BRANDS

The Four Seasons is not a hotel chain. It is a standard of living. I bought it because I wanted to own the definition of luxury itself.

The best brands in the world are deferred gratification machines. They invest today in markets that won't pay off for a decade. Most investors can't stomach that. I love it.

When you buy a European brand, you buy 100 years of engineering. When you build a Chinese brand, you have 10 years of learning ahead. I chose to buy.

I give my acquired brands autonomy. I didn’t buy Volvo to make it Chinese. I bought it to make Geely Swedish in quality.

A brand without distribution is just a logo. Distribution without brands is just a shelf.

I have always believed in the power of great content. And I believe that the brands we have at Paramount — CBS, MTV, Nickelodeon, BET, Showtime — are among the most powerful in the world.

You bring the brand and the relationships together in the right place, and the rest follows.

Building products has become easier and cheaper, but building brands is harder than ever.