Hyatt Launches 'Unscripted' – Soft Brand for Upscale Indie Hotels: Exclusive
Hyatt Hotels on Friday will launch a new "soft brand" called Unscripted by Hyatt, targeting independent hotels that want access to the chain's marketing muscle while keeping their local, non-chain flavor.
Katie Johnson, vice president and global brand leader, said in an exclusive interview with Skift that about 40 hotels globally are in talks to join the new brand.
Most of this first wave of hotels will be conversions of existing independent properties rather than new builds.
The launch of Unscripted puts Hyatt in direct competition with rivals chasing independent operators for inventory growth beyond traditional big-box hotels, as some customers seek "lifestyle" and boutiques instead.
Johnson said Hyatt aims to stand apart in a few ways. One is that Hyatt has put together a team of experts who can act as consultants for hotel owners to improve their properties' performance.
"These are colleagues with an owner's mindset who understand the independent space and how to care for these hotels, how to navigate the customer journey, how to deliver an experience that's unique but also to really ensure that the hotel has their fair share of demand in the market within that segment," Johnson said.
The creation of Unscripted addresses a gap in Hyatt's lineup in the "upscale" segment, which is above budget hotels but below luxury resorts.
"A flexible brand really didn't exist for us at Hyatt in the upscale segment to accommodate a lot of those owners that were looking for affiliation but with a little bit more flexibility," said Dan Hansen, Hyatt's head of Americas development.
For independent hotel owners, joining a major chain offers access to loyalty program members who typically spend more per stay.
"World of Hyatt has 56 million loyalty members that spend more money per room than any other loyalty program," Hansen said.
The Unscripted brand name comes from a hotel in Durham, North Carolina, that Hyatt acquired as part of its 2022 purchase of Dream Hotel Group. That property currently operates under JDV, a soft brand that's one tier above in quality in the upper-upscale segment.
Greater Flexibility
Soft-branded collections have existed since 2008, when Choice launched its Ascend Hotel Collection. Unscripted by Hyatt will compete with Ascend and similar soft brands in the "upscale" category, such as Radisson Individuals, Accor's Art Series, and WorldHotels' Distinctive Collection.
Compared to standard brands, soft brands involve fewer "brand standards," or rules from headquarters about things like the colors of curtains, what food is served at breakfast, or minimum requirements for event space.
Properties can maintain much of their existing identity. Some owners will choose to display the Hyatt name heavily, while others may keep it to a minimum because they want to preserve the emphasis on the existing name.
The challenge for any soft brand is balancing flexibility with quality control. Hotels carrying a major chain's name but operating with significant independence can create inconsistent guest experiences and disappoint customers who had expectations from the brand.
"We compete at the highest end of any segment that we participate in," Hansen said, adding that the collection would only include hotels with assets and a room rate potential that's relatively above average.
The launch of Unscripted reflects Hyatt's broader strategy of expanding in more hotel segments and markets, moving beyond its historic focus on luxury and full-service properties.
For instance, Hyatt added more than 30 new lifestyle properties, worth about 3,500 rooms, in the year through the end of March.
What am I looking at? The performance of hotels and short-term rental sector stocks within the ST200. The index includes companies publicly traded across global markets, including international and regional hotel brands, hotel REITs, hotel management companies, alternative accommodations, and timeshares.
The Skift Travel 200 (ST200) combines the financial performance of nearly 200 travel companies worth more than a trillion dollars into a single number. See more hotels and short-term rental financial sector performance.
Read the full methodology behind the Skift Travel 200.
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