NXTLVL Experience Design

About Melissa Gonzalez:LinkedIn:  linkedin.com/in/melissagonzalezlionesqueWebsites:lionesquegroup.com  (Company Website) melissagonzalez.com  (Personal Website)Email: mg@lionesquegroup.comTwitter:MelsStylesLionesqueGroupBio: Melissa Gonzalez is a successful American entrepreneur, author and founder of The Lionesque Group, an award-winning creative strategy firm, and Clark, an interactive platform which empowers consumers to connect with digital and physical brand experiences. She draws on her success as a former Wall Street Executive, advising high-level entrepreneurs on how to grow their businesses by leading with innovation and creativity.Additionally, she shares her unique business insights in inspirational keynotes leaving audiences enlightened and energized.Building bespoke brand experiences, Melissa advises businesses on how to build custom brand experiences, converting customers to clients and creating a better brand experience for their target audience. Based on her career as a creative strategist, entrepreneur and CEO, Melissa knows the nuances of building a successful business and growing it.According to Melissa, a better brand begins with strategy. She helps businesses tell their most compelling stories through immersive experiences that both engage and elevate their brands and customers. Melissa is an award-winning innovator and a seasoned visionary. In 2016, she was awarded Design:Retail’s 40 under 40, an award for the retail design industry’s top young professionals and up-and-coming future leaders. In addition, she was awarded the Innovator of the Year for pop-up retail experiences by Retail Touchpoints in 2015. Finally, she was honored with the CLIO Image Award for experiential engagement in 2014, and she was a finalist for the New York Design Award for marketing and branded experiences.In 2019, The Lionesque Group was one of the finalists in One Show Awards for Experiential Design and Indoor Spaces. Additionally, it was shortlisted in The Glossy Awards for Best Pop-Up/New Concept Store in 2018. The Lionesque Group is a firm consisting of award-winning retail strategists and pop up architects™ who have produced and strategized over 150 brick-and-motar experiences in the United States’ larger cities since 2009. Clark is an interactive platform that empowers customers to connect their in-store and online shopping experiences using digital wireless personal shopping keys. Clark creates seamless shopping by making it possible for customers to review and purchase products they discovered in-store. Melissa Gonzalez has worked with major brands and clients counting Amazon, Estee Lauder, YUM brands, COTY, Intel and others such as property groups, including Steiner & Associates and GGP Properties (now Brookfield).Episode Intro:Back in the early 2000s the world of digital online shopping was beginning to emerge and the.com craze was all around us. Retailers were exploring new avenues into connecting with their customers including online shopping, outlet stores and looking to merge the world of digital and physical retailing. New formats like pop-up shops were emerging into the market and I remember fashion designers like Isaac Mizrahi, who had a connection with Target, created one of the first pop-up stores in the Hamptons that set this idea on a path that continues to grow today as a viable way to bring clients new experiences. Pop shops are great because they allow for experimentation, exploring new formats and creating great marketing buzz, they are emotionally connected to FOMO  - the Fear Of Missing Out, and shown to increase both in store and online sales, and more than ever they’re short lifespan seems to perfectly aligned with an emerging market of consumers for whom ephemeral experiences seem to be part of their every day expectations about connecting to Brands.While all this was going on in 2009 a Wall Street executive decides to take on some more creative endeavors and launch a company that focuses on the development of pop-up shops. Melissa Gonzalez describes his departure from her role as the Vice President of Equity Sales at Merriman Capital as “a good accident.” Didn’t that has allowed her to grow an extremely successful company working with multiple international high-powered brands creating experience moments to engage guests.Melissa Gonzalez, is now the founder and CEO of the Lion’esque Group an award-winning creative strategy firm, and Clark, an interactive platform which empowers consumers to connect with digital and physical brand experiences. She is also a successful author and public speaker.Melissa has won a number of awards including Design:Retail’s 40 under 40 in 2016. In addition, she was awarded the Innovator of the Year for pop-up retail experiences by Retail Touchpoints in 2015. Finally, she was honored with the CLIO Image Award for experiential engagement and she was a finalist for the New York Design Award for marketing and branded experiences.Speaking on topics such as the future of retail strategy and living in a phygital world, she presents the latest trends impacting the future and thought-provoking ideas on how to integrate the digital landscape with physical improvements. She is looking at today’s consumers and how they affect the market. About David Kepron:linkedin.com/in/david-kepron-9a1582bWebsites:retail-r-evolution.com  (Company Website)vmsd.com/taxonomy/term/8645  (Blog)Email:david.kepron@retail-r-evolution.comTwitter:DavidKepron The NXTLVL Experience Design podcast is presented by VMSD magazine and Smartwork Media. It is hosted and executive produced by David Kepron. Our original music and audio production is by Kano Sound. The content of this podcast is copywrite to David Kepron and NXTLVL Experience Design. Any publication or rebroadcast of the content is prohibited without the expressed written consent of David Kepron and NXTLVL Experience Design.Make sure to tune in for more NXTLVL “Dialogues on DATA: Design Architecture Technology and the Arts” wherever you find your favorite podcasts and make sure to visit vmsd.com and look for the tab for the NXTLVL Experience Design podcast there too.

