How TUMI engineers hyper-relevance for a fragmented digital audience

Heritage is a powerful asset, but in a content-first world, it can sometimes feel like an anchor. As consumer attention fragments across a dizzying array of platforms, established brands face a complex challenge: how to adapt to the speed of culture without losing their core identity.

For TUMI - a brand built on a 50-year legacy of innovation, craftsmanship, and performance - this heritage continues to positively anchor how it is perceived by both new and existing customers, according to Aris Maroulis (pictured), vice president, TUMI APAC and Middle East in conversation with MARKETING-INTERACTIVE.

“When you buy a TUMI, you buy confidently into our precise, sleek, detail-oriented, and durable designs," Maroulis said. "They are designs that not only keep pace with, but actively perform alongside, those with the toughest travel and work schedules.”

Maroulis attributed TUMI's sustained relevance to a brand ethos that is always in motion. “Victor Sanz, TUMI’s global creative director, and our design team are constantly traveling the world to observe how people across different regions move and how their habits are evolving—from everyday commutes to long-haul travel,” he explained.

With the customer serving as the ultimate muse, TUMI's products are engineered to elevate daily journeys. This manifests in high-performance materials, technical innovations that ensure effortless handling, intuitive internal organisation, and design-forward styles.

To future-proof its appeal, Maroulis noted that the brand remains deeply connected to local markets and evolving consumer behaviors, ensuring it consistently resonates with new generations of customers.

Leveraging regional complexity to drive growth

Operating in over 75 countries worldwide, TUMI’s regional complexity has heavily shaped its approach to growth. Maroulis explained that the brand’s strategy centres on maintaining global consistency anchored in its "TUMI Difference" philosophy—quality, durability, innovation, and design excellence - while fluidly adapting how that philosophy is expressed locally.

Rather than applying a single playbook across APAC, TUMI tailors its approach to each unique market. The brand closely observes regional lifestyle differences, color preferences, and how local consumers prefer to shop and experience products.

“For example, when it comes to Southeast Asian markets such as Singapore and Malaysia, we know our customers have a strong preference for colour, whereas in South Korea, darker colours dominate," Maroulis shared. "In mainland China, customers love discovering our new products through livestreaming formats, whereas in Japan, we lean heavily into premium, design-driven retail for that product discovery experience.”

Ultimately, Maroulis believes regional growth stems from staying close to local consumers and creating the products and engagement formats that hold the highest local appeal.

As social channels such as TikTok, Instagram, and WeChat demand constant, snackable content, TUMI has built a robust online presence to match. This ecosystem ranges from livestreamed product demonstrations on Tmall and JD.com to localised, interactive storytelling and collaborations with KOCs, KOLs, and celebrities across WeChat, Xiaohongshu, Douyin, Instagram, and TikTok.

The goal, Maroulis emphasised, is ensuring that even short-form content always ladders back to the brand's core pillars of performance, innovation, and purposeful design.

“We align online and offline experiences so customers can seamlessly move between social platforms, eCommerce, and physical stores, using cohesive content and storytelling to connect at every touchpoint," Maroulis said. "A customer who discovers us through a 10-second clip on Instagram or WeChat can easily deepen that experience by exploring richer content online, or by stepping into one of our physical stores.”

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