Ritz-Carlton has unveiled its new brand "voice" today.
The newly-designed brand logo and "voice" will roll-out across its 106 properties worldwide over the coming year.
According to Ritz-Carlton, the new logo and brand has been created to maintain its position with "a new generation of guests globally" after a ten-year process during which it made "significant changes... and [saw]... positive corresponding shifts in key brand metrics".
The new direction sees "everything from the brand's design strategy, the locations selected to open new hotels, the service style, grooming standards and the removal of the formal dining experience... redesigned, reinvented or replaced".
Hervé Humler, Ritz-Carlton's president and COO, said: "We believe as an iconic brand that it is our responsibility to provide thought-leadership to drive change in the luxury and hospitality arena."
The move also reflects Ritz-Carlton's more varied portfolio, including Residences, Destination Clubs, Ritz-Carlton Reserve and Golf Clubs. The company said that it is "not only the largest provider of luxury spas in the United States, but one of the largest providers of luxury meeting and conference space around the world".
Ed French, Ritz-Carlton's chief sales and marketing officer, said: "As a brand that aims to lead the way for luxury, we didn't wait for emphatic data to tell us there was a problem to fix.
"Instead, we took a leadership point of view and conducted global studies, not on where luxury has been, but where it is going – to shine a light for the others to follow."
The particular shade of blue chosen for the logo comes from 1920s Boston, when affluent homeowners imported glass for their windows from Europe. This glass changed over time from clear to blue and became a status symbol.
Ritz-Carlton will open a property in Budapest next year (see news, May 5).
Tom Otley
