H-FARM College launches a new Challenge with The Lux Collective

Today we launched a new Challenge open to all students at H-FARM College together with The Lux Collective, an international hotel management group headquartered in Mauritius, with a portfolio of luxury hospitality brands including LUX*, SALT, SOCIO, and Tamassa. This represents a concrete opportunity to work on a real brief, engage with current business dynamics, and develop ideas that combine creativity, strategic vision, and execution capabilities.

The context

The Lux Collective operates more than 18 resorts and hotels across the Indian Ocean, China, and Tanzania, and is rapidly expanding globally, guided by the vision of “conscious luxury hospitality”—an approach that integrates sustainability, innovation, and high-end experiences. Its portfolio includes brands with distinct identities: LUX* represents experiential luxury in iconic destinations; SALT offers an authentic immersion into local culture and communities; SOCIO is positioned as an urban lifestyle brand focused on social interaction and connection; while Tamassa is dedicated to leisure and all-inclusive experiences.

The focus of the Challenge

The core of the Challenge is SOCIO, the brand designed to engage a new generation of travelers: the “social nomads”. These are individuals who no longer separate work, personal life, and relationships into distinct spheres, but instead experience them as integrated dimensions that require flexible, dynamic environments capable of adapting to different needs throughout the day. In this context, SOCIO aims to act as a 24/7 social hub, where common areas—particularly lobbies and social spaces—are no longer secondary elements but become the true center of the experience: places to work, meet, build connections, and live community moments.

The challenge for students is therefore to radically rethink the role of these spaces, transforming them into relevant and distinctive environments for social nomads. It is not just about designing an aesthetic or functional concept, but about building a proposal that translates the brand’s values into a concrete, coherent, and recognizable experience across the entire guest journey. This requires a deep understanding of the target audience, their behaviors, expectations, and cultural references, as well as a clear reflection on what truly makes a hotel relevant for those living a hybrid and mobile lifestyle.

The work also requires a careful analysis of the market and key competitors in the lifestyle hospitality sector, in order to identify existing languages, models, and approaches, and clearly define elements of differentiation. On this basis, students will need to develop new USPs for SOCIO, capable of standing out not only at the product or design level, but also in terms of experience, services, interaction, and positioning.

A central element will be the design of social spaces as evolving environments, capable of adapting over time and responding to different moments of the day and types of use, integrating components of technology, sustainability, design, and community building. At the same time, it will be essential to consider the entire user journey, from booking to the in-hotel experience, imagining how each touchpoint can contribute to strengthening the sense of brand belonging and the overall quality of the experience.

Students at H-FARM College will work in teams supervised by Carlo De Togni, AI director and producer, founder of Mondo Novo and Creative Partner at Runway. The most interesting projects will gain access to the final event, scheduled for April 21 at the H-FARM Campus, where ideas will be presented to a jury composed of representatives from The Lux Collective, H-FARM College, and industry experts.