Autograph Collection

Autograph Collection is an American group of independent upper-upscale to luxury hotels within the Marriott International portfolio. The properties are independently owned and operated under the Autograph Collection name.

To grow in the post-2008 economic downturn, Marriott, known for its rigid uniformity, was willing to relax this stipulation to draw independent unique hotels to its network of franchised properties. In 2010, Marriott approached Richard Kessler, an independent hotelier and former CEO of Days Inn, to incorporate the seven Kessler boutique properties into its system, under a yet unnamed new brand.

In 2006, Kessler had dropped the Westin brand affiliation from his downtown Orlando hotel to operate independently. Initially reluctant, Kessler came to an acceptable arrangement. The hotels would operate autonomously, keeping their names and identities. The Autograph Collection launched that year, with the Kessler properties forming the bulk of the hotel inventory. This freedom may seem unfair to branded properties, sometimes subject to intransigent brand standards or extra fees, but the difference is that these independents bear the cost of creating their own brand identities from scratch.

The new name highlighted not a brand, but a collection of hotels. The Leading Hotels of the World, targeting high-end customers looking for unique hotel experiences, had long dominated this market. Not displaying the Marriott branding or Marriott booking engine on the Autograph website, not only emphasized the unique experiences of these independent hotels, but also shielded the hospitality giant's various brands from fallout should the venture fail.

The selection included historical landmark buildings rejuvenated into the 21st century, but offering a hotel experience far different from a normal “cookie-cutter” property. The collection sought hotels that possessed an element of authentic local flavor and cultural distinction to provide guests with an enriching stay. The experience itself, and service, replaced the traditional definitions of luxury, such as the number of bathroom fixtures and thread count of the bed sheets and drapes. In addition to displaying hotels by location, guests could search the website by specifying unique preferences, such as culinary, historic exploration, arts, family, sports and urban.

Over time, the growth emphasis shifted from adding existing properties to proposals and new builds that incorporated the desired features.

Whereas advantageous in a buoyant economy, during a downturn, the backing from the diverse customer base of a big brand might be a savior. Major soft brands launches were Ascend by Choice (2008), Autograph by Marriott (2010), Curio by Hilton (2014), Best Western Premier (2014), Unbound by Hyatt (2016), and Trademark by Wyndham (2017). Marriott continues to promote growth in its three soft brands, The Luxury Collection, Tribute Portfolio, and Autograph.

To the guest, a soft brand hotel possesses the distinctive identity, design style, and regional flair of a leading independent property. To the hotelier, it accesses the global marketing channels, customer loyalty rewards program, staff training model, seamless back-of-house operational standards, and new technologies, provided by Marriott or its rivals. In addition, the major online travel booking sites charge 15 to 30 percent commission. However, larger companies like Marriott use their market power to negotiate the lowest rates from those agents. Twelve months after a conversion to the Autograph Collection, independent hotels have experienced an average RevPAR percentage increase of 19.8 percent and an average RevPAR index percentage change of 12.5 percent.

In January 2017, Autograph began the Independent Film Initiative at the Sundance Film Festival with the Autograph Collection Hotels & The Black List Sundance Social Space. The Annual Black List is a comprehensive list of strong screenplays that require financing. Autograph has its own indie film channel for hotel guests. The Autograph Collection Short Film Award was created to discover new talent and accelerate the development of independent filmmakers. Furthermore, Autograph provides a complimentary one-week hotel stay to chosen writers as an opportunity to develop their work.

The Autograph Collection comprises a portfolio of 4- and 5-star properties that have ranged from a 15-room boutique hunting lodge in the Colorado mountains to the 3,400-room Atlantis Resort on Paradise Island, The Bahamas.

As of June 30, 2020, the Autograph Collection consisted of 199 hotels in over 32 countries, with another 95 hotels with 16,941 rooms in its pipeline.

• The Scrub Island Resort, Spa & Marina in the British Virgin Islands The hotel has since left the program. https://www.travelweekly.com/Travel-News/Hotel-News/Scrub-Island-drop-Autograph-Collection-affiliation

• The Algonquin Resort St. Andrews By-The-Sea, St Andrews, NB
• Humaniti Hotel Montreal, Montreal, QC

• The Pyrmont, Willemstad Curaçao

• Hotel am Steinplatz in Berlin
• The Falkenstein Grand in Königstein im Taunus
• The Hotel Atlantic in Hamburg
• Villa Rothschild in Königstein im Taunus
• Hotel Luc in Berlin

• Mount Juliet Estate in Kilkenny
• Shelbourne Hotel in Dublin
• The Powerscourt Hotel in Wicklow

• The Prince Sakura Tower in Tokyo

• The Royalton Splash in Cancún

• The Glasshouse in Edinburgh
• The Threadneedles Hotel in London
• The University Arms Hotel in Cambridge

• The Adolphus Hotel in Dallas, Texas,
• The Algonquin Hotel Times Square in Manhattan, New York City, New York
• The Arrowhead Springs Hotel and Spa in Lake Arrowhead, California
• The Hotel Blackhawk in Davenport, Iowa
• The Blackstone Hotel in Chicago, Illinois
• The Brown Palace Hotel in Denver, Colorado
• Hotel Carmichael in Carmel, Indiana
• The Casa Monica Hotel in St. Augustine, Florida
• The Castle Hotel in Orlando, Florida
• The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas in Las Vegas, Nevada
• The Cloudveil in Jackson, Wyoming
• The Current Iowa in Davenport, Iowa
• The Historic Davenport in Spokane, Washington
• The Daytona in Daytona Beach, Fl.
• The Draftsman in Charlottesville, Virginia
• The Hotel Duval in Tallahassee, Florida
• The Éilan Hotel & Spa in San Antonio, Texas,
• The Fenway Hotel in Dunedin, Florida
• The Grand Hotel in Fairhope, Alabama
• The Henry in Dearborn, Michigan
• The Hi-Lo Hotel in Portland, Oregon
• The Hotel Cleveland in Cleveland, Ohio
• The Hotel Icon in Houston, Texas,
• The Lexington Hotel in New York City
• The Lytle Park Hotel in Cincinnati, Ohio
• The Mauna Kea Beach Hotel in Kohala Coast, Hawaii
• The Mayflower Hotel in Washington, DC
• Hotel Metro in Milwaukee, Wisconsin
• The Metropolitan at The 9 in Cleveland, Ohio
• The Morrison House in Alexandria, Virginia
• The Paso Del Norte in El Paso, Texas
• The Press Hotel in Portland, Maine
• The Stella Hotel in Bryan, Texas.
• The Union Station Hotel in Nashville, Tennessee
• The National in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
• Hotel Park City in Park City, Utah

• The Vinpearl Landmark 81 in Ho Chi Minh City

Media related to Autograph Collection hotels at Wikimedia Commons