ABOUT Winston Fisher:LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/winstonfisher/Twitter: https://twitter.com/Winston_Fisher1Website: https://area15.comSHOW INTRO:If you’ve been to Las Vegas you’d think that everything happens on the strip. Vegas is the gambling and entertainment meca of the US (maybe the world). With all of its glitz, showgirls, music and magic acts, hotels created to look like they were plucked from Venice or Paris or just some other planet, it would be easy to say that the strip is were its at.But if you care to venture off the strip, you could go to say Hover dam an engineering marvel or maybe to Area 51 and try to get a glimpse of alien craft or some other secret military activity. But then you cold go not so far to Area15 a new NEXT-Gen Experiential mall that opened this past fall. Trust me thought Area 15 and Area 51 are indeed curiosities worth seeing if you are into something new.Developer Winston Fisher and a team of highly creative designers, architects, chefs, retailers, and digital experience makers transformed a 200,000 square foot lot into a playground that melds great restaurants -including a venue by Todd English, digital experiences, retail, performance spaces, a bar under a 23 foot high Japanese maple tree with dazzling LED lights woven into the canopy. You can zip line through ceiling space overlooking the facility and book the venue for your own events. This place is magical and simply fun in a way that we have not often seen before.Massive art installations are reminiscent of Burning Man and there are shows with performance artists that rival the strip. This, you could say, is the re-making of the mall experience. At Area15, retail is not dead, as is often said, it is very much alive in a whole new way.Winston Fisher, the CEO of Area 15, joins us today to talk about a new approach to story telling in a space that is a cross over from traditional… anything. This just may be the beginning of the re-definition of place making for a cohort of emerging shoppers whose expectations about what branded relationships are all about have shifted.Welcome Winston…ABOUT DAVID KEPRON:Website: https://www.davidkepron.comLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-kepron-9a1582b/Instagram: davidkepron and NXTLVL_experience_designTwitter: @davidkepron  The NXTLVL Experience Design podcast is presented by VMSD magazine and Smartwork Media. It is hosted and executive produced by David Kepron. Our original music and audio production is by Kano Sound. The content of this podcast is copywrite to David Kepron and NXTLVL Experience Design. Any publication or rebroadcast of the content is prohibited without the expressed written consent of David Kepron and NXTLVL Experience Design.Make sure to tune in for more NXTLVL “Dialogues on DATA: Design Architecture Technology and the Arts” wherever you find your favorite podcasts and make sure to visit vmsd.com and look for the tab for the NXTLVL Experience Design podcast there too.

ABOUT JOHN VERVAEKE:LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-vervaeke-a910992/Twitter: https://twitter.com/vervaeke_john Website: http://johnvervaeke.comVideos: https://www.youtube.com/user/johnvervaeke JOHN VERVAEKE Bio:Associate Professor at University of TorontoJohn Vervaeke is an Assistant Professor in Cognitive Psychology and Cognitive Science at the University of Toronto where he teaches courses in three areas:1. Cognitive Psychology on thinking and reasoning, higher cognition, and cognitive development2. Cognitive Science program on integrating the work done in psychology, artificial intelligence, neuroscience, linguists, and philosophy to try and tackle central problems about the nature of cognition.3. Buddhism, Psychology, and Mental Health programon the intersection between Buddhism and Cognitive Science, and on the scientific basis of mindfulness meditation.Has 50 episode series called “Awakening From the Meaning Crisis” on YouTubeHis work constructs a bridge between science and spirituality in order to understand the experience of meaningfulness and the cultivation of wisdom so as to afford awakening from the meaning crisis.”He has won and been nominated for several teaching awards including:the 2001 Students’ Administrative Council and Association of Part-timeUndergraduate Students Teaching Award for the Humanitiesthe2012Ranjini Ghosh Excellence in Teaching Award.He has publishedarticles on relevance realization, general intelligence, mindfulness,metaphor, and wisdom.His abiding passion is to address themeaning crisis that besets western culture. SHOW INTRO:"I’m sitting across the room from my son who is listening to a Ted talk. As I listen I’m struck by the discussion with subjects from Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, ritual, cognitive science, Buddhism and the Meaning Crisis.I stop what I’m doing and I ask “who is it that you’re listening to?”Answer: ‘oh it’s this guy named John Veraeke. He’s killin,’ he’s really got it figured out.’During my years as an architecture student at McGill University I became fascinated with the idea of a ritual by attending architecture history and theory lectures by Alberto Perez Gomez. Participation in ritual establishes a sense of context and through that context meaning, meaning about who we are in relation to ourselves, our culture, nation and where we stood in some cosmological relationship to the universe.I have had a deep interest in psychology, cognitive science and in the past 10 years, as I was creating retail stores and hotels, neuroscience and why coming to understand more about the brain would lead me, and the brands I worked for,  to create more effective and relevant brand experience places.Recently, studying concepts around the pace of change, our ability to adapt, and an emerging cohort of experience seekers for whom digitally immersive experience was a key driver to the adoption of Brand have occupied brain space, been the subject of lectures and presentations and blog posts. So, it is not so surprising that the work of my guest Jon Vervaeke has been so deeply resonant.John Vervaeke is an Associate Professor at U of Toronto where he teaches courses for three programs including:Cognitive Psychology on thinking and reasoning, higher cognition, and cognitive development, the Cognitive Science program on integrating the work done in psychology, artificial intelligence, neuroscience, linguists, and philosophy to try and tackle central problems about the nature of cognition, And to round things out he teaches in the Buddhism, Psychology, and Mental Health program on the intersection between Buddhism and Cognitive Science, and on the scientific basis of mindfulness meditation.It is said that his work constructs a bridge between science and spirituality in order to understand the experience of meaningfulness and the cultivation of wisdom so as to afford awakening from the meaning crisis.”Has 50 episode series called “Awakening From the Meaning Crisis” on YouTube which will blow your mind because of its depth and provocative assertions. He has won and been nominated for several teaching awards and has published articles on relevance realization, general intelligence, mindfulness, metaphor, and wisdom.His passion, is to address themeaning crisis that besets western culture.Throughout the first season of the NXTLVL Experience Design podcast there has always been a subtext to the discussion that has been ‘what does it all mean?’  ‘What will the component parts of emerging Brand experiences be to allow them to remain relevant to a new cohort of experience seekers who are holy different than anything that has come before them?’So, I am both honored and delighted that John Vervaeke is a guest to help us unpack some of these concepts that underpin the world of making and creating meaningful relationships to our brands, communities, and each other." ABOUT DAVID KEPRON:Website: https://www.davidkepron.comLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-kepron-9a1582b/Instagram: davidkepron and NXTLVL_experience_designTwitter: @davidkepron The NXTLVL Experience Design podcast is presented by VMSD magazine and Smartwork Media. It is hosted and executive produced by David Kepron. Our original music and audio production is by Kano Sound. The content of this podcast is copywrite to David Kepron and NXTLVL Experience Design. Any publication or rebroadcast of the content is prohibited without the expressed written consent of David Kepron and NXTLVL Experience Design.Make sure to tune in for more NXTLVL “Dialogues on DATA: Design Architecture Technology and the Arts” wherever you find your favorite podcasts and make sure to visit vmsd.com and look for the tab for the NXTLVL Experience Design podcast there too.

