. The quality made the song feel more energetic and immersive, which perfectly matched the drive’s excitement. DJing in a high-speed luxury mobile nightclub, I really did feel like a princess.

“I may not be getting my driver’s licence anytime soon, but if every car ride felt like that, I’d happily stay a passenger forever”

We spent two hours driving through snowy mountain roads, surrounded by some of the most beautiful scenery I’ve ever seen. Normally, I get car sick easily, especially on winding alpine roads. I was nervous. But the DBX S completely surprised me. It was effortlessly smooth. Sharp turns didn’t feel sharp. Steep climbs didn’t feel dramatic. I never felt dizzy or nauseous once, which honestly is the highest praise I can give any car. I could actually relax and enjoy the view, sitting in the soft leather seats, surrounded by the calm, warm, and beautifully finished interior that made the whole drive feel cosy and comfortable.

I may not be getting my driver’s licence anytime soon, but if every car ride felt like that, I’d happily stay a passenger forever. I won’t have mine in Black, but a nice Princess-style Baby Pink from Aston Martin’s “Q by Aston Martin” special orders department, while a rich Burgundy interior will do nicely.

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Photography by Marcus Werner for Aston Martin

Entrepeneur, art patron and collector Alan Lo

Hong Kong-based collector, restaurateur, serial board member, philanthropist and social dynamo Alan Lo speaks about the art scene in Asia, his inspirations, and who’s stirring him right now

LUX: Are private foundations such as the Yenn and Alan Lo Foundation (YAL), which you initiated with your wife Yenn Wong, becoming more important to fill the gap in public funding of the arts?

Alan Lo: The Singapore art landscape is rather top heavy, dominated by National Gallery Singapore (NGS) and Singapore Art Museum (SAM). For the art ecosystem to thrive, we want to see activation across the whole spectrum, and we feel collector- or private patron-driven initiatives, such as YAL Foundation and our new transnational art-project space, Kim Association, exist to help fill a certain void.

Family Tango, 2024, by Skyler Chen, at the Yenn and Alan Lo Foundation

LUX: When it comes to collecting and philanthropy, who do you admire most and why?

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AL: There are so many great collectors and art patrons who have done amazing things, but I have to say my father Victor is of great influence to me. Not only did he build what has become one of the most important 20th-century Chinese-ink collections, he also dedicated more than 15 years to public service, creating M+ in Hong Kong from what was a concept on a government report to what is today – one of the most important museums of contemporary culture in Asia.

Expect Us, 2021, by Puppies Puppies (Jade Guanaro Kuriki-Olivo) at the YAL

LUX: Which two artists excite you most at the moment and why?

AL: Naotaka Hiro is a Japanese-born painter based in the LA. I love the poetry of his work, and he has been getting quite a bit of attention among collectors and institutions. I am also excited about New York-based conceptual artist Puppies Puppies (Jade Guanaro Kuriki-Olivo). She was included in the main exhibition of Venice Biennale 2024, and we inaugurate Kim Association with a presentation of her work, as well as a new performance, in fall 2025.

LUX: Is Singapore becoming the new Hong Kong?

Noise Blanket No 20, 2024, by Jacqueline Kiyomi Gork, at the YAL

AL: Haha, is that a trick question? I think the two cities have very different personalities. Singapore is the hot Switzerland, where you want to open your family office and private bank account and hang out with like-minded high-net-worth Southeast Asians. Hong Kong is where you will take your company public, keep your super yacht (with its beautiful waters and islands), build an art collection, drink DRC (being the only jurisdiction with freeport status) and expand your mainland business network.

Read more: An interview with Anna Nash of Explora Journeys

LUX: What would you like YAL Foundation to have achieved in five years time?

AL: It’s hard to say, but we hope our humble effort will help give things a kick-start and inspire other patrons to bring further activation to make a more vibrant scene, not just in Singapore but in all Southeast Asia.

@yalfoundation

The facade of Grand Hotel Kronenhof, the jewel in the crown of the little village of Pontresina

On a shelf at the confluence of the Engadine, Bernina and Roseg valleys, the Grand Hotel Kronenhof, in the village of Pontresina, combines old-world grandeur, contemporary elegance, astonishing views and some knockout cocktails

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As anyone who reads this publication will know, St Moritz and its surrounding Alpine valleys are getting more desirable by the year. But that doesn’t mean that there are not discoveries within them, and the Kronenhof is most certainly one of them.

The alpine view from Hotel Kronenhof’s lobby lounge

Sitting on a plateau above a deep, forested river gorge, the Kronenhof is the jewel in the crown of the little village of Pontresina –  located at an even more spectacular point than St Moritz itself, a six kilometre, 10-minute drive away.

