Luxury jeweler Bvlgari’s hotel division is charting a cautious expansion path, in stark contrast to the aggressive growth strategies of its competitors. It’s betting that rarity and quality control will maintain its ultra-luxury status.
“We’ll never have a large hotel collection,” senior director Attilio Maro said in an interview at Cannes. “There are going to be some properties that make a lot of sense.”
Bvlgari Hotels & Resorts has only 9 hotels open. Three more are in the pipeline: Bvlgari Maldives Ranfushi (scheduled to open in 2026), Bvlgari Bodrum (2026) and Bvlgari Miami Beach (2027), but they are happy with their smaller footprints.
While competitors compete to plant their flags on every glittering metropolis and pristine beach (Aman has 34 locations, Rosewood has 38 locations, Four Seasons has more than 120 locations), Bvlgari Hotels & Resorts has more Carefully selected.
The ultra-luxury hospitality brand is “aggressively” searching for prime locations in New York and Los Angeles, which Marlo describes as “top priority” markets. After numerous delays, Bvlgari Miami Beach finally opens, marking the brand’s first U.S. hotel.
The brand will also explore opportunities in “some pretty extraordinary resorts” in selected capital cities and beautiful destinations around the world.
The company’s real estate development approach focuses on renovation rather than new construction. Location conditions include being close to a high-end shopping district within a 10-minute walk.
“I think we’ve been very disciplined in choosing our locations,” Marlo said. “If you get the right place and create a great product, it’s almost impossible to go wrong, because there’s always going to be a niche customer that will be good for you, and you’ll be good for them.”
Bvlgari has embraced hospitality by translating the jewelery brand’s core values - craftsmanship, rare materials and Italian design heritage – into the hotel experience.
“We have never treated this like a licensing or commercialization activity,” Marlo explained.
For LVMH, which acquired Bulgari in 2011, the strategy appears to be working, although specific financial details remain private. Bvlgari Hotel Rome, which opened in 2023, was named the best hotel in the world at this year’s Virtuoso conference for luxury traveler counselors.
Bulgari Hotels will maintain an asset-light model through a partnership with Marriott International, which manages the hotels, while Bulgari maintains strict control over branding and design elements. Notably, these properties operate outside of Marriott’s Bonvoy loyalty program, a deliberate choice to maintain exclusivity.
“We don’t offer loyalty points,” Marlo said. (The Bvlgari Hotel Collection began as a joint venture with the Ritz-Carlton, which Marriott acquired when it acquired the Ritz-Carlton.)
Bvlgari reports a repeat business rate of 50% to 60% at its stores in Milan and London. Rather than pursuing occupancy through seasonal price adjustments, the brand maintains consistently high rates year-round, even though it may operate at 20% occupancy during off-season periods.
Attention to detail
Design remains a key differentiator, with all properties conceived by architects Antonio Citterio and Patricia Viel (ACPV). Each establishment attempts to thread the needle between Italian charm and local aesthetics.
The documentary “The Jewels of the Emperor,” released on Amazon Prime this year, features a centuries-old Italian company specializing in lighting, fabrics, marble and mosaics, and showcases the brand’s appreciation for Italian craftsmanship on its premises in Rome. Introducing our efforts.
Maro said Bvlgari is adapting to the evolving tastes of luxury consumers. The new hotel features expanded amenities, including a 25-meter pool (instead of the first hotel’s 10-meter version), an expanded fitness center, and an increased proportion of suites. “We have a better understanding of the demands of our very top customers today,” Marlo said.
“The biggest challenge is creating a hotel that keeps getting better and better over time,” Marlo says. “In this industry, we often see hotels that open at a very high level and then gradually decline.”
Mr. Marlo emphasized that sustainable success in the ultra-luxury hospitality sector requires constant vigilance, adding that Silvio Ursini, Group Executive Vice President of Hotels and Resorts He praised the leadership that continued to ensure this.
“Creating an upward spiral of success is extremely complex and requires daily focus and full commitment.”
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