Carbonleo CEO and Royalmount visionary Andrew Lutfy recently had the pleasure of chatting with international fashion news outlet The Business of Fashion about the Royalmount project. The article will be followed in coming months by a BoF report, in collaboration with Royalmount, that will explore opportunities for next-generation luxury retail in an increasingly digitised world.

Read a summary of the interview here, which focuses particularly on the place of physical retail in the digital world, along with the three strategic pillars of the Royalmount project.

To read the full interview, visit businessoffashion.com. Please note that a subscription is required to access this article.

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As the popularity of e-commerce drops back to pre-pandemic levels, many businesses are seeing the resurgence of brick-and-mortar retail. These businesses now have an incredible opportunity to rethink their in-store customer approach with new, digitally driven and immersive experiences. Royalmount is expressly designed with this in mind, aiming to redefine the way customers shop by combining digital optimization with the experiential opportunities offered by physical space.

The Royalmount experience, unlike any in the world, will be made possible via three strategic pillars at the core of every component of the project: urban green living, inclusive luxury and supercharged connectivity. Find out more in these three excerpts from Andrew's interview.

‍On urban green living
"Royalmount is a 100 percent carbon neutral, a 100 percent pedestrian, mixed-use development with direct access to Montreal’s metro.

I truly believe the future is fewer cars, and more public transport and cycling. As much as we'll have lots of parking, it's 100-percent pedestrian onsite. There's no conflict between man and machine."

‍On inclusive luxury
‍"You may not remember the belt you bought 10 years ago, but you will remember the experience of buying it.

(That's why) for every myopic component of the project, there is a design room or atelier dedicated to the experience. When the plans are printed, we agonise over every detail, what the guests are going to experience to ensure it's as magical as possible."

‍On supercharged connectivity
"At the end of the day, what all brands want are deeper and more meaningful relationships  with their customers. The most profound relationships are the omni-relationships — not purely physical and not purely digital but a fusion of the two. That is ultimately where you have the highest customer lifetime value and the least amount of churn."