ABOUT AMAHL HAZELTON:LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amahl-hazelton/Twitter: https://twitter.com/Amahl1Website: https://momentfactory.com/homeVideos: https://www.youtube.com/user/MomentFactory AMAHL HAZELTON Bio:Placemaking Strategist. Proven leadership in the design, build & operations of public-space digital placemaking, infrastructure and interactive multimedia activations. Looking to partner with Governments, DMO's, Cities, Business Alliances, Real Estate Developers, Architects, Event Producers & Curators to design visitor's favorite next-generation destinations and attractions.Skilled in Placemaking, Urban Design, Urban Planning, Architecture, Art Direction, Management, and Leadership. Strong business development professional with a Master's Degree in Urban Planning--specializing in Place Branding & Competitive Identity--from Montreal's McGill University. BUSINESS INQUIRIES email: amahl@momentfactory.comMEDIA REQUESTS email: media@momentfactory.comFOLLOW US ON LINKEDIN: www.linkedin.com/company/moment-factory/If we do not respond immediately, feel free to contact me here on LinkedIn ;-)ORTwitter: @Amahl1, @Moment_Factory #MomentFactoryInstagram: @MomentFactory #MomentFactory www.instagram.com/momentfactory/Facebook: www.facebook.com/MomentFactory/Moment Factory is a multimedia studio with a full range of production expertise under one roof. Our team combines specializations in video, lighting, architecture, sound and special effects to create remarkable experiences. Headquartered in Montreal, the studio also has addresses in Los Angeles, London, Tokyo, Paris, New York City and Singapore.Since its inception in 2001, Moment Factory has created more than 450 unique projects worldwide, including the Lumina Night Walk series. Productions span the globe and include such clients and collaborators as Changi Airport Group and LAWA (LAX); the City Barcelona and New York City; Fremont Street Experience and Atlantic City Alliance; Related Companies, Bedrock Detroit and Millennium Partners; Gensler and AECOM.SHOW INTRO:"A number of years ago I was working as a creative director in the brand experience studio in architecture firm based in Charlotte. We are a tightknit group and we were all fascinated with the future and the possibilities and opportunities that the world of immersive digital experiences would provide to retailers and brand experience places in general.One day a colleague says to me you got a check these guys out moment factory and they’re from your hometown of Montreal.We then spent the next few hours pouring over videos of video mapping on some of the most iconic churches in the world. Video mapping was relatively new and it was transforming the idea of experience by bringing buildings literally to life with animations that were perfectly aligned with the architecture. More than just spectacles, this signaled a shift in the way digital media, architecture, design and customer experience would coalesce, shifting the paradigm and how customers would engage with brand experience places in it digitally mediated future. Since then, the world of immersive digital technologies has become more pervasive and digital visualization artists like Refik Anadol and companies like Moment Factory are changing the very meaning of experience. Digital experiences are often criticized for being disengaging and promoting social isolation but in the world of Moment Factory, sensory-based but digitally-mediated experiences fully engage users, with their bodies andminds in profoundly memorable experiences.Whether they are lighting up a bridge with social media data in Montreal or elevating the experience of the divine in the Basilica of Notre Dame in Montreal or reinventing queuing the Shangi in Singapore or LAX in Los Angeles, or lighting up our imagination on a nighttime forest walk, our guest Amahl Hazelton has been deeply involved.Since its inception in 2001, Moment Factory has created more than 450 unique projects worldwide. A sign that the digital experience economy is here to stay.Amahl is the Head of Strategy and Development of Moment Factory. He’s a strong business development professional with a Master's Degree in Urban Planning  - specializing in Place Branding & Competitive Identity - from my alma mater Montreal's McGill University.Amahl is a Place-making Strategist. With a history of leadership in the design, build & operations of public-space digital placemaking, infrastructure and interactive multimedia activations I know he has a depth of knowledge on this subject that will make this a really interesting talk.I invited Amahl to share the Keynote stage with me at the 2019 BDNY show in New York and I am guessing this is going to be an energetic continuation of that talk.Welcome Amahl Hazelton…."ABOUT DAVID KEPRON:Website: https://www.davidkepron.comLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-kepron-9a1582b/Instagram: davidkepron and NXTLVL_experience_designTwitter: @davidkepron The NXTLVL Experience Design podcast is presented by VMSD magazine and Smartwork Media. It is hosted and executive produced by David Kepron. Our original music and audio production is by Kano Sound. The content of this podcast is copywrite to David Kepron and NXTLVL Experience Design. Any publication or rebroadcast of the content is prohibited without the expressed written consent of David Kepron and NXTLVL Experience Design.Make sure to tune in for more NXTLVL “Dialogues on DATA: Design Architecture Technology and the Arts” wherever you find your favorite podcasts and make sure to visit vmsd.com and look for the tab for the NXTLVL Experience Design podcast there too.

