The Future of Global Brand Growth Strategies

Currently, LLMs do not have rich imagery and material, such as images of the spaces and features, that consumers normally demand when making hotel reservations, Kletzel stated. When this is enhanced, including by brand names exposing their material to LLMs, that will be "a huge leap forward to getting customers comfortable." Hotel visitor commitment and brand name trust, on the other hand, has rapidly expanded in current years.

Beyond the guest experience, agentic commerce has the potential to shift the way hotel business' customer service teams operate and are structured, Klein said. Yes," Klein said.

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This year, a number of collection brands that introduced in 2025 will continue to expand. Extra new brands and collaborations, particularly in the way of life sector, will likely debut too, according to hospitality professionals. In 2025, Marriott launched 2 collection brands: Series by Marriott, playing in the high end area in the U.S., and Outdoor Collection, solely focused on outside accommodations in locations near national forests, deserts, ski areas and coastlines.

Marriott's Outdoor Collection uses special lodgings in locations near nationwide parks, deserts, ski areas and coastlines.

Why Hospitality Market Share Will Be Surging

Hilton's Beginning Collection, specifically, has more than 60 hotels in the works across the U.S. and Canada, Kevin Osterhaus, president of lifestyle brands at Hilton, informed Hotel Dive. Beginning is currently checking out possible brand-new areas in San Diego, Los Angeles and Virginia Beach, Virginia, along with markets in New Mexico and Colorado in 2026, Osterhaus stated.

"Collection brands are appealing since they use the best of both worlds: Owners keep the distinct DNA of their residential or commercial property, while unlocking international distribution, income management, commitment and support. Kevin Osterhaus President of lifestyle brand names at Hilton From the guest perspective, independent boutique hotels are desirable due to the fact that they use genuine experiences, Gabriel Perez, primary running officer of lodging at The Indigo Roadway Hospitality Group, told Hotel Dive.

As for why the hotel companies are chasing after independents in the lifestyle segment, "it's not about the visitors. It's about creating sub-brands within their own brands to please investors' needs and to satisfy owner and developers' objectives," Perez said. This, in turn, puts even more pressure on hotel companies "to develop brand names, micro brand names and subsets of brands in order to broaden their footprint of existing possessions," Davis said.

Hilton's collection brand names' "distinct positioning and storytelling continue to drive interest throughout chain scales," Osterhaus said. Series and Outdoor Collection, both conversion-friendly offerings, pertain to an ownership community and developers who "are continuously looking for ways to grow, and conversions represent a course for development," Molinary said.

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According to Osterhaus, "As long as brand names are purpose-built and unique in experience and cost point, they include clarity instead of confusion." This year, Hilton prepares to stay "extremely active in the lifestyle space through tactical partnerships, new signings and ongoing growth of our present brand names," Osterhaus said. Molinary anticipates Marriott competitors to begin offering some type of branding service in the outdoor space, specifically, as "it's a really popular and growing area" with "a lot of interest." Another growing space is the high-end segment.

Will Hospitality Franchises Be Profitable in 2026?

That trend is anticipated to continue in 2026 as luxury consumers drive travel spending and hotel reservations amid a wealth bifurcation at play in the market. "High-net-worth travelers are anticipated to remain one of the most reputable motorists of global travel spending next year," Giray Boran, managing director of BLG Capital, informed Hotel Dive.