Entrepreneurs in the luxury sector emphasize the importance of brand value at Esade Alumni Start-up Day
“Brand value is a must in the luxury sector: it requires time, patience and resources. The functional value of a luxury product or service is a given”, agreed the participants in the panel discussion “Enterprise and investment in the luxury sector” held during Esade Alumni Start-up Day. This event, organized by Esade Alumni and Banc Sabadell BStartup, drew together the entire entrepreneurial ecosystem with support from the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Scheme financed by the European Union and Next GenerationEU funds, and was held not only in Barcelona, but also in Madrid, Seville, Lleida and Girona.
“The secret of luxury brands is the ability to tell genuine stories. It’s essential for customers to understand the story behind the company and the ensuing narrative,” explained Montse Suárez, founder and managing partner of IRIS Ventures. Egle Toia, co-director of the Luxury Management Program at Esade Executive Education, added that “the artist’s vision is an essential part of luxury goods. When someone buys a Chanel product, they’re buying the story of Coco Chanel too. The same may be said of Ferrari and other iconic brands.”
As regards growth and scalability strategies in the luxury sector, Humbert Sasplugas, a former Esade student and co-founder and CEO of PDPAOLA, underlined “the inherent contradiction in this sector: it’s essential to rein in access to these products to ensure they remain exclusive.” Joan Roca, founder and CEO of Essentialist, also emphasized that “hyper-customization” and knowing one’s customers thoroughly are cornerstones of success in this market.
Scale-ups and leadership
The second panel discussion, “Conversations with Heads of Scale-ups”, analyzed the best time to scale up a company. Francesc Font, a former Esade student and co-founder and co-CEO of Incapto Coffee, revealed that “customer feedback” was crucial for pinpointing the right moment to grow, and that “the catalyst was our ability to explain extremely well what we do.” Isaac Sayol, co-founder and CPO of Innovamat, highlighted the importance of a thorough knowledge of the field - mathematics - as the driving force of growth. Finally, Eusebi Llensa, co-founder and CEO of Outvise, added that “as time goes by, you discover your own dynamics – and this facilitates scalability”, whilst the discussion moderator, Yolanda Pérez, director of BStartup and the Business Hub at Banc Sabadell, clarified that “to grow, one must know how to manage teams, generate scalable sales processes and retain talent, amongst other things”.
2024 Best Start-up Award
The event also featured the presentation of the 2024 Best Start-up Award to Apartool, a comprehensive tech solution for corporate accommodation management. This venture, developed in Esade classrooms, received investment from Esade BAN, the Esade Alumni business angel network. Marc Vilar, co-founder and CEO of Apartool and a former Esade student, has maintained links with eWorks, a business creation program operated by the Esade Entrepreneurship Institute, since his graduation. Previous years’ winners of this award, organized by Esade Alumni and Banc Sabadell BStartup, include Wuaki.tv, Visualnet, Wallapop, Red Points, Signaturit, Exoticca and Dogfy Diet.
Start-up Day also featured other start-ups founded by Esade alumni, including Conus Airway, Futurechromes, TrueCold, NEMA Health, Payli and HappySneeze. In addition, the event was attended by the director general of the Cerdà Institute and the director of Moda re- (Càritas) who discussed textile recycling and the challenges that adapting to this need implies for this sector.