ABOUT AMAHL HAZELTON:LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amahl-hazelton/Twitter: https://twitter.com/Amahl1Website: https://momentfactory.com/homeVideos: https://www.youtube.com/user/MomentFactory AMAHL HAZELTON Bio:Placemaking Strategist. Proven leadership in the design, build & operations of public-space digital placemaking, infrastructure and interactive multimedia activations. Looking to partner with Governments, DMO's, Cities, Business Alliances, Real Estate Developers, Architects, Event Producers & Curators to design visitor's favorite next-generation destinations and attractions.Skilled in Placemaking, Urban Design, Urban Planning, Architecture, Art Direction, Management, and Leadership. Strong business development professional with a Master's Degree in Urban Planning--specializing in Place Branding & Competitive Identity--from Montreal's McGill University. BUSINESS INQUIRIES email: amahl@momentfactory.comMEDIA REQUESTS email: media@momentfactory.comFOLLOW US ON LINKEDIN: www.linkedin.com/company/moment-factory/If we do not respond immediately, feel free to contact me here on LinkedIn ;-)ORTwitter: @Amahl1, @Moment_Factory #MomentFactoryInstagram: @MomentFactory #MomentFactory www.instagram.com/momentfactory/Facebook: www.facebook.com/MomentFactory/Moment Factory is a multimedia studio with a full range of production expertise under one roof. Our team combines specializations in video, lighting, architecture, sound and special effects to create remarkable experiences. Headquartered in Montreal, the studio also has addresses in Los Angeles, London, Tokyo, Paris, New York City and Singapore.Since its inception in 2001, Moment Factory has created more than 450 unique projects worldwide, including the Lumina Night Walk series. Productions span the globe and include such clients and collaborators as Changi Airport Group and LAWA (LAX); the City Barcelona and New York City; Fremont Street Experience and Atlantic City Alliance; Related Companies, Bedrock Detroit and Millennium Partners; Gensler and AECOM.SHOW INTRO:"A number of years ago I was working as a creative director in the brand experience studio in architecture firm based in Charlotte. We are a tightknit group and we were all fascinated with the future and the possibilities and opportunities that the world of immersive digital experiences would provide to retailers and brand experience places in general.One day a colleague says to me you got a check these guys out moment factory and they’re from your hometown of Montreal.We then spent the next few hours pouring over videos of video mapping on some of the most iconic churches in the world. Video mapping was relatively new and it was transforming the idea of experience by bringing buildings literally to life with animations that were perfectly aligned with the architecture. More than just spectacles, this signaled a shift in the way digital media, architecture, design and customer experience would coalesce, shifting the paradigm and how customers would engage with brand experience places in it digitally mediated future. Since then, the world of immersive digital technologies has become more pervasive and digital visualization artists like Refik Anadol and companies like Moment Factory are changing the very meaning of experience. Digital experiences are often criticized for being disengaging and promoting social isolation but in the world of Moment Factory, sensory-based but digitally-mediated experiences fully engage users, with their bodies andminds in profoundly memorable experiences.Whether they are lighting up a bridge with social media data in Montreal or elevating the experience of the divine in the Basilica of Notre Dame in Montreal or reinventing queuing the Shangi in Singapore or LAX in Los Angeles, or lighting up our imagination on a nighttime forest walk, our guest Amahl Hazelton has been deeply involved.Since its inception in 2001, Moment Factory has created more than 450 unique projects worldwide. A sign that the digital experience economy is here to stay.Amahl is the Head of Strategy and Development of Moment Factory. He’s a strong business development professional with a Master's Degree in Urban Planning  - specializing in Place Branding & Competitive Identity - from my alma mater Montreal's McGill University.Amahl is a Place-making Strategist. With a history of leadership in the design, build & operations of public-space digital placemaking, infrastructure and interactive multimedia activations I know he has a depth of knowledge on this subject that will make this a really interesting talk.I invited Amahl to share the Keynote stage with me at the 2019 BDNY show in New York and I am guessing this is going to be an energetic continuation of that talk.Welcome Amahl Hazelton…."ABOUT DAVID KEPRON:Website: https://www.davidkepron.comLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-kepron-9a1582b/Instagram: davidkepron and NXTLVL_experience_designTwitter: @davidkepron The NXTLVL Experience Design podcast is presented by VMSD magazine and Smartwork Media. It is hosted and executive produced by David Kepron. Our original music and audio production is by Kano Sound. The content of this podcast is copywrite to David Kepron and NXTLVL Experience Design. Any publication or rebroadcast of the content is prohibited without the expressed written consent of David Kepron and NXTLVL Experience Design.Make sure to tune in for more NXTLVL “Dialogues on DATA: Design Architecture Technology and the Arts” wherever you find your favorite podcasts and make sure to visit vmsd.com and look for the tab for the NXTLVL Experience Design podcast there too.

