A masterbrand behind legendary hotels

Maybourne, owner of Claridge's, The Connaught, The Berkeley and The Emory, has long operated as a silent partner behind its celebrated hotels. The new masterbrand opened up opportunities to design an expanded world of luxury experiences in its own right. Where and how might we introduce the Maybourne masterbrand without compromising the iconic hotel experiences?

Based on the brand idea 'Stories of Distinction', I led our internal team in developing a series of experience concepts, grounded in personas from customer interviews held during November 2023 and a set of experience principles. I ran working sessions with client teams in London, France and the USA to build on these ideas and create a definitive roadmap, then handed over to Maybourne's new Experience Team, who took ownership and began implementing the most compelling activations.

Favourite ideas were developed through both physical and digital lenses. The brand creative was led by the idea of a tapestry drawing on 150 years of history across the hotel portfolio. We built this out to include a physical textile artefact, a virtual story explorer using augmented reality, and a bespoke mechanism for sharing specific stories with VIP guests.

The new Maybourne brand launched in early 2024. For the launch moment, the Experience Team chose our 'May Day' concept: a celebration of the people and values behind the properties, staged simultaneously across London, LA and Monaco. In London, the Household Cavalry paid Claridge's a visit; the new flag was raised across the other properties to mark the occasion.