Skift Take
We predicted the new brand would be named Livsmart based on trademark filings. Our next prediction is that there will be rapid uptake of this brand given trends in the extended-stay market.
Hilton has named its newest hotel brand LivSmart Studios by Hilton, the company said on Tuesday. It’s Hilton’s 19th brand and an extended-stay apartment suites hotel concept.
When Hilton previewed the idea last year, executives tentatively called it Project H3. Last month, Skift analyzed Hilton’s trademark filings and suggested that Livsmart would likely be the name.
Construction on the first LivSmart Studios began last month in Kokomo, Indiana. Hilton is engaged in about 350 deal talks with owners and developers to open properties, it said on Tuesday.
The LivSmart Studios brand is aimed at guests staying 20 nights or more — far longer than the average weeklong stay in today’s extended-stay market. It’s aimed at people who temporarily relocated for their jobs, a segment that spends about $300 billion a year on travel lodging.
This customer base wants more home-like lodging, and LivSmart Studios provides kitchens with full-sized refrigerators, dishwashers, microwaves, and two-burner stovetops.
“It’s not competitive with what we’re doing with Home2 and certainly not competitive with Homewood because it’s serving a totally different need [than our other brands], mostly in totally different markets … for a different demand base, in different types of locations,” said CEO Christopher Nassetta when first previewing the brand in April 2023.
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Tags: extended stay, future of lodging, hilton
Photo credit: Exterior rendering of LivSmart Studios. Source: Hilton.