ABOUT GABRIELE CORCOS:Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/thetuscangun Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gabriele_Corcos LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gcorcos/Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheTuscanGun Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thetuscangun/ Books: "Super Tuscan": https://www.amazon.com/Super-Tuscan-Heritage-Recipes-Pleasures/dp/150114359X/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&hvadid=77653071690874&hvbmt=be&hvdev=c&hvqmt=e&keywords=tuscan+gun&qid=1607035612&sr=8-2&tag=mh0b-20"Extra Virgin": https://www.amazon.com/Extra-Virgin-Recipes-Tuscan-Kitchen/dp/0385346050/ref=sr_1_3?dchild=1&hvadid=77653071690874&hvbmt=be&hvdev=c&hvqmt=e&keywords=tuscan+gun&qid=1607035666&sr=8-3&tag=mh0b-20Bio:Italian celebrity chef, entrepreneur, TV personalityCreator and cohost of “Extra Virgin” on the Cooking ChannelNew York Times best-selling book “Extra Virgin”Raised in Tuscany outside of Florence ItalyStudied medicine at the Italian military academy for several yearsPassion was music and decided to study drums so he left the military and travels to Brazil, Cuba and Morocco to study drumsRestaurant:Owned the “Tuscan Gun Officine Alimentari” in BrooklynMet Debi Mazar in Florence – moved to LA - married in 2002Starred with wife Debi Mazar in “Extra-Virgin Americana” on the Cooking ChannelThey were asked to be hosts of the Cooking Channel’s first original cooking showIn 2019 Corcos was honored “Knight” by the Italian President of the Republic for work on behalf of Italian heritage in the US (this is the highest civilian honor for an Italian citizen)Charity work:While competing on the television show chopped he competed on behalf of the charity “Feeding America”In 2014 he became a council member at the food bank for New York CityExtra Virgin Americana TV Show:Premiered 2011 and had 5 seasons until 2015Extra Virgin Book:Released in 2014Amazon’s #1 In Italian cooking ratings for 6 months and remained in top 10 until October 2015June 2014 Makes NY Time best-sellers listCrazy huge collection of knive, rides a Duccati and loves the power of technologySHOW INTRO:When I think “Renaissance man” I have images in my head of sculptors, painters, physicians, inventors… people like Leonardo, Brunelleschi and  Michelangelo - all worked in Florence about 20 km away from my guest’s hometown. I don’t often think of James Beard award winning celebrity chef and restaunteur, a multi book New York Times best-selling list author, An Italian Military Academy student who decided that studying medicine wasn’t for him and went off to Morocco, Brazil and Cuba to study drums, who also loves to ride Duccati’s, has some pretty serious leaves (as in tattoos), was also Knighted in 2019 and who you can now see often on Instagram doing ‘lives’ with his wife Debi Mazar cooking up a festival of food from the kitchen of their Brooklyn home.That said, I do think about somebody who is on a continual search for the NXTLVL and not afraid of being reborn - in the true sense of the word “Renaissance.” Someone like Gabriele Corcos who seems to be in a continual search for filling his life with the adventure of the unknown. ABOUT DAVID KEPRON:Website: https://www.davidkepron.comLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-kepron-9a1582b/Instagram: davidkepron and NXTLVL_experience_designTwitter: @davidkepron The NXTLVL Experience Design podcast is presented by VMSD magazine and Smartwork Media. It is hosted and executive produced by David Kepron. Our original music and audio production is by Kano Sound. The content of this podcast is copywrite to David Kepron and NXTLVL Experience Design. Any publication or rebroadcast of the content is prohibited without the expressed written consent of David Kepron and NXTLVL Experience Design.Make sure to tune in for more NXTLVL “Dialogues on DATA: Design Architecture Technology and the Arts” wherever you find your favorite podcasts and make sure to visit vmsd.com and look for the tab for the NXTLVL Experience Design podcast there too.

