Articles tagged “hotel brands”

Choice Hotels has been abandoning its roadside motel roots for more lucrative upscale and extended-stay properties. That means ice machines are out, and Instagrammable lobbies are in.

IHG's latest franchising deal underscores how there's distribution pressure on independent hotel brands to join forces with the largest hotel groups.

IHG CEO Elie Maalouf sees rich potential in many fragmented hotel markets, such as Europe and Japan, where independent hoteliers face mounting pressures from digital transformation.

Strawberry's two new brands are a mirror of modern Nordic society: sustainability-minded, design-conscious, and determined to address a loneliness crisis by encouraging guests to socialize.

"People think this is some sort of property game," says Robin Hutson, founder of The Pig brand of boutique hotels. "It's not a property game. ... This is a people game."

In 2025, Belmond is rolling out offerings with old-school opulance that feels ripped from the pages of an Agatha Christie novel — if Christie's characters had wellness spas and farm-to-table dining. Think of Belmond as an anti-Aman: less minimalist zen, more maximalist glamour.

Can a music label make a good hotel brand? Universal Music Group believes you'll pay $400 a night to stay at its new Umusic Hotels. It aspires to build "cultural hubs" that combine hotel, entertainment, and local music heritage.

Design Hotels is a Marriott brand that isn't quite a Marriott brand. It's more like an exclusive hotel club where 60% of owners have never run a boutique before. New boss Stijn Oyen is fine-tuning its strategy.

For Hyatt, which has been aggressively expanding in this segment, the joint venture will boost its all-inclusive room count by about 30%.

Choice Hotels is betting big on extended-stay hotels but is doing so methodically.