The Future of Travel

QUO CEO David Keen speaks to Riccardo Tessaro of Gravity Co-living about how the shift in young professionals’ needs and urban isolation are shaping post-Covid spaces.Hybrid Lives with David Keen is a limited podcast series from QUO.  In each episode, David engages space-makers from around the world to discuss the evolving role of places. Join us in considering the impact our increasingly multifaceted lives have on the places we work, sleep and gather. 

Hans Meyer, co-founder and managing director of Zoku,  and David Keen discuss the shift in working spaces, corporate culture clash, and post-Covid outlook on the real estate industry.Hybrid Lives with David Keen is a limited podcast series from QUO.  In each episode, David engages space-makers from around the world to discuss the evolving role of places. Join us in considering the impact our increasingly multifaceted lives have on the places we work, sleep and gather. 

Rob Wagemans, founder of Concrete Architectural Associates, speaks with David about designing spaces that blur lines and test boundaries.   Hybrid Lives with David Keen is a limited podcast series from QUO.  In each episode, David engages space-makers from around the world to discuss the evolving role of places. Join us in considering the impact our increasingly multifaceted lives have on the places we work, sleep and gather. Concrete website: concreteamsterdam.nlEpisode 2 on YouTube: bit.ly/HybridLives2

David joins Hamza Khan, co-founder of Letswork, to ponder the future of where—and how—the world works.  Hybrid Lives with David Keen is a limited podcast series from QUO.  In each episode, David engages space-makers from around the world to discuss the evolving role of places. Join us in considering the impact our increasingly multifaceted lives have on the places we work, sleep and gather. Letswork website: letswork.ioEpisode 1 on YouTube: bit.ly/HybridLives1

David and IHCL’s Veetika Deoras wax philosophical in this episode. They discuss India’s gradual unlocking, and potential sidestepping an all-but-certain second wave of infections. They ponder the virus as a catalyst for change and introspection amongst consumers in a country where rapid tech adoption is democratising knowledge, even in the most rural places. And of course, these two avid philosophers eventually come round to the ontology of brand. And of how a brand’s purpose is nothing without action.

Andrew Fay, President of The Gettys Group, beams in from Chicago to chat with David in this episode. The long-time friends and fellow Cornell grads cast a wide net: the state of Brand America; business as a force for good; the perks and pains of being grounded. And that’s all in the first few minutes. Will 2020 turn out to be an accelerator for the hospitality industry? Andrew is carefully optimistic. Tech adoption rates have soared broadly over the last few months, and our industry is no exception. He expects to see hotels bringing the outdoors in through biophilic design and highly purified air. But in the end, he reminds us, a focus on what really matters now will be the greatest driver of future success.

In this episode, Catherine is joined by David Abraham, co-founder of Outpost—a network of co-living, co-working and social spaces for location-independent professionals. A long-time remote-worker himself, David shares how an afternoon at a Tokyo Starbucks sparked the idea for Outpost. He discusses the key drivers of what he calls the ‘remote revolution’, the trend of offices becoming less about physical spaces and more about networks. In David’s view, the COVID-19 pandemic validates the grand experiment: remote work is viable. From that, we can estimate the standard workweek will evolve, as will business travel. Rather than business leading leisure, he expects to see more leisure travellers taking their business with them. And for hospitality players targeting remote workers, their offerings must resonate with the brand. Providing a desk alone just isn’t enough anymore.

In this episode, David is joined by Mark Hehir, General Manager of the new Ritz Carlton Maldives in the Fari Islands, an ambitious project that represents a new concept of high-end luxury for hospitality. Mark has been active in the Maldives since 1997 and brings a breadth of expertise and experience to the conversation. He and David discuss the trajectory of tourism in the Maldives over the last two decades—and why it is that the Maldives is such a fertile ground for innovation.

Old friend and fellow travel lover, Rob Hornman, discusses the differences between travel and tourism with David. He says real travel is about taking your time, enjoying the chance to explore a place, meeting local people and exploring. Food in particular has shaped many of Rob’s travel experiences, offering a window into the true rituals and culture of the destination. Having not lived in his home country of the Netherlands for many years, he says his communities are global. You simply live your life and carry on that life in the different places you visit. The ability to do this has been a key thing he's missed during the current COVID-19 crisis.