Page 22 - The Book For Men Spring/Summer 2024

MICHAEL LA FAVE / CHIEF CREATIVE OFFICER
That being said, it was reading the interview with Bjarke Ingels in this issue that inspired my braggadocio. You see, six years ago, we were the only brand in Toronto permitted to use Unzipped — a reconstruction of the Danish architect’s 2016 Serpentine Pavilion installation — as a venue, where we hosted our fall 2018 SHARP: The Book For Men launch party. It felt like a monumental achievement at the time; the chance to align with an incredible piece of architectural art, not to mention the BIG (Bjarke Ingels Group) brand. But, dear reader, we massively eclipsed that
phenomenal event this winter with Range Rover House Whistler.
Now, before I take all the credit, it’s worth pointing out that Range Rover Houses — a multi-national hosting and prospecting initiative — are the vision of Range Rover global. The brand even has a team of senior staff at its HQ, with whom Contempo Media and SHARP worked closely, who have a shared vision of what an elevated, luxurious hosting experience really looks like. With that said, I’ll proceed to the bragging. Because seeing Range Rover House Whistler — the first Canadian house — come to life has been a personal and professional high point. And the Contempo Media team, responsible for all of the content, events, sales, and lead-generation that we deliver for the world’s most discerning
brands, were all involved in creating Range Rover House Whistler.
Over the course of a week, the house hosted 1,200 Range Rover customers and SHARP VIPs. You can read all about their experience on p. 52. But what you won’t read about in the feature, however, is the team that made this event possible, and the shared vision of everyone involved: excellence or bust. There are other event producers, other publishers of websites, social media channels, magazines, and custom content, but I have yet to see or hear of any other that is as singularly committed to truly sophisticated and consistently premium execution as we are. Range Rover House Whistler was the culmination of our many years of experience in all of these areas and, as such, it was tremendously rewarding to see those years of work help manifest something truly exceptional. Just like Range Rover House Whistler, this latest issue is filled with the very best the world has to offer the modern man — watches to cars to be sure, but also style, fine dining, culture, and art. So, for now, I’m done tooting my own horn, and will leave you to enjoy The Book For Men, and I hope to see you
at a SHARP event this year.
It’s What We Do
I’VE MENTIONED THIS BEFORE, I TRY TO COME UP WITH SOMETHING interesting and useful to write for every one of these columns. This time, however, I’m simply going to brag. I’m not even going to be humble about it. I feel I’ve earned it.
22 BFM / SS24 LETTER
PHOTO BY MATT BARNES