ABOUT GABRIELE CORCOS:Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/thetuscangun Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gabriele_Corcos LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gcorcos/Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheTuscanGun Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thetuscangun/ Books: "Super Tuscan": https://www.amazon.com/Super-Tuscan-Heritage-Recipes-Pleasures/dp/150114359X/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&hvadid=77653071690874&hvbmt=be&hvdev=c&hvqmt=e&keywords=tuscan+gun&qid=1607035612&sr=8-2&tag=mh0b-20"Extra Virgin": https://www.amazon.com/Extra-Virgin-Recipes-Tuscan-Kitchen/dp/0385346050/ref=sr_1_3?dchild=1&hvadid=77653071690874&hvbmt=be&hvdev=c&hvqmt=e&keywords=tuscan+gun&qid=1607035666&sr=8-3&tag=mh0b-20Bio:Italian celebrity chef, entrepreneur, TV personalityCreator and cohost of “Extra Virgin” on the Cooking ChannelNew York Times best-selling book “Extra Virgin”Raised in Tuscany outside of Florence ItalyStudied medicine at the Italian military academy for several yearsPassion was music and decided to study drums so he left the military and travels to Brazil, Cuba and Morocco to study drumsRestaurant:Owned the “Tuscan Gun Officine Alimentari” in BrooklynMet Debi Mazar in Florence – moved to LA - married in 2002Starred with wife Debi Mazar in “Extra-Virgin Americana” on the Cooking ChannelThey were asked to be hosts of the Cooking Channel’s first original cooking showIn 2019 Corcos was honored “Knight” by the Italian President of the Republic for work on behalf of Italian heritage in the US (this is the highest civilian honor for an Italian citizen)Charity work:While competing on the television show chopped he competed on behalf of the charity “Feeding America”In 2014 he became a council member at the food bank for New York CityExtra Virgin Americana TV Show:Premiered 2011 and had 5 seasons until 2015Extra Virgin Book:Released in 2014Amazon’s #1 In Italian cooking ratings for 6 months and remained in top 10 until October 2015June 2014 Makes NY Time best-sellers listCrazy huge collection of knive, rides a Duccati and loves the power of technologySHOW INTRO:When I think “Renaissance man” I have images in my head of sculptors, painters, physicians, inventors… people like Leonardo, Brunelleschi and  Michelangelo - all worked in Florence about 20 km away from my guest’s hometown. I don’t often think of James Beard award winning celebrity chef and restaunteur, a multi book New York Times best-selling list author, An Italian Military Academy student who decided that studying medicine wasn’t for him and went off to Morocco, Brazil and Cuba to study drums, who also loves to ride Duccati’s, has some pretty serious leaves (as in tattoos), was also Knighted in 2019 and who you can now see often on Instagram doing ‘lives’ with his wife Debi Mazar cooking up a festival of food from the kitchen of their Brooklyn home.That said, I do think about somebody who is on a continual search for the NXTLVL and not afraid of being reborn - in the true sense of the word “Renaissance.” Someone like Gabriele Corcos who seems to be in a continual search for filling his life with the adventure of the unknown. ABOUT DAVID KEPRON:Website: https://www.davidkepron.comLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-kepron-9a1582b/Instagram: davidkepron and NXTLVL_experience_designTwitter: @davidkepron The NXTLVL Experience Design podcast is presented by VMSD magazine and Smartwork Media. It is hosted and executive produced by David Kepron. Our original music and audio production is by Kano Sound. The content of this podcast is copywrite to David Kepron and NXTLVL Experience Design. Any publication or rebroadcast of the content is prohibited without the expressed written consent of David Kepron and NXTLVL Experience Design.Make sure to tune in for more NXTLVL “Dialogues on DATA: Design Architecture Technology and the Arts” wherever you find your favorite podcasts and make sure to visit vmsd.com and look for the tab for the NXTLVL Experience Design podcast there too.

ABOUT JAY NORRIS:Website: https://guesst.co LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jaynorris007/Instgram: https://www.instagram.com/jaynorrisvision/Bio:The Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Guesst Software since 2017,The Guesst software platform allows "Host" retailers to find and connect with complementary brands aka "Guesst" to display, merchandise and or sell their products or goods in their "Host" retail location. This simple process allows retailers to lower their monthly fixed cost, increase revenues and maximize both parties' brand awareness, return on investment and customer experience in a brick and mortar location.Jay Norris is a true go-to-market strategist who utilizes his innovative marketing skillset, invaluable relationships and keen understanding of the retail landscape to curate partnerships and experiential activations between retailers, landlords, media partners and brands in all sectors of retail.Mr. Norris found early success as a strategic marketing executive at Arista Records from 1994 to 1997, developing marketing strategies for Notorious BIG, Whitney Houston, Celine Dion, Deborah Cox, TLC, Pink, Alicia Keyes, and a long list of music artists who have scaled their careers through groundswell campaigns.Before Arista Records, Mr. Norris worked in the promotions department of Sony Music Entertainment from 1993 to 1994.Mr. Norris has further flourished as the co-founder of Detroitbuiltco.com since 2016. Norris and his partners vision was to curate a retail platform for Detroit makers and innovators.Norris's Growth Business Incubator Lifestyle Equities is a management consultancy specializing in innovative solutions for small, and medium to large size companies who aspire to either expand, streamline or become re-imagined.2015 to 2016 and both the founder and the Chief Executive Officer of Tastemakers Media from 1997 to 2007, which was a national and international guide highlighting the best lifestyle offerings in each market.Constantly in the pursuit of helping other entrepreneurs get their ideas out into the world,Mr. Norris's favorite quote is "one's imagination is everything!! If one can use it wisely, it can become a brief snapshot of life's coming attractions."In addition to his primary responsibilities, he dedicates his time to volunteer at his local soup kitchen and with the Boys and Girls Clubs of America. Mr. Norris holds a Bachelor of Arts in sociology from Howard University in Washington, D.C.Mr. Norris received a scholarship for swimming and in the 1980's Norris held city and state records in butterfly and freestyle from his high school, Cass Technical, in the state of Michigan.SHOW INTRO:My guest todaylaunched his multi-faceted career in the promotions department of Sony Music Entertainment (from 1993 to 1994). He was then quick to succeed as a strategic marketing executive at Arista Records (from 1994 to 1997). While at Arista, he developed marketing strategies for Notorious