Read more: Tom Rowntree on modern luxury hospitality

Pontresina sits at the mouth of the Roseg valley, which rises up to reveal dramatic glaciated and snowy peaks year round. From the swimming pool at the Kronenhof through its huge plate-glass windows, you have a fishbowl view of the whole Engadine Valley and the forested mountains lining it.

‘Pontresina sits at the mouth of the Roseg valley, which rises up to reveal dramatic glaciated and snowy peaks year round’

The rooms in public areas can only be described as high mountain high chic. There is a view everywhere you go – and it all feels very integral to nature, not urbanised at all. You can head up the mountain alongside the hotel with a guide to discover ibex hiding in the forest; or take a horse and carriage ride up the valley opposite, towards the glaciers; or hike, mountain bike, trail run, swim in lakes… and slide back into the modern grandeur of the Kronenhof.

Read more: A week of art in Jaipur

Whether you are from Bangkok or Baku, the Belle Époque Grand Restaurant dining room, with its own minstrels’ gallery (unlike anything in, say, Courchevel), will take your breath away. You feel you are in the ballroom of a 19th-century Archduke, except at 1,800 meter altitude. Service is exquisite in the way only heritage Alpine hotels can achieve. We particularly liked the after-dinner cocktails in the sophisticated bar area, and going on to the cigar lounge and pool table.

The Belle Époque Grand Restaurant dining room of Hotel Kronenhof, offering guests a meal in classic yet modern luxury

With staff who seem to know you even if you have never been before (and remember you if you have, however long ago) and an underlying civility, gentility and professionalism that speaks not just to the staff but to the sophistication of the management, for summer, winter, or in between, we can’t recommend it enough.

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Just steps from the Champs-Élysées, Hôtel Balzac brings together a historic building and state-of-the-art design after a complete renovation by Festen Architecture

The Hotel Balzac in Paris combines boutique chic with the feeling of being in a (very sophisticated) friend’s home, as LUX discovers 

Where to stay in Paris this spring? The great hotels of Paris share many qualities: style, grandeur, history, and often a powerful sense of superiority that they really are at the centre of a city unmatched by any other for sophistication.

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What they don’t tend to have, however, is tranquility and this is exactly what you find when you walk in to the Balzac. A quality even more surprising given the hotel’s location just metres off the Champs-Élysées and within throwing distance of a handbag from both the Louis Vuitton flagship and the shops of the 8th.

The lobby at Hôtel Balzac, where you can sip a cocktail or 1930s vintage

The Balzac, on a stylish side street of the same name, welcomes you in with a white tea perfume, a perfectly coiffed doorman swinging the door open for you, and a sense of 1930s-meets-contemporary style that could only emanate from the coolest collection of hotels in Paris.

You sit on white sofas and cut crystal decanters while sipping your welcome cocktail, lime hued, out of a martini glass of similar 1930s vintage (non-alcoholic, but there is an alcoholic version available in the utterly chic bar a few steps away), before being taken up to your room.

Inside Spa Ikoi, a Japanese wellness space brought to the centre of Paris by Hôtel Balzac

Ours was as tranquil as the lobby, every detail so perfectly put together that it could only be in Paris, every detail aimed towards peace and the feeling of a private home. Everything from the late art deco glassware and decanters through to the kettle, hairdryer, light switches… It feels as if you are at the home of a very stylish interior design designer friend whose parents are in fashion and art.

Read more: Tom Rowntree on modern luxury hospitality

It’s well executed too, not just surface detail: the bed is properly comfortable, the stunning bath is not just a page out of Architectural Digest magazine but supremely delicious to be in, the mini bar snacks and drinks comprise only the most artisanal brands which are also delightful to consume.

The rooms are as tranquil as the lobby, with the feeling of a private home

So is this the perfect Paris hotel? That depends a little bit on you and your requirements: if you want to take a group of friends to a flashy restaurant or bar, this is not the place, and nor is it where you take a bunch of investors looking for the flashiest parts of Paris for a business meeting.

But if you’ve been there, done everything flashy, and just want to sink into the spa/design/architectural home of some friends in the heart of the eighth – or feel like you are – there really is no better place.

hotelbalzac.paris

Dave Chen, CEO and Chair of Equilibrium Capital

Dave Chen founded Equilibrium Capital in 2008 after seeing growing interest in how sustainability can help shape the basic economic sectors of the Maslow hierarchy of needs, which include food, water, resources, employment and security. He recognised that climate change was shifting perceptions of asset risk and value. Equilibrium continues to invest in environmentally beneficial companies. LUX speaks to Chen about the challenges of a future blue economy

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Equilibrium Capital has been involved in environmentally responsible investing for nearly two decades, including backing carbon transition infrastructure projects and the development of controlled environment food production such as indoor and greenhouse farming. But the firm isn’t involved in the blue economy as yet. “We are not participants within the ocean economy,” says Chen. The reason is structural rather than ideological.

