An interview with Saint Luke

One sweltering-hot day in the Western Caribbean in the shade of a battered old sailing skiff named Saint Luke, conversation turned towards the boredom of dull, flimsy and over-complicated travel bags. And so, the brand Saint Luke was born ? Here's an interview held with Holly and Georgie, from our experiential team, and Tessa, the founder of Saint Luke. TELL US A BIT ABOUT 'THE YACHT WEEK' It’s just so much fun! Imagine you and your very best new or old friends sailing on a yacht, exploring your chosen destination, attending experiences that impact you forever. I think part of its charm is in the mystery. It’s something you can’t put into words, only feelings. Everyone should experience The Yacht Week. Being a part of this experience opens you up to our whole community too, for those that don’t know, it’s called Day 8. In fact, it’s actually the brand we work for, a community hub where everyone we’ve ever welcomed can feel the love. We’re currently working on some exciting plans for the future so watch this space. WHAT DO YOU DO? We are the brand experience team. We’re a new arm planning and executing the future of Day 8 Experiences although, we can’t take all the credit. Shouting out to everyone who’s a part of Day 8 that works to pull everything together! HOW DO YOU DECIDE WHICH AREA OF THE WORLD TO GO TO? A lot of this is dependent on sailing conditions for The Yacht Week specifically and where we think we can curate the best story and carve stepping stones to an incredible route. There are a lot of moving parts to what we do and these all have to be carefully factored in before we make a decision to jump on a plane or plan a recce. We have a dedicated research team on top of all of the travel trends, it’s important we’re hot on our destinations as much as our experience. HOW DO YOU FIND THE BEST BARS, BEACHES, AND PLACES TO VISIT? Our recce is imperative in this and is our time to make our discoveries. We also tap into local communities and have knowledgeable fixers in each destination. This really helps! Our Day 8 Community is another trusted source of wisdom. Our community is global so it’s basically like having local knowledge in every conceivable destination. WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE YACHT WEEK DESTINATION? It’s really difficult to have a favourite destination, they all have their own charm and pace. Every one is an incredible experience. We can’t decide! There’s new routes and destinations on the horizon and we believe some of these could end up being our favs. WHAT ARE THE PEOPLE LIKE WHO COME ON THE TRIPS? We have a real variety of guests from all over the world. It’s hard to tarnish everyone with the same brush but I’d say they’re fun-loving travellers who want to experience a sailing or skiing trip they’ll never forget. Our destinations are currently categorised into paces. Therefore there’s an offering for both those wanting to party hard and/or embrace a little holistic happiness. A lot of guests become long-term friends with HQ staff, Skippers, Hostesses and our really talented ground staff! They’re like family we guess... WHAT WOULD YOU RECOMMEND TO PACK? You’re living on the ocean, you don’t really need too much. We have two themed parties in selected destinations. So, if you’re heading to Croatia, Greece, Montenegro or Italy you should pack a Tropical Retro get-up and your most elegant Riviera Chic outfit. Other than that, try not to pack too much disposable waste like plastic. Sunscreen and swimwear is always a must. We also recommend packing into a soft bag as hard-shelled suitcases can be a little tricky to stow away on the yachts. Saint Luke is perfect for The Yacht Week. HOW OFTEN ARE THE TRIPS? Greece and Croatia run from the beginning of June, every week for 15 weeks. They’re our biggest operations. During these 15 weeks, there’s Montenegro for three weeks and Italy for one. In the winter we’re heading back to the BVI to operate two amazing weeks over the New Year period alongside a more immersive Yacht Week that we’ve just launched in Grenada. As you can imagine we’re all hands on deck at the mo (excuse the pun!) TELL US A BIT ABOUT THE SKI WEEK? The Ski Week was born from the foundations of The Yacht Week. A very passionate skier, ex-Yacht Week Skipper, and friend of the founders proposed that we should create the same amazingness but on the snow. So, they did and haven’t looked back since. The Ski Week now operates in Japan, Canada, Aspen, and Austria. I recently attended in Japan and Austria and had the time of my life. You’ll find a lot of Yacht Weekers crossing paths on The Ski Week. THE WORLD'S GOING TO END - HOW DO YOU SPEND YOUR LAST WEEK? Split between the sea and the mountains, taking very deep breaths.

Pack your bags

We recommend using one of Saint Luke's bags to pack all of your sailing attire into for your travels this summer. From the first bag they sold, they have been contributing back to the places that they visit and trying to make a positive difference ? As of Spring 2017, Saint Luke has been donating a percentage of its profits to support The Michael Matthews Foundation (MMF), who help provide education for children in remote places who, without a helping hand, might not receive an education at all.