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GBB 2024 E d i t o r ’ s LETTER At last summer’s London Design Biennale, I met Ai-Da, the world ’s first humanoid robot artist. She was drawing crowds to her stand display ing her paintings and ceramics. A robot capable of such c reat iv it y, w it h her eer i ly fle shy-look ing face , would have seemed extraordinar y a year ago, but her presence was an indication of how exponentially fast AI is developing. It ’s no wonder our Great British Brands are watching it closely. Some are eagerly embracing AI, others have l it t le intention of doing so. But a l l brands are ask ing themselves what being human looks l ike in the age of artificia l intel l igence, which is why we chose it as our theme for this edition. And what better way to start interrogating it than with our cover? It is an entirely digita l creation by artist Cameron-James Wilson , who u rge s us to wa ke up to A I – to notice and educate ourselves on what is real and what is not – and to bring humans into the creative space that AI opens up (with caveats). To understand how our cover was created is to open your eyes and your mind, so turn to page 10 to find out more. Journalist Josh Glancy, meanwhile, wondered what the point of him was when ChatGPT-4 appeared to menace his sk i l ls and l ivelihood. For GBB, he examines how much of a threat AI poses to our brands and craftspeople, happily concluding that he thinks we’ l l a lways cherish human originalit y above ‘the grinding efficiency of an a lgorithm’ (p32). AI can analyse what we’re buying and want but, as Steve Jobs said, ‘People don’t know what they want until you give it to them’. The products, ser v ices and sk i l ls throughout this book, c reated t h rough human endeavou r and r i sk-ta k ing, w i l l cont inue to be the ones to surprise, thril l and delight in ways that AI cannot. Our brands are masters of excellence, as reflected in this year’s Great British Brands Awards, which are sponsored by Rathbones, personal wealth and asset managers. Find out on page 16 which brands our judging panel felt most deser v ing 4 | COUNTRYANDTOWNHOUSE.COM/GBB CLOCKWISE FROM ABOVE: Pragnell (p224); Shudu is the world’s first digital supermodel (p10); Garrard (p52) I L S O N WJA M E S C A M ER O N © : S H U D U PH OTO S
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of the stunning silver trophies, designed and crafted by a ver y welcome newcomer to the Great British Brands family, Thomas Lyte. On page 140, British-Iranian writer and broadcaster Kamin Mohammadi e x plore s t he dehumanising a spec t a nd d iv i sivene s s of t he cu r rent pol it ic a l rhetor ic a round migrants and ‘stopping the boats’. Kamin, whose family fled to the UK from Iran during the 1979 revolution, argues that it’s worth remembering that nearly half of Britain’s most innovative start-ups were founded by immigrants and highlights the many, many ways in which they have contributed to our cu lt u re and success. That success no doubt inc ludes the companies that offer optimistic solutions in the face of global challenges, as welcomed by the chair of global intel l igence platform Spring wise, James Bidwell on page 258. Last year saw GBB ’s publisher Countr y & Town House become the fi rst glossy magazine company in the world to achieve B Corp certification, of which we are immensely proud. We’re proud, too, of the many brands who work so hard to reduce their carbon footprint and are dedicated to help rescue our beleaguered planet. After the hottest year on record, this mission must be taken up with more and more v igour – especially when it comes to sustainable consumption. It i s here t hat lu x u r y has a huge role to pl ay i n per suad i ng us to reimagine the world – with regeneration and experience at its heart. On page 52, Diana Verde Nieto, founder of Positive Luxur y and author of just-published Reimagining Luxury, obser ves that the narrative around lu xur y is changing for the better – and that lu xur y and sustainabilit y real ly are t wo sides of the same coin. We are on the cusp of extreme CHANGE, much of it still UNIMAGINABLE. To help brands and companies see themselves as part of this dynamic shift to becoming a force for good, it is well worth look ing to the Yet, the uncompromising pursuit of EXCELLENCE will always resist the erosion of QUALITY that a digital age might usher in FROM ABOVE: Ahluwalia (p140), Daylesford (p80), PoB Hotels (p220) trees, advises regenerative leadership coach Giles Hutchins. He takes business leaders – from brands as diverse as Chloé and Deloitte to McCain and McKinsey – into the woods to help them reconnect and learn from the world ’s greatest teacher, nature, to understand better how to run businesses in a l ignment with the planet rather than opposed to her (p192). We are on the cusp of extreme, swift change, much of it st i l l un imag inable. Yet t he bra nds in this book, while adaptable, a l l demonstrate consistent excellence, born out of creativ it y, originalit y, imagination, innovation and determination. Such uncompromising pursuit of the ver y best will a lways resist the erosion of qualit y that a digita l age might usher in. Our brands a l l aim to nurture personal, lasting relationships and many are building on years – and some, centuries – of expertise and traditional skills. Almost all talk about the importance of supportive teamwork, k indness and respect, fostering new ta lent, close l istening, open-mindedness and care for community and planet. So, however much technolog y and AI transform the landscape, we’ l l continue celebrating and supporting ser v ices and products that have soul, and are delivered and made by dedicated humans who care passionately. AI cannot begin to replace the results of such heartfelt human endeavour. COUNTRYANDTOWNHOUSE.COM/GBB | 5

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GBB 2024

E d i t o r ’ s LETTER

At last summer’s London Design Biennale, I met Ai-Da, the world ’s first humanoid robot artist. She was drawing crowds to her stand display ing her paintings and ceramics. A robot capable of such c reat iv it y, w it h her eer i ly fle shy-look ing face , would have seemed extraordinar y a year ago, but her presence was an indication of how exponentially fast AI is developing. It ’s no wonder our Great British Brands are watching it closely.

Some are eagerly embracing AI, others have l it t le intention of doing so. But a l l brands are ask ing themselves what being human looks l ike in the age of artificia l intel l igence, which is why we chose it as our theme for this edition.

And what better way to start interrogating it than with our cover? It is an entirely digita l creation by artist Cameron-James Wilson , who u rge s us to wa ke up to A I – to notice and educate ourselves on what is real and what is not – and to bring humans into the creative space that AI opens up (with caveats). To understand how our cover was created is to open your eyes and your mind, so turn to page 10 to find out more.

Journalist Josh Glancy, meanwhile, wondered what the point of him was when ChatGPT-4 appeared to menace his sk i l ls and l ivelihood. For GBB, he examines how much of a threat AI poses to our brands and craftspeople, happily concluding that he thinks we’ l l a lways cherish human originalit y above

‘the grinding efficiency of an a lgorithm’ (p32). AI can analyse what we’re buying and want but, as Steve Jobs said, ‘People don’t know what they want until you give it to them’. The products, ser v ices and sk i l ls throughout this book, c reated t h rough human endeavou r and r i sk-ta k ing, w i l l cont inue to be the ones to surprise, thril l and delight in ways that AI cannot.

Our brands are masters of excellence, as reflected in this year’s Great British Brands Awards, which are sponsored by Rathbones, personal wealth and asset managers. Find out on page 16 which brands our judging panel felt most deser v ing

4 | COUNTRYANDTOWNHOUSE.COM/GBB

CLOCKWISE FROM ABOVE: Pragnell (p224); Shudu is the world’s first digital supermodel (p10); Garrard (p52)

I L S O N

WJA M E S

C A M ER O N

©

: S H U D U

PH OTO S

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