Hilton has overtaken Marriott as the world’s most valuable hotel brand.
According to independent brand valuation consultancy Brand Finance, Hilton’s brand value grew 17 percent in the last year.
“Hilton’s strategic approach to brand growth has allowed it to extend its lead as the world’s most valuable hotel brand. At the same time, the endorsement from the flagship brand has rendered benefits across the portfolio as Homewood Suites, DoubleTree, and Hampton have seen their brand values sore,” said Savio D’Souza, valuation director, Brand Finance.
“In its centennial year, Hilton is well-positioned for another hundred years of success.”
The combined value of all Hilton brands amounted to US$14.7 billion (NZD$22.3 billion) almost $2 billion (NZD$3 billion) higher than second-placed Marriott.
Marriott was the previous leader, but the value of their brand across the portfolio decreased by 30 percent.
Marriott’s core brand value dropped just 8 percent, with its brand strength dropping from an AAA- ranking to AA+. This likely comes as a result of Marriott running into a series of challenges like the hacking scandal and ongoing problems with its new loyalty programme Bonvoy.
This came at the same time as Marriott released its first quarter results which left analysts underwhelmed. The Q1 results showed net income with $375 million profit, an 11 percent decrease from the previous year’s Q1 results.
While slipping, Marriott is still well ahead of third-placed brand portfolio Wyndham Hotels and Resorts which held the same position in 2018. Wyndham dropped 8 percent in brand value to US$7.3 billion.
The fastest growing brand was Hilton’s Homewood Suites which grew 99 percent in value year-on-year. It was followed closely by DoubleTree which was up 79 percent.
The brands which had the biggest decrease in brand value were Marriott’s Westin and Residence Inn brands which declined by -45.9 percent and -45.5 percent respectively.
Without taking brand value into account, the report also measured the relative strength of hotel brands across a range of empirical categories like stakeholder equity, marketing investment, and business performance. Using these criteria, Accor’s Mercure brand was measured as the world’s strongest, scoring 86.2/100 on the index.
The report also showed that hotel brands and the hotel sector generally held in high regarded. Across the 31 sectors involved in Brand Finance’s research, hotel brands scored highest in overall reputation. Hotel brands also scored highest for trust and emotional loyalty (customers' intent to use again).