BIG, Whitney Houston, Celine Dion, Deborah Cox, TLC, Pink, Alicia Keyes, and a long list of music artists who have grown their careers through some of the insight and strategies he created. Given this, you might think that he fits neatly into the Arts part of the NXTLVL acronym DATA but that would mean we stop looking at his career in 1997. With a vision to curate a retail platform for Detroit makers and innovators, He co-founded of Detroitbuiltco.com in 2016.If that isn’t quite enough, his Growth Business Incubator Lifestyle Equities is a management consultancy specializing in innovative solutions for small, and medium to large size companies who aspire to expand, streamline or become re-imagined.When not constantly in the pursuit of helping other entrepreneurs get their ideas out into the world, he dedicates his time to volunteer at his local soup kitchen and with the Boys and Girls Clubs of America.He is a true go-to-market strategist who utilizes his innovative marketing skillset, invaluable relationships and keen understanding of the retail landscape to curate partnerships and experiential activations between retailers, landlords, media partners and brands in all sectors of retail.I believe that with his new company GUESST we have the emergence of a new paradigm in retail experience making. One of Jay Norris’ favorite quotes is "one's imagination is everything!! If one can use it wisely, it can become a brief snapshot of life's coming attractions."This discussion will be like sitting through the “coming soon” trailers at a blockbuster (retail) movie.Jay Norris holds a Bachelor of Arts in sociology from Howard University in Washington, D.C., received a scholarship for swimming and in the 1980's (Norris held city and state records in butterfly and freestyle from his high school, Cass Technical, in the state of Michigan.)ABOUT DAVID KEPRON:Website: https://www.davidkepron.comLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-kepron-9a1582b/Instagram: davidkepron and NXTLVL_experience_designTwitter: @davidkepron The NXTLVL Experience Design podcast is presented by VMSD magazine and Smartwork Media. It is hosted and executive produced by David Kepron. Our original music and audio production is by Kano Sound. The content of this podcast is copywrite to David Kepron and NXTLVL Experience Design. Any publication or rebroadcast of the content is prohibited without the expressed written consent of David Kepron and NXTLVL Experience Design.Make sure to tune in for more NXTLVL “Dialogues on DATA: Design Architecture Technology and the Arts” wherever you find your favorite podcasts and make sure to visit vmsd.com and look for the tab for the NXTLVL Experience Design podcast there too.

ABOUT MARTINA OLBERTOVA:Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/MartinaOlbertova   The Luxury Renaissance Show: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCAybA0SjexNmAT_48S_0jUA/videosThe Luxury Report:https://www.meaning.global/the-luxury-reportWebsite: https://www.meaning.globalLinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/martinaolbertova/Twitter: https://twitter.com/MartinaOlbMedium: https://martinaolbertova.medium.com/ Bio:Dr Martina Olbertova is the world's leading expert on creating meaning and cultural relevance in business. She is a social scientist, brand advisor, cultural strategist and a semiotician on a mission to redefine the role of meaning in business. As a writer, speaker and cultural consultant, she educates brand and business leaders on how to be more culturally savvy and lead brands with meaning at the core.​Martina is most interested in social and cultural change. She focuses on how the shifts in society redefine the perception of meaning in our culture today. In her work, she helps brands navigate the quickly evolving symbolic meanings in the world around us to help her clients understand how to capitalize on culture change. She works with brands from across all sectors to restore or redefine their meaning, reconnect to their essence and create real value that resonates with people in the context of culture and their needs. Her goal is to bridge the gap of meaning between brands and society to restore real value, trust, integrity and long-term growth and offset the ongoing crisis of meaning.​With 15 years of international experience from the UK, Ireland, USA and Czechia, Martina has had a chance to work on diverse strategy, insight and innovation briefs for global brands, such as Kantar, Unilever, Vodafone, IBM, ICAEW, London Gatwick, British Land, KBC, Visa, Lloyds Bank, Bank of Ireland, Heineken or Pernod Ricard among many others.​She holds a doctorate in Media Studies from the Charles University in Prague and also studied at Georgetown University (USA) and University of Glamorgan (UK). As a visiting lecturer, she taught Semiotics and Cultural Branding at universities in Czechia, Trinity College Dublin and spoke at conferences in London, Paris, Toronto, Istanbul, Manila, Shanghai, Amsterdam, Prague, Berlin, Slovenia & Morocco.​Martina is a contributor to Branding Strategy Insider, a commentator for Forbes, WARC AdMap, Luxury Daily, Luxury Society, the author of The Luxury Report on Redefining The Future Meaning Of Luxury, and a fellow of the RSA.​She is passionate about seeing the invisible layers of reality and tapping into unseen opportunities to unlock new value and meaningful growth, about humanising business, social change, semiotics, anthropology, behavioural science and all things culture. She is based in Europe and available for strategy, consulting, speaking and workshops worldwide. SHOW INTRO:"I have often said that a $5 paper bag from Bloomingdale's and a $5000 bag from Louis Vuitton do the same thing. They carry stuff. And you could be pretty much guaranteed that at the bottom of each of those bags there's going be some loose change, an eyebrow pencil, maybe some folded Kleenexes and maybe even a breath mint, with the wrapper taken off, that’s stuck in the corner. There’ll be keys, a wallet, and a number of other personal effects. But when it comes to what these bags do in terms of providing meaning and assigning values, they are entirely different. The goods and services that we buy should do the things that they’re purported to do - get your teeth whiter, get you from point A to point B in a comfortable and safe car, they should make you feel better, stronger, happier, safer. But beyond all those functional things – these functions or qualities that are the baseline that these products or services should deliver on – they deliver much more than that.They deliver meaning and context and they establish values and relationships with the cohort of like-minded consumers. In the end. meaningis what is ultimately driving purchases and brand affiliation. I buy the products or services of one brand over the other and not just because of what it does, but because of how I feelwhen I know that I’m connected to the ideologies of that brand. What brand relationships give me is much deeper. It’s emotional and adds to our understanding