Hilton - Audience Immersion, Brand Positioning, Experience Design, Ideation & Concepting, Naming

For decades, business travel has played to the extremes of “value” and “luxury.” Hilton was eager to seize the gap in between by delivering a more elevated experience that was still within reach. Our challenge was clear: How do you create a new class of ‘select service’ hotels that is curated to serve the evolving lifestyles of modern business travelers? And, with competitors moving in quickly, how do you accelerate the conventional process to go to market in less than a year?

As strategy stewards for the new brand, we unearthed the needs of a rising class of business travelers and ushered cross-functional teams to design a meaningful experience that mirrors their ambitions and supports their pursuit of progress in all aspects of their lives.

As cross-functional teams dove in, we kept business travelers and their needs at the heart of everything. Channeling insights from co-creation sessions and an ongoing research community in real-time, we centered teams around a shared brand positioning and emotive audience portraits.

Through a deconstructed user journey, expert ideation and collaborative workshops, we worked alongside architecture, interior design, and food & beverage partners to design every aspect of the new hotel experience to support the journey of ambitious modern travelers – from a Get Ready Zone in the room, to Power Up and Down amenities, to an elevated coffee bar to new fitness partnerships. Along the way, we crafted sales materials in parallel to build excitement with future owners from the start.

Since its industry launch in early 2020, Hilton has secured +30 commitments with owners and developers to build Tempos across the U.S. In late 2023, Hilton Tempo debuted to travelers with its first hotel opening in New York City. Since then, Tempo has continued to open its doors and welcome ambitious modern travelers around the country, including openings in Nashville and Louisville in 2024.

Link to full case study.​