As the General Manager of Publicis 133 LUX, Jae Soh is no stranger to the world of luxury. Here, he speaks to Singapore Tatler about creativity, luxury codes, and the creative icons that inspire him.   

What are some of the most creative luxury brands today? 

Montblanc. By using the powerful tool of storytelling to encapsulate its rich heritage and legacy spanning 90 years, Montblanc cleverly chronicles its story via its evocative “I Tell Stories” integrated campaign. It leverages mutil-awarded Hollywood A-lister Hugh Jackman as a storyteller. Luxury brands use celebrities all the time, of course. But Montblanc took it to another level. The poignant narrative by Hugh juxtaposes his young and grown-up self sharing his life story incorporating shots of him writing with his Montblanc pen on white linen paper. The poignant 60-second film commercial ends with the eloquent line: “I’ve been telling tatler_tatler_stories since 1924. I am the Montblanc Meisteruck.” It’s only then that it hits the viewer that the Hugh’s voice is Montblanc’s and Hugh’s story is also the story of Montblanc’s – one rooted in years of passion, dedication and hard work.

Another brilliant one that comes to mind is Burberry. In 2012 Burberry launched a digital campaign aimed at reinforcing the the brand’s digital luxury positioning, ensuring consistency of experience and enriching the depth and accessibility of that experience in keeping with evolving consumer expectations. And I am not talking about a digital website overhaul. Burberry embraced the digital revolution and transformed its customer retail experience. That year, the brand transformed their flagship store on Regent Street (London) into, essentially, a walk-in digital space or digital closet, if you will. The line between physical and digital space was completely blurred. There were interactive mirrors – as in when customers took something from the clothes hanger, they waltk toward the mirror to see how it looked on them and immediately the mirror showed a simulated fashion runway. Imagine how that felt like for customers! That experience alone, among others inside the Burberry boutique, was a trail blazer. In a sense, it basically changed how other luxury brands and discerning customers looked at retail. Everyone followed after.

Who would you consider a creative person and why?

Cliché as it sounds, a creative person has to think outside the box. You have to get out of your comfort zone, even do reverse engineering if you have to as well as defy all conventions. It doesn’t matter what job role you have on the team. You have to convert a client brief riddled with brand attributes, hard facts and figures into a potent product experience that the consumers can emotionally connect with. It all boils down to this: luxury is experiential. 

What do luxury iconic brands like Hermes, Cartier, Laduree, Rolls-Royce, Maserati, Chanel, Prada, Louis Vuitton, and YSL have in common? Behind all these historic brands are creative people made up of passionately dedicated leaders with a global vision and artisans who inherently possess an eye for detail – all working together toward the one and only one mission: deliver an exceptional product experience to their discerning customers. 

Think of the iconic Steve Jobs and his brilliant brainchild – iPad, iPhone, iPod, iMac, Macbook Air etc. He made the phrase “user-friendly” into a maxim that customers who have experienced Apple products become lifetime Apple loyalists.

Which designers and artists inspire you?

The icons I find very inspiring are: the late French fashion designer Mr Yves Saint Laurent and ace fashion photographers Mert Alas & Marcus Piggott. 

They are all visionaries, way ahead of their time. They are trailblazers. They are not afraid to express themselves through their work. These three avant-garde artists single-handedly shaped the future of their respective fields in their own time and in their own way. 

People have labeled Yves Saint Laurent as ‘rebellious’ and ‘controversial’. The truth is he never shied away from controversies and he embraced rebellion. A true fashion powerhouse by himself, who was not afraid to rock the boat, so to speak. He will be remembered for his signature pieces like the sheer blouse and the jumpsuit (who would have thought that a jumpsuit could look and feel so glamorous!) as well as women’s tailored blazers, smoking jackets and pea coat.

I couldn’t agree more with fashion historian and writer Caroline Rennolds Milbank when she wrote in 1985: "The most consistently celebrated and influential designer of the past twenty-five years, Yves Saint Laurent can be credited with both spurring the couture's rise from its sixties ashes and with finally rendering ready-to-wear reputable." Yves Saint Laurent is also credited for introducing the tuxedo suit for women and was known for his use of non-European cultural references, and non-white models.

In the world of fashion photography, Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott are the ‘dynamic duo’. Their aesthetic is highly polished, colour-saturated and hyperreal. Overall, I’d characterize their work anthology as inventive, unconventional and disruptive. Mert and Marcus work together collaboratively. Mert’s background is in classical music while Marcus’ is in graphic design. They pioneered the use of digital manipulation in their fields. They are known for their portraits of sophisticated, powerful women.  Mert once described their collaboration: “The difference between us and other photographers is that we care a lot about appearance. We spend most of the time in the make-up and hairstyling rooms.”

How do you go about mining creative inspiration?

I don’t think there is such a thing as going about “mining creative inspiration”, to be honest. Inspiration is everywhere. It all depends on what you’re looking for and if you know what you’re looking for in the first place. I believe it (“mining creative inspiration”) is tied to a process. There are plenty of factors and, oftentimes, people involved in that process. Multiple Nobel Prize awardee Linus Carl Pauling (a renowned American chemist) once said: “The best way to get a good idea is to have lots of ideas.” So my mantra is: don’t limit yourself to what you can do or can achieve. Go as far as your mind lets you.

In my line of work, I travel a lot and have seen outstanding works of luxury powerhouses.  I have also experienced first hand a diverse range of luxury brands, products and services. Publicis 133 LUX is about communicating “luxury” to discerning consumers. Experience is the best teacher. In order to convey messages to these consumers, one has to truly understand luxury and speak its language.

What I have noticed in all my travels is that designer goods are no longer just about the label alone. The luxury environment is fast traversing into experience (such as my Burberry and Montblanc examples). So it’s no longer just about the product. It’s about the temple, the ritual and the entire experience. In the past, consumers walked into a boutique, chose a product, paid and left. But now, when they go in, there will be a specific ritual that the staff will talk to you about, tell you the (brand / product) story in a very subtle way and that is experience. It’s not a sales talk in other words.

Experience is intangible and very personal. So, yes, some of the best ideas we come up with at Publicis 133 LUX come from our core expertise and our own experiences, and we convert these know-how into ideas that will help our clients to tell tatler_tatler_stories, engage and create sustainable growth in the category.