Boutique Is the New Box
In The Field
August 11, 2023
Tim Cooper
There was a time when a hotel stay largely meant standardized, nondescript (albeit well-appointed) facilities that could be located… well, anywhere. The inside of a Marriott in Albany looked no different than the inside of a Marriott in Palo Alto.
But a number of factors, including the rise (and fall) of Airbnbs and a post-pandemic travel surge, have consumers—particularly Millennials and Gen Z—on the lookout for unique, story-driven, experiential stays.
There’s a term for hotels that achieve a boutique aesthetic while maintaining ties with a larger hotel flag (or “boxed brand”). These soft brands are not fully independent. Still, each hotel has a name and branding that is entirely distinct from its counterparts across the country. Think Marriott Autographs and Tribute Portfolios, Hilton Curios, and the Unbound Collection by Hyatt.
A soft brand in Rehoboth Beach, DE looks nothing like one in Lincoln, NE—and with good reason. Soft brands are swiftly gaining popularity worldwide.
Soft brands are swiftly gaining popularity worldwide.
We heard an industry colleague say it this way: In the case of a traditional box brand, the hotel flag hands the ownership team a box. That box contains all the ingredients and instructions for how to build a traditional hotel—what music to play, what finishes to select, what food to serve, and so on.
But for soft brands, the hotel flag hands the ownership an empty box. They rely on the owners and project stakeholders to answer this question: What belongs in the box? What is most essential to our story? What will make this experience singular and memorable for our guests?
This is, largely, the work we do as a hospitality branding agency focusing on boutique brands—we determine what goes in the box. As we work with consulting teams, it’s our job to unearth the history, explore the influences, and conduct the market research. Then we craft a narrative that is wholly unique to the brand.
Sometimes, a brand calls for a series of custom illustrations or an original poem. Other times it needs a bespoke in-room newspaper or inventive guest personas that come to life through an interactive quiz.
The result, in short, is anything but in-the-box.
