Connecting the Dots: How Meliá’s VP of Global Brand Strategy Turns Ideas into Reality

Tony Cortizas, the VP of Brand Strategy at Meliá Hotels International, leads the multiple branding teams to position and differentiate the 6 hotel brands under the Meliá umbrella, in addition to the corporate brand. The best part of his job, he says, is the ability to be creative every day. But it’s not about being creative for creativity’s sake; it’s about connecting the brand with the customer through different channels, including marketing communications, social media, and creative content. Understanding what a brand has to say and communicating this through storytelling and customer experiences is the challenge of his department. “It’s not what you say about your brand that matters,” Tony says. In this content driven era, it’s even more important for Meliá to develop concepts that come alive. It’s the concept that differentiates a brand from a room for rent: “Our business really is all about experience,” he says, and being able to connect the customer to that experience is at the core of his job. To learn more about Tony’s challenges, what Meliá has in store for the future, and the creative world of hotel branding, watch the video.