Shoptalk Luxe 2026: An interview with Kerzner International CEO Philippe Zuber
At ShopTalk Luxe 2026, I spoke with Philippe Zuber, CEO of Kerzner International. His portfolio covers 20 resorts, 17,000 colleagues and four brands: Atlantis, One&Only, the science-led fitness brand SIRO, and Rare Finds, the experience-led brand behind the Bab Al Shams desert resort outside Dubai. The group's scale and range give him an unusual view of how luxury consumers are changing, and of what retailers could be doing better.
Measuring emotion, not footfall
Zuber's central idea was that retail at Kerzner is never an afterthought. Shopping malls measure success by square metres and footfall. He talks about "return on emotion": how much a shop adds to a guest's overall journey. Hospitality has a big advantage here. A shopper who spends an hour in a store is doing well, but Kerzner guests stay more than four nights on average. That gives his teams an unmatched view of how guests actually live: what they eat for breakfast, when they like to shop, and what they wear to dinner or on the tennis court.
This is why he sees the supposed shift from luxury goods to luxury experiences as less clear-cut than people assume. The two are increasingly intertwined. When One&Only launched in 2002, it used a fashion lens, with a striking black-and-white campaign featuring Christy Turlington, at a time when no hospitality brand thought that way. At Atlantis The Royal, which opened with a Beyoncé performance, retail is built into the experience from the arrival drive to the champagne and dinner afterwards. A brand that joins a resort has to fit into the guest's journey, not compete with it.
Wellness as the new luxury
SIRO shows where things are heading. Most hotels focus on two things, sleep and food. SIRO adds recovery, mindfulness and fitness as a social activity. About 40% of its guests are women, drawn by bookable classes that match their routines at home. Zuber believes consumers are moving away from luxury things towards luxury rooted in evidence and emotional reward: not just living longer, but living better.
Why One&Only will stop at 35
He surprised me by capping One&Only at 35 properties. His reasoning is that ultra luxury depends on control. The brand's president must be able to visit every resort each year, meet the owners and staff, and judge the quality of the property in person. You can't do that with 100 hotels.
Humans make the difference
Personalisation, he argued, will transform hospitality over the next decade, and it starts with people, not scripts. One&Only's "We Create Joy" philosophy trains staff to adapt to each guest's mood and pace, while treating privacy as non-negotiable. Technology will help, but people will always be what makes the difference.
The lesson for retailers
Asked what luxury retailers should take from Kerzner's success, Zuber was clear. They need to get involved early, while the resort's master plan is still being drawn up, not after it opens. With 19 more resorts in the pipeline, that is a real opportunity. Retailers should design immersive spaces rather than recreate mall stores. They should also stock for the season, since the Christmas crowd is very different from summer guests. And because stays are long, even a guest who only handles a product may remember the brand for years.
In short, he wants partners, not tenants.
NB: This summary was AI Generated. The entire interview can be watched here.