of the world we live in in a way that cultural institutions, religion, political parties, or in the way that Shaman and dancing around fires for thousands of years in song told stories about us and the world and what it meant to be in it.It’s something that is foundational and that establishes who we are in the greater context of our family, our culture, our nation and maybe even some cosmological relationship to the universe.The work of my guest on today’s episode of NXTLVL Experience Design has spent years focusing on this very idea. Meaning in the relationships that people have to brands and what value is in a quickly moving and dynamically shifting consumer-buying-ecosystem.Dr. Martina Olbertova, and her company Meaning.Global, helps brands and businesses adapt to the shifting cultural context of the 21st century to create meaning, cultural relevance and real value for people in these rapidly changing times.Martina Olbertova advises brands and organizations on how to maximize value creation and meaningful growth from the point of view of where the businesses, culture and society are going today. And…where we’re going today is different than the place we were going six months ago before COVID -19 gripped the globe and it’s probably hard to fully envision where we will end up in the future.She partners with brand and business leaders to restore their true meaning and core essence and deliver real value in people's lives.Martina holds a Ph.D in Social Sciences and is th eFounder and CEO of Meaning.Global a consultancy that provides strategic intelligence for Meaning brands and businesses.She ias a 'Meaning' expert,A Cultural Strategist.She is frequently published on Media, and other platforms as well as the author of the Luxury Report.And now she is also the host of her own podcast "the Luxury Renaissance Show."I think this is a fasten -your-seatbelt interview that'll challenge much of what we think we know both meaning, value, consumerism and the concept of luxury."ABOUT DAVID KEPRON:Website: https://www.davidkepron.comLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-kepron-9a1582b/Instagram: davidkepron and NXTLVL_experience_designTwitter: @davidkepron The NXTLVL Experience Design podcast is presented by VMSD magazine and Smartwork Media. It is hosted and executive produced by David Kepron. Our original music and audio production is by Kano Sound. The content of this podcast is copywrite to David Kepron and NXTLVL Experience Design. Any publication or rebroadcast of the content is prohibited without the expressed written consent of David Kepron and NXTLVL Experience Design.Make sure to tune in for more NXTLVL “Dialogues on DATA: Design Architecture Technology and the Arts” wherever you find your favorite podcasts and make sure to visit vmsd.com and look for the tab for the NXTLVL Experience Design podcast there too.

INFO ON PETER COLE & DESIGN HOTELS:Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=design+hotels+original+experiences Website: https://design-hotels.marriott.com/ LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/peter-cole-2877b76/ Instgram: https://www.instagram.com/design_hotels/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/designhotelsBio:Peter Cole joined Design Hotels™ as CEO in December 2018 with a commitment to future growth and the creation of long-term value for hoteliers and stakeholders.In his previous role as Managing Director of Business Integration at Marriott International, Peter lead the company’s integration of Starwood Hotels & Resorts, overseeing a wide array of activities including hotel operations, organizational design, talent management, loyalty programs, system integration, financial management, and unit growth.Peter was also Chief Financial Officer for the Americas for Marriott, as well as global CFO of The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company LLC; both positions that attest to his erudition when it comes to steering the financial rudder of a large multinational.Peter is also an ardent runner and swimmer and likes to ride his Peloton bike.He holds a BBA in Real Estate Finance from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and an MBA from the University of Maryland.Peter carries out duties that matter to his heart and mind and  sits on the Advisory Board of the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business and the National Board of Directors for Back on My Feet, an organization dedicated to helping change the lives of those experiencing homelessness.EPISODE INTRO:How do you define “Original”? Is it the ‘first’? – maybe.Is if the most ‘unique’ or ‘eccentric’? – perhaps that too.Is it something to that serves as a model or basis for imitations or copies? Well, it could be that, except for the fact that every one of the over 300 properties in the Design Hotels brand are completely different. How do you copy ‘different?’Since different could be a monastery in Eremito, Italy,a revived printing factory in Tiblisi Georgia, or a modern outcrop in Selfoss, Iceland.Design Hotels are all of these things that you would define as “original” and their CEO Peter Cole has the extraordinary task of helping to provide leadership to a band of brothers, and sisters, who march to the beat of a different drum but hold a couple of traits in common…Compulsive curiosity and a willingness to find comfort in change. In fact they are challenged and expect to be presented with things they don’t expect or reference what they already know.Peter Cole’s trajectory through the leadership of Marriott International includes holding positions as:Chief Financial Officer for the Americas for Marriott, as well as global CFO of The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company LLC; Managing Director of Business Integration at Marriott International, Peter lead the company’s integration of Starwood Hotels & Resorts,And in 2018 Peter joined Design Hotels™ as CEO with a commitment to future growth and the creation of long-term value for hoteliers and stakeholders. He is a business minded leader who finds it equally engaging to be amongst some of the most creative hoteliers in the industry. Welcome Peter…. Did you run this morning?INFO ON DAVID KEPRON:Website: https://www.davidkepron.comLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-kepron-9a1582b/Instagram: davidkepron and NXTLVL_experience_designTwitter: @davidkepron The NXTLVL Experience Design podcast is presented by VMSD magazine and Smartwork Media. It is hosted and executive produced by David Kepron. Our original music and audio production is by Kano Sound. The content of this podcast is copywrite to David Kepron and NXTLVL Experience Design. Any publication or rebroadcast of the content is prohibited without the expressed written consent of David Kepron and NXTLVL Experience Design.Make sure to tune in for more NXTLVL “Dialogues on DATA: Design Architecture Technology and the Arts” wherever you find your favorite podcasts and make sure to visit vmsd.com and look for the tab for the NXTLVL Experience Design podcast there too.