Prof. Sonja Prokopec is a Professor of Marketing and the Associate Dean of Faculty at ESSEC Business School in Singapore. Her research explores consumer judgment and decision-making. She is also interested in understanding the factors that affect brand perceptions of luxury brands. Prof. Prokopec’s research has been published in the Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Psychology, and International Journal of Research in Marketing among others, as well as a variety of media including the Harvard Business Review, Huffington Post, the Business of Fashion and Business Times Singapore.

She was the ESSEC LVMH Chair Professor of Luxury Brand Management for 12 years, from 2010 – 2022. She was named one of the Top 40 under 40 Business School Professors worldwide in 2015 (Poets&Quants ranking). Outside of teaching and research, she actively advises companies from the luxury and automotive industries, as well as start-ups regarding consumer behavior trends, consumer research and marketing, and brand management issues. She is also an advisory council member of Singapore Fashion Council and VOGUE Council.

Junqiu Jiang is a marketing professor at ESSEC Business School. She holds a PhD in Marketing Strategy from Singapore Management University. Junqiu’s research explores the contextual factors that shape marketing decision-making, with current work examining how organizations secure marketing budgets and how corporate political ties influence marketing actions. A multimethod scholar, she draws on both quantitative and qualitative methodologies to produce research that bridges academic theory and managerial practice, with an emphasis on sustainable marketing. Junqiu earned her BA in Fashion Management from the London College of Fashion, University of the Arts London, and her MSc in Strategic Marketing from Imperial College London. Before pursuing her PhD, she worked across diverse industries—including luxury fashion, family business, mining, and finance—across regions such as South Africa, the UK, France, China, and Singapore.

At ESSEC, Junqiu teaches undergraduate, master's, MBA, and executive-level students. Her teaching portfolio and interests span Luxury Retail Management, Luxury Brand Management, Marketing Strategy, Marketing Management, and Marketing Research Methods. Through her teaching, she combines academic rigor with real-world relevance to equip students with the skills to lead in an evolving marketing landscape.

Dennis co-founded Genesis-Global Gems & Jewellery Group, a purveyor of exquisite gems and jewelry in the ultra-luxury market, with business interest in various markets across Asia. Having started the business over 11 years and coupled with over 20 years of experience and expertise, Dennis specializes in the sourcing of rare diamonds and precious gems directly from mines across the world, for purposes ranging from investments to adornment.

Prior to that, Dennis had 16 years of corporate working experience with various multi-national organizations across various industries, such as luxury hotels, luxury retail, FMCG, logistics & distribution, and leisure. His forte lies in the areas of learning and development, and services.

In his free time, Dennis is an avid wine and champagne collector. His real passion lies in rare gems collection.