December 2009
Long live luxury: global survey

People have an odd relationship with luxury. Some of us feel we deserve it and revel in unabashed luxury. Some indulge in it but feel they maybe should not have. Some cannot afford it, but want it. And for many, it's simply not even a consideration... the basics in life are tough enough to obtain. Of course a recession makes luxury retail even more challenging. Selling things that people do not need (although this writer has been known to argue that those Ferragamo shoes were 100% necessary to life) during a time when many are at least morally forced to examine their spending patterns makes for interesting times.

April 2009
Global survey 'checks out' hotels'

Ask any regular traveller and you can almost guarantee they will have a hotel-from-hell story and (hopefully) a hotel-from-heaven counterpart. Whether you are travelling for pleasure or business, the place where you park your head at night can make or break the experience. So what matters? Does a hotel need a spa? Toiletries (to take!)? The latest technology? A green policy? How do people decide where they will lay their heads? Synovate asked over 6,300 people across 10 countries to find out.