AC Hotels by Marriott® Debuts Inspiring Campaign at Grand Opening of AC Hotel Atlanta Buckhead

Bethesda, Md. -- AC Hotels by Marriott^®, the modern, design-driven, lifestyle brand from Marriott International, Inc., gives a sneak peek at its highly anticipated global media campaign in collaboration with Nigel Barker, celebrated fashion photographer, New York Times best-selling author, TV personality and newly appointed AC Hotels global ambassador.

AC Hotels takes a design-first approach to each property, ensuring hotel amenities resonate with creative, entrepreneurial spirits who make up the majority of hotel visitors. The notion of putting design first informed Figliulo&Partners' creative strategy for AC Hotels' first global campaign. Barker, a renowned photographer revered for his ability to capture the elegant human form in stylish settings, was tapped to create his interpretation of the photography-driven AC Hotels campaign.

"While conceptualizing the campaign, I took inspiration from my own experiences visiting AC Hotels, including the brand's sophisticated European aesthetic and how the hotels are specifically designed for today's modern entrepreneur," said Barker. "I am very proud of this body of work, which captures and reframes significant moments in travel and style, while adding real entrepreneurial spirits to the brand's already imaginative campaign."

To show how AC Hotels' amenities fuse work and play, the ad campaign compresses all information about the brand into its nine letters: A-C-H-O-T-E-L-S. Each image or video spells out the brand name using everyday items found in and around the hotels, including lamps, pencils, hand-crafted cocktails, chairs and freshly baked croissants flown in from France. These beautifully designed essentials and well-