Ochre starfish among the coral, God’s Pocket, British Columbia, Canada, 2016

“These markets are not ready, and people have to be comfortable with that phrase: it’s not ready,” he says. It’s a bold statement, but one backed up by years of experience: Chen joined McKinsey in 1984, spent nine years at OVP General Partners and is an Adjunct Professor of Finance at the Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University. His starting point is to separate who deploys capital and why.

Read more: How Louis Roederer champagne leads in biodiversity

Government and philanthropic capital can be rewarded through social and ecological outcomes. But investor money needs monetary returns. And too often, he argues, “people just mash this all together.” That distinction becomes decisive at sea – what Chen calls the classic “commons”. And the blue economy struggles to prove its return on investment because it can’t decide on its unit of measure. Even the most mature environmental market, carbon, largely functions as fragmented regional compliance systems, not a single global market, he says.

‘Catalysing blue investment, in Chen’s telling, means basics first’

Chen believes that carbon also holds a lesson for oceans: that voluntary schemes underperform, so rules matter. “Successful examples of carbon markets tend to be highly specific, highly regional and regulated, using the law to create a market that thrives,” he says. He points out that there are some examples of that already in the blue economy, including in US watersheds such as the Mississippi River, where there are emerging traded market mechanisms.

For the rest of us, the future is dependent on investment – and investors need to see clarity on what’s being bought and sold. Catalysing blue investment, in Chen’s telling, means basics first. Governments need to set compliance-grade frameworks and standardise units. Banks can then underwrite and scale regulated pilots where rules, measurement and enforcement exist. Businesses can operate inside those regimes and prove their durability, project by project. It sounds simple, but it’s something that market participants in the blue economy have tried to duck to date, according to Chen. “Human beings don’t like being told that they have to do the basics,” he explains. “There’s no quick, easy answer.”

Photography for the UBS x LUX Blue Economy series by Cristina Mittermeier

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“It is time for nature to be accounted for on balance sheets” – Karen Sack

Having held leadership roles at Greenpeace International, The Pew Charitable Trusts and previously served as CEO of Ocean Unite – which she co-founded with Richard Branson and José María Figueres – Karen Sack has spent the past three decades at the forefront of global campaigns to protect the oceans through conservation, law and policy. LUX speaks to Sack about her current role as Co-founder and Executive Director of Ocean Risk and Resilience Action Alliance

Small skiffs or fishing boats rarely sail alone. It’s a notion that underpins a core strategy at ORRAA, which is working to build an effective capital market for the ocean. ORRAA’s Sea Change Impact Financing Facility – or Sciff – is a collection of financial instruments that work together “like a flotilla”.

Karen Sack, Co-founder and Executive Director of Ocean Risk and Resilience Action Alliance

From providing a guarantee facility to de-risk investments, to building a robust and transparent blue bond market, these innovative products combine to address what Sack describes as the “missing middle” in the blue economy, where “so many amazing innovations falter as they try to bridge the gap between grant funding and return-seeking investment.”

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To grow this nascent market, Sack says, “we need to be patient with capital and impatient with action.” Sciff is just one part of a multi-pronged effort that reaches from “the boardroom to the beachfront”.

Ocean conservation action must reach from “the boardroom to the beachfront” – Karen Sack

In the boardroom, ORRAA is driving the #BackBlue Ocean Finance Commitment, a UN-backed campaign to ensure that a regenerating and sustainable ocean has a seat at the table in finance and insurance decisions. The cumulative value of assets under management by current endorsers of #BackBlue amounts to $3.45 trillion. “We are now focused on building out this work to identify the ‘red line’ no-go investment areas and ‘blue line’ opportunities for institutional investors to lean into,” says Sack.

Read more: How Louis Roederer champagne leads in biodiversity

On the beachfront, ORRAA is taking steps to catalyse investment flows into the communities that need them most. Its Innovation and Product Pipeline initiative provides early-stage grants to help incubate, innovate and accelerate the development of finance and insurance products that invest in coastal and ocean natural capital.

“Short-term profit does not overshadow long-term community health and Earth system vitality”

Since 2021, it has supported 50 projects in 30 countries through $20 million in grants. “Entrepreneurs in underserved countries often face limited opportunities to scale ventures,” says Sack. “Just tens of thousands of dollars – a relatively small amount of capital – can do big things.”

Sack is optimistic about the direction of travel, but is aware that the window for action is closing fast. She argues that integrating social returns, biodiversity-positive outcomes and climate resilience as fundamental elements of success can ensure that short-term profit does not overshadow long-term community health and Earth system vitality.

“Investors need to recognise ocean health as material to portfolios,” says Sack. “It is time for nature to be accounted for on balance sheets.”

Photography for the UBS x LUX Blue Economy series by Cristina Mittermeier

oceanriskalliance.org

The new Six Senses opening in the iconic Whiteley, London, fitted with 109 rooms and suites, along with 14 Six Senses Residences, spa, and fitness centre

As VP of the luxury portfolio of Six Senses owner IHG, Tom Rowntree is at the cutting edge of modern luxury hospitality. He speaks to LUX about how to keep the future both luxurious and Zen

LUX: Tell us more about the Six Senses in London and the members’ club?

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Tom Rowntree: The Whiteley is an iconic building, and we are delighted to be opening a Six Senses here. It will be landmark moment for both Six Senses and IHG. There will be a signature 109 rooms and suites, along with 14 Six Senses Residences, a signature Six Senses Spa, and over 325 square meter fitness centre, complete with a 20-meter indoor pool.

Tom Rowntree at the Regent Taste Studio premiere, which fuses fine art and culinary craft

Six Senses Place is a part of this and will be our first private members club. It is designed around ‘a new rhythm for the city’. A place where members and hotel guests can join a community to heal, gather, learn, and feel a sense of belonging.

LUX: How do you integrate art and food into your experiences?

TR: Regent Taste Studio is the perfect example of this. It is a series of pop-up culinary experiences inspired by art, design and culture. These are immersive experience where the chefs from our properties around the world collaborate with artists, designers and musicians to curate one of a kind extraordinary dining moments that engage our guests on a multi-sensory level that goes far beyond the realms of art or food individually.

A dining moment at IHG’s Regent Hong Kong

LUX: You are now catering to multigenerational travel. Tell us more.

TR: With the birth this year of Gen B, for the first time ever we are seeing 7 generations travelling. A key element of that is multi-gen travel and skip-gen, such as grandparents travelling with grandchildren.

Read more: A week of art in Jaipur

From a product perspective, we are looking at room, suite and villa configurations – a great example is Regent Phu Quoc that has four- and seven-bedroom villas and also the flexibility to connect villas, ensuring families have space but can come together.

The Six Senses opening this year at the Whiteley comes with a signature Six Senses Spa, and over 325 square meter fitness centre, complete with a 20-meter indoor pool

Additionally, we’re seeing growth in a younger, more experience-focused consumer. Millennials aged 30 to 44 years now comprise the highest penetration of luxury seekers, followed by Gen Z. Combined, Millennials and Gen Z now make up ~45% of luxury spend.

What this means is that when we design our brands and their guest experience, we’re designing for the guest of yesterday, today and tomorrow all at the same time. This makes things more inclusive and diverse than ever, a big challenge, but also an immense opportunity. It’s exciting.

IHG’s InterContinental Shanghai Wonderland: a luxury hotel located in Songjiang, at the root of Shanghai

LUX: You have a one week all expenses paid holiday in one IHG property with your partner. Which one do you choose and why?

Read more: Where art becomes ocean conservation

What a great question. It has to be Six Senses Vana, a dedicated wellness retreat in the Indian Himalayas. Day to day, Flavien and I are both so busy, operating on autopilot. We seem to live our lives in 30-minute diary appointments. I think we’d both benefit from the time to just be present with one another and within one of the world’s quieter corners. I’ve also always been curious about the principles of ayurveda, something Vana does especially well.

The Six Senses Kyoto, where the design is inspired by the Tale of Genji and ancient folklore

LUX: Six Senses is a powerful modern luxury brand. How do you ensure it retains that power under corporate ownership?

TR: It really is and we are working hard and focussed on ensuring we retain all that is special, whilst evolving for the future. Each of our brands is designed around a clear purpose and a unifying and unique set of hallmarks.

With Six Senses, we are considered and always intentional. It is a brand that has always been slightly maverick and quirky. That personality hasn’t changed, nor has its ethos and philosophy. Being part of the IHG family has enabled Six Senses to achieve even greater performance. The relationship is symbiotic, and it occupies a unique and special place in our luxury and lifestyle portfolio.

sixsenses.com