For Michael Kønig, a brand expert with two decades of experience leading transformations at companies like Bang & Olufsen, Georg Jensen, Wedgwood, Waterford, Royal Copenhagen and Moomin through shifts in product direction, brand positioning and operating model design, the challenge is not whether heritage brands should evolve. It’s how – and when.

“Things are moving so fast,” Mr. Kønig  says. “It’s one big change after another. These great heritage brands have these stories that have really stood the test of time – and now they need to figure out how to adapt to a world where relevance and speed are more important than ever.”