Erewhon And Grand Wailea Team Up For Strategic Partnership

Food & Drink

Consumers no longer simply make purchases. They look for experiences that align with their lifestyles, values, and aspirations.

This trend shows up in both hospitality and retail sectors—and according to a report from STR Global, “lifestyle hotels” are projected to account for 23% of the global hotel development pipeline by 2025.

Why? Because they’re more profitable. Compared to rooms in their non-lifestyle-focused counterparts, these hotels can generate an additional $33.60 average daily rates. Travelers will spend more when their destination reflects and complements their way of life.

As both hospitality and retail industry players strive to deliver on this front, the line between them begins to blur.

Prestige brands have taken matters into their own hands. Some notable examples are sites like luxury resort Blackberry Farm offering guests rustic dinnerware, kitchen products, and other items to bring the farmhouse aesthetic home, as well as Giorgio Armani’s Armani Hotels to showcase the brand’s signature elegance and attention to detail.

Others are taking a different path, however. Instead of developing brand extensions, they opt for strategic partnerships. For these partnerships to thrive, they need to tap into contextual commerce.

Contextual commerce is about organically engaging customers where they are likely to need what a retail brand offers. In this case, it’s about introducing products that fit the destination.

Take the collaboration between Los Angeles’ upscale grocery chain Erewhon and Grand Wailea, a Waldorf Astoria Resort in Hawaii. Despite being some 2,500 miles apart, they share something in common: a commitment to holistic wellness.

Grand Wailea’s Area Managing Director JP Oliver calls the collaboration: “a natural extension of the resort’s dedication to its expansive wellness offering.”

The hotel’s emphasis on farm-to-table dining and wellness experiences makes it a natural fit for Erewhon’s wholesome product lineup. The brand also matches the hotel’s wellness-focused amenities, like the recently updated Kilolani Spa.

Erewhon chose Grand Wailea as the first hotel partner for its expanded membership program, which includes benefits like a point accrual program and access to exclusive offers.

Any Erewhon member staying at the hotel gets a $100 resort credit per night booked (up to seven nights) and a complimentary one-category upgrade. Incentives like these cater to health-conscious travelers, the target audience for both brands.

The collaboration also led to the development of the limited-edition Aloha Sunshine Juice, a beverage inspired by the tropical flavors of Maui. Available at Grand Wailea’s artisanal café Loulu, shoppers can also find it at all Erewhon locations across Los Angeles.

On Feb.1, the Erewhon and Grand Wailea partnership will build even further with the launch of surfer and influencer Kelia Moniz’s Lovel & Lava sundae; a special product collaboration for hotel guests that includes Erewhon’s notable Coconut Cloud soft serve.

As simple as this move might seem, it’s pivotal in brand recall. On-site retail keeps Erewhon top-of-mind and reminds guests of their health-forward experience at the resort.

For Erewhon, this type of partnership isn’t new, but it is building upon an existing strategy. Ritz-Carlton Maui’s Kai Cafe, for instance, also carries Erewhon’s artisanal goods like Kefir sodas and its partner brands like Pop & Bottle’s brews.

According to Nate Rosen, founder of Express Checkout, this works because “Erewhon has built trust with consumers who know they’ll find high-quality, interesting products, making them more likely to buy from the brand than a generic resort shop.”

Hospitality venues, wellness retreats, and lifestyle-focused spaces are ideal avenues for promoting its products to engaged audiences. This way, “Erewhon reaches its ideal customers at peak aspirational moments,” Rosen explains.

This level of strategic brand-building goes beyond conventional on-site retail with hospitality partners. As modern consumers continue to seek value-driven experiences from their purchases, Erewhon found a way to embed themselves in environments where consumers are most engaged.

As a result, the brand and its partners in the luxury hospitality industry ensure that consumers remember the role the products play in the quality of their stay.

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