Thinking Capital | Cultural Capital: How do you hone cultural fluency as a competitive advantage? (Sponsored Content)

The hosts, Lucy and Will, introduce cultural capital as the ability to feel at home across different cultural and geographical contexts. It includes understanding local customs, recognizing what “good” looks like in different places, reading a room, judging nuance and acting credibly. The episode asks how this ability can become a commercial advantage. Alan Gilpin, CEO of World Rugby, says cultural relevance means existing beyond the moment of a match. A sport becomes embedded when it enters everyday conversation and community life, rather than being followed only during play. He points to Rugby Sevens as a growth driver because it is easier for new audiences to understand and participate in. In Hong Kong, the Sevens is no longer merely a rugby tournament: it is a social occasion and part of the city’s annual cultural and business calendar. People do not need to follow rugby to want to attend, which means the event has entered the culture. Phyllis Kao of Sotheby’s makes a similar point about art and cultural objects. She says she did not need specialist knowledge of Chinese antiquities to recognize the importance of Pelé’s first World Cup jersey. A broad historical grounding and the ability to recognize universal truths can reveal why an object matters. Cultural fluency is therefore not an inventory of facts; it is the judgment to understand why something matters to particular people at a particular moment, explain that significance and persuade someone to become its steward.

Maggie Ng, CEO of HSBC Hong Kong, describes cultural capital as becoming part of the fabric of daily life. HSBC has operated in Hong Kong for 161 years, and its branches, bank notes and bank passport are childhood memories for many residents. Its PayMe e-wallet has more than 3 million users and is used so commonly that “PayMe” has become a verb. For Ng, that linguistic shift demonstrates the power of cultural fluency: a product has become part of ordinary behavior rather than remaining a branded service. Judy Liu, co-founder of Trinity Asia, warns that local relevance cannot be designed around a simplistic view of a country. She grew up in Guangzhou, lived in Beijing and moved to Shanghai after selling her business, yet studying alongside people from different Chinese cities and backgrounds showed her how much she still had to learn. Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen represent only around 5% of China’s population, she says, so China is not one customer market but many cultures and commercial markets within one country. Liu says the same idea can land differently in Shanghai, Paris and New York. Cultural fluency means reading the context before making assumptions, understanding not only what people do but why it matters to them, and translating between cultures without erasing the original identity. Curiosity—asking how people think, what they value and why they express things differently—is central to that process.

The episode turns to how cultural capital is built through partnerships. HSBC Hong Kong works with institutions and events including M+, Kai Tak Sports Park, the Hong Kong Sevens and the Peak Light Show. Ng says HSBC uses three tests when deciding whether a partnership is worthwhile. First, it asks whether the partnership supports Hong Kong’s economy. Sports and culture attract people and create a multiplier effect for retailers, restaurants, hotels and transportation. Ng cites an estimate from Nelson Sports that the Hong Kong Sevens delivered close to $100 million in economic value to Hong Kong in 2025. She also says Kai Tak Sports Park ranked third in ticket sales nine months after opening. Second, HSBC asks whether the partnership helps Hong Kong connect with the rest of the world. Mega-events can create international exposure, build local pride and strengthen the city’s global soft power. Third, the bank asks whether the partnership is natural to HSBC and can create value for clients. Ng says the Sevens brings clients together and creates social connections among them. Her broader principle is that “what’s good for Hong Kong is good for HSBC.” She advises organizations not to judge cultural partnerships only through immediate financial KPIs, such as sales generated at an event. The more important benefits may be long-term and subtle, so businesses should take a longer view and ask customers how the partnership helped them.

Alan Gilpin says World Rugby has learned that a global product still has to feel locally relevant. The Sevens format can remain recognizable across Cape Town, Hong Kong, Singapore, Dubai and Buenos Aires, with its fast pace, entertainment and festival atmosphere, but what works in each city differs. Cape Town may have a highly educated rugby audience and many avid followers, while another city may need a different presentation to make the event meaningful. Host cities and corporate partners are important because they understand local expectations and can teach World Rugby how to localize the experience. Judy Liu applies the same principle to luxury brands in China. She says older forms of localization, such as adding a zodiac symbol or a festive color, are no longer enough for many customers. She cites Rolex’s Mid-Autumn Festival campaign, “This Moment of Perfection,” which connected the image of a traditional Chinese craftsman hand-carving mooncake moulds with the precision of a Swiss watch component. The campaign worked because it linked Chinese craftsmanship with Swiss precision, making time, patience and perfection feel authentic in both cultures. Liu’s conclusion is that a global brand should not pretend to become local or force one identity to replace another. It should retain its global identity while making that identity emotionally true and culturally relevant in the local market. Localization is strongest when it generates cultural participation rather than merely decorating an existing campaign.

Phyllis Kao explains that cultural fluency also matters to individuals entering institutions with established traditions. She notes that successful auctioneers have typically been British white men, but her upbringing and educational and cultural environments were different. Trying to imitate their style would not have been authentic. Instead, she paid close attention to nonverbal communication, especially clothing and visual cues. In an intimidating auction room, she chose styles that helped her command the rostrum while remaining true to herself. Her point is that people communicate before they speak, and appearance can shape whether an audience accepts their authority. Gilpin says sports organizations now have to reach audiences beyond the traditional “whistle-to-whistle” experience of watching a match. Younger viewers want to know the athletes, see what happens behind the scenes and understand the people involved. World Rugby therefore tries to earn their trust by appearing authentically in the digital spaces where those audiences are interested in finding it. Liu argues that digital platforms have not made personal relationships obsolete. When she ran Farfetch, its Private Client department served the 1–2% of customers who generated nearly one-third of the business. The company built a team of roughly 70 to 80 stylists who communicated individually with important clients. Those conversations could turn cultural understanding into commercial results. She also describes bringing HSBC into Rugby Sevens’ expansion in India, where rugby is small compared with cricket: HSBC could create business connections and networks that helped the competition develop more quickly.

The speakers describe cultural fluency as an active practice of noticing rather than a fixed body of knowledge. Kao says she does not try to predict trends; she likes what speaks to her and looks for works with a universal truth about human nature. By maintaining a discerning, questioning and curious mind, she sometimes finds that she is ahead of the curve without deliberately chasing one. Liu says organizations must have the humility to admit what they do not understand. Clients may know more than a large company does, and in some Chinese contexts people have traditionally been less likely to raise their hands and ask questions. Her advice is to assume you do not know everything and ask. She recommends spending real time in the market, building a strong local talent team, and favoring speed over perfection: test, listen, adjust and keep moving. Companies should not enter a large market unless they are prepared to invest genuine time and attention on the ground. Gilpin frames this as a balance between innovation and heritage. Rugby is more than 200 years old, but its origin itself involved disruption: someone picked up a ball that was supposed to be kicked and ran with it. Rugby must evolve for rapidly changing audiences while preserving its identity and values, but those values must not become a trap. The episode closes by arguing that cultural fluency does not erase difference; it creates more ways to connect across it and provides the judgment to understand why something matters.