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BRINGING OUR BEST INSIGHTS TO THE DAY’S NEWS Subscribe Click to get this newsletter once a week Brought to you by Alex Panas, global leader of industries, & Becca Coggins, global leader of functional practices and growth platforms Welcome to the latest edition of Only McKinsey Perspectives. We hope you find our insights useful. Let us know what you think at Alex_Panas@McKinsey.com and Becca_Coggins@McKinsey.com. —Alex and Becca Air travel’s radical redesign In the news. A century-old aviation dream could finally take flight. As the BBC reports, aerospace start-ups are racing to build blended-wing airliners—aircraft with wings and fuselage that merge into a single aerodynamic body. The concept promises quieter cabins, more spacious interiors, and up to 50% less fuel burn than today’s tube-and-wing designs. Early prototypes are already flying, but certification and public acceptance remain major costs for these businesses to incur. [BBC] “The airport of tomorrow will feel very different: frictionless, automated, touchless, and personalized.” —Kelly Ungerman, senior partner, McKinsey On McKinsey.com. Tomorrow’s airports will need to adapt as aviation evolves. That’s according to Senior Partners Alastair Green, Kelly Ungerman, and Vik Krishnan and other McKinsey experts, who explain how automation, AI, and biometrics could transform airport design and personalize the passenger experience. In the latest edition of McKinsey’s The Next Normal series on the future of airports, they also describe the future of aircraft innovation. As hydrogen- and electric-powered airplanes mature—and new types of aircraft emerge—airports could require new fueling and charging infrastructure and revamped terminals. Explore how airports will evolve Resale reshapes luxury In the news. Luxury brands’ toughest competitor isn’t a rival—it’s their own past. The Wall Street Journal reports that demand for new luxury goods from top European brands has been flat for more than a year. Meanwhile, leading resale outlets are growing at 10% annually and are frequented by relatively younger, price-sensitive shoppers who sell their old items and use the cash to buy more secondhand goods. Some luxury brands are now tracking data on their resale products for cues on which items to relaunch or reprice. [WSJ] On McKinsey.com. Fashion’s future could be shaped in part by this resale trend, according to the Business of Fashion and McKinsey’s The State of Fashion 2026 report. Senior Partners Anita Balchandani and Gemma D’Auria and their coauthors predict that by 2027, the global secondhand fashion market will grow up to three times faster than the firsthand market. What’s more, nearly 60% of global consumers say they plan to shop resale in 2026. Companies that integrate resale into their strategies can extend their brand reach, reinforce perceptions of quality, and create loyalty loops that drive new full-price sales. For more on the report’s findings, register for a December 4 webinar with McKinsey experts. Learn what’s next in fashion Rethinking enterprise tech In the news. Enterprise technology isn’t failing, as some business leaders may believe; it’s overexerted. As The National CIO Review notes, chief information officers (CIOs) are increasingly focusing on stability and security as AI, automation, and hybrid environments stretch corporate infrastructure to its limits. Start-ups are deploying autonomous remediation tools that can fix performance, cost, risk, and privacy issues within defined guardrails. The goal: Remap the enterprise stack so that automation goes hand in hand with trust, visibility, and compliance—a critical balance for leaders looking to scale their tech capabilities safely and securely. [TNCR] On McKinsey.com. AI could triple a company’s returns from enterprise technology, but only for those that treat IT as a value engine rather than a cost center. McKinsey Senior Partners Aamer Baig, Klemens Hjartar, and Tanguy Catlin and coauthors find that companies that adopt six imperatives—including rebuilding platforms, redesigning talent models, and remodeling risk—can achieve an EBITDA increase from their technology investments that’s up to three times that of their peers. Success necessitates strong collaboration between business and technology leaders, which—according to the authors’ interviews with tech officers—few CIOs and chief technology officers report. Unlock more ROI from tech —Edited by Seth Stevenson, senior editor, New York Was this forwarded to you? Sign up here. Or send us feedback—we’d love to hear from you. Follow our thinking McKinsey Insights - Get our latest thinking on your iPhone, iPad, or Android. Copyright © 2025 | McKinsey & Company, 3 World Trade Center, 175 Greenwich Street, New York, NY 10007