What The Ultra-High Net Worth (UHNW) Really Want

I just spent a month speaking with 40 millionaires and billionaires and most luxury brands should be terrified.

These are the clients with family offices, business managers, private assistants—considered Ultra High Net Worth (UHNW). They can buy anything, at any time, in any category. And what they told me is something no brand wants to hear:

They are bored. Disappointed by brands that say they “know” them.

The experiences? Formula 1 boxes. Private islands. Vintage champagne. Yacht crews. Private viewings. Michelin dinners.

All… expected. All… repeatable. All… instantly replaceable.

Luxury has collapsed into sameness. Variations on a theme that hasn’t changed in decades. What was once a private client pinnacle is now predictable theater. And they are quietly pulling back from brands that claim to know what they want but haven’t evolved in decades.

And here’s the paradox: these individuals run empires. They understand strategy. They understand flawless execution. They understand differentiation. Which is why they’re restless. And why they won’t hesitate to walk away mid-engagement and not come back. I heard these stories recounted over and over.

So what do they actually want? Two signals came through loud and clear:

✨ The Unbuyable Principle

When you have unlimited funds, more extravagance doesn’t matter. They already buy what they want. They want access to what they cannot buy — things that require imagination, curation, and connections that money alone cannot unlock. They don’t need more. This is not more personalization. This is not more storytelling. More privacy. This is something unbuyable unlocked on their behalf.

✨ The Micro-Moment Mandate

Yes, they expect the big things to be flawless. But what they crave are the small things — exceptional, curious, interesting—delivered throughout. As part of this project, we are working on micro-moments delivered every 30 minutes or less during an engagement. These are experiences of ingenuity, craft, and creativity. Honed and ethereal. Luxury is no longer just about a grand crescendo. It’s about the unbroken pulse — exceptional mini-hallmarks that are cravable and unpredictable.

Other themes emerged around artisanship, wellness, rarity, and pride. I’m synthesizing all of it into a white paper that will be released in the next few weeks.

Here’s the way I see it applying broadly: Formula 1 is the zenith of racing. Over time, the F1 technology filters into the car you drive every day. In the same way, what begins with UHNW clients will cascade into mainstream luxury — and ultimately, into the way you experience an Apple Genius Bar or even a Chick-fil-A. So there are lessons for everyone in this work with UHNW.

The wake-up call is this: luxury isn’t faltering with UHNW because of price or demand. It’s faltering because it has lost creativity and imagination for evolving with these clients — the very essence of delivering elegance, refinement, and meaning in a way that cannot just be bought.