Founder Diaries

Oller del Mas Cabins
Opinion

Authenticity is the new luxury

Natalie Batlle
For the past decade or more, marketing has been obsessed with growth. More content, non-stop. An industry fixated on turning craft into consumption, consumers into data, and, in the process, eroding any shred of trust. We were sold the idea that everything had to scale exponentially, that monopolies were inevitable, and...
Papa bendice a un niño en Montserrat. © Laura Busquets / ACN
Opinion

A Pope Between Worlds: Chicago, Trujillo, Barcelona

Natalie Batlle
A man from Chicago. Spanish spoken with an American accent. A priest who spent years in Trujillo, Peru, my husband's city. A Jesuit, like the schools that shaped my education and, today, that of my children here in Barcelona. These intersections are not theoretical. They are personal. Especially because, these days,...
Opinion

Barcelona lived well. Now it wants to optimize itself

Natalie Batlle
Barcelona never had a problem with longevity. And yet, now it seems obsessed with it. Europeans already live longer and, in many cases, are also happier than Americans. And yet, in cities like Barcelona, the Silicon Valley-style longevity culture is everywhere. Seeing it here is a bit disorienting. Because if...