The Faster Lane
from Tyler Brûlé
We took the long way to Lisbon and the wine made it all worthwhile
I’ve been plotting a Zürich to Lisbon road trip for the better part of six months. In its original form, it was going to be something of a delivery mission to transfer fragile objects…
Latest
Five tips on commerce and brand building
Allow me to pick up where Andrew left off in yesterday’s edition. If you want to hear more war stories and what happened with that mountain of cash in the lobby of an Inter-Conti…
What might we expect from 2025? Here are five hints from Europe
Where were you this week? Did you spend your days trotting around the showrooms of Paris looking at all the fine menswear and accessories that will be hitting shops in August? Or were you…
Oh, Canada: After Trudeau’s resignation, where is the country headed?
It’s a mid-autumn Saturday morning and I’m staying with my mother in Toronto. The usual drill when I visit is a round of morning coffee, plotting out the day, getting dressed for a little…
Planes, trains and automobiles: Starting the year with momentum
Happy New Year, bonne année, Gutes neues, buon anno, bom ano novo, gott nytt år! It’s day 17 up in the mountains, the sun is still shining, I will return to the lowlands with…
The final countdown: 10 points to take into the New Year
How are things where you are dear reader? Does this find you back at your usual base after a few days in the countryside or the mountains? Or are you still in Cortina, Lech…
Season’s greetings: Monocle wraps up the year in St Moritz
I’ll start this Sunday with a scene-setter. It’s Saturday afternoon and I’m rinkside at the Kulm in St Moritz, jazz classics are playing for the skaters and lunchers, the furs are out, PC-12s and…
A merry start to December, from gifting to the Monocle Christmas Market
Vroooommm…From time to time I get stopped in an airport concourse, a hotel lobby or a buzzy restaurant by a Monocle reader or listener. “Excuse me,” they start, “are you Tyler?” In 99 per…
Back in business: A check-in from Cannes and reopenings in Wan Chai and London
As it’s Sunday and it’s been a light travel week (only Paris and Lisbon), let’s spin the globe to see what else has been happening in the world of Monocle and beyond. We’ll start…
Forget ‘safe spaces’. We should be more mindful of poorly designed buildings
It will come as little surprise that I’m not a fan of “trigger warnings” and “safe spaces”, particularly when the audience is over 18 and we’re talking about editorial comments, lectures and generally getting…
The positives of proper retail and the perils of passport control
It’s a sunny Saturday morning here in Zürich, the rooftops and trees are covered in snow, the Swedish radio station I’m tuned in to has started playing Christmas tracks and I’m coming down from…
