PwC’s Loretta Fong stresses personalisation, innovation, and agility in brand experience

She highlights the role of technologies and customer-centric strategies in shaping scalable and future-ready brand experiences.

Amidst a hyper-connected and technology-driven marketplace, delivering a compelling and consistent brand experience has become essential for organisations across industries. As consumer expectations evolve alongside advancements in AI, data analytics, and digital platforms, companies are increasingly challenged to design experiences that are not only personalised and engaging but also operationally sustainable and scalable.

Bringing a wealth of experience is Loretta Fong, Sustainability Assurance Leader at PwC Hong Kong. With over 30 years of experience in public accounting, Fong has advised a broad spectrum of clients ranging from start-ups and entrepreneurs to large conglomerates operating in diverse sectors such as retail, technology, media and telecommunications (TMT), and logistics. She is currently a General Committee Member of the Federation of Hong Kong Industries, amongst other external appointments.

As a judge at the Asian Experience Awards 2025, Fong emphasises the importance of personalisation, technological innovation, and operational agility in delivering impactful and sustainable brand experiences.

With your experience advising conglomerates and entrepreneurs across industries, how have you seen expectations evolve around what constitutes a compelling and credible brand experience today?

It is all about customising and anticipating customer needs – given the extensive use of AI technology, this now becomes a reality. Consumers are increasingly looking for a unique experience and personal branding; therefore, successful companies are the ones able to help customers enrich their brands and provide an engaging experience.

In industries like retail, TMT, and logistics, how are leading companies leveraging their operational strengths to create brand experiences that are both scalable and sustainable?

Leading companies in these industries have deep investments in GenAI to help grow their businesses in order to provide the personal branding as mentioned above. GenAI also helps optimise the costs of business models, and via machine learning to further improve user experience to make it both scalable and sustainable.

How should companies approach innovation in experience design whilst maintaining a clear focus on operational feasibility and risk management?

Innovation, operational feasibility and risk management can be complementary as long as there is appropriate use of data in the organisation. Appropriate policies and procedures regarding data security and privacy, and usage would be the baseline for managing risks. With that set, the employees can ensure that the data is being used in a safe environment and properly utilised for operational efficiency and innovative purposes.

How can companies ensure their brand experience remains cohesive and meaningful across multiple touchpoints and platforms?

Business culture is key to companies achieving success. Regular reviews and feedback, and measurement against targets would ensure that companies are staying focussed on their goals and adjust areas of focus as deemed necessary.

Looking ahead, what industry-wide shifts do you anticipate will most significantly influence how organisations design, measure, and sustain positive brand experiences?

Emerging technologies have shifted the competitive landscape so that companies do not necessarily need to be gigantic in order to be successful. Agility, innovation and adaptability are key factors for continuously exceeding customer expectations and staying ahead of the curve.

As a judge at the Asian Experience Awards 2025, what key qualities will you be looking for when evaluating nominees’ brand experience initiatives?

Customisation of customer experience, innovative use of technology and efficient use of resources are deciding factors when evaluating brand experience initiatives.