For those who don’t know citizenM have been telling quite the story over in New York. It’s a common dilemma in hotel-land, how do you open in a City that eats hotels like AA Gill… well eats. It’s a challenge, but not an insurmountable one, not if you’re citizenRobin (Chadha) and team that is.
citizenM opened in 2008 at Schiphol Airport, Amsterdam. They then visited the European Hotel Design Awards in 2008 and picked up just about every category they were nominated for… We know, we were there. That might have been a long night, but the journey for citizenM seems to have been quite short since then, because we get the feeling they’re just getting started.
Properties in Amsterdam, Rotterdam and London followed, and soon more in London and Paris will come too. Founded by Robin’s father Rattan Chadha of Mexx fame, this hotel group sees things differently, because they see things from the guest’s point of view. Their opening strategy in New York captures that mindset better than any anecdote.
New York is a city that everyone wants to be noticed in. What do you do if you’re the new kid on the block and your competitors have been garnering market share for decades? Disrupting the pre-existing eco-system is certainly one way to go. Parking a stretched limousine outside traditional five star hotels sure is gutsy. Inscribed upon on them, “Luxury is free WiFi and XL beds, not a stupidly long car, says citizenM.”
Or you might turn your attention to the personal letters they wrote to Donald Trump, Lady Gaga and Jay Z… Never have we seen such a youthful, disruptive, bold, beautiful and simply funny opening campaign. citizenM, you have us hooked, we can’t wait to see what’s next.
There’s an old phrase “People in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones”, and that’s just it…. citizenM are not living in a glass house, they’re in a somewhat solid fortress, simply because they know who they are, they know what they want and its you, all of you.
Broadway take note… This is how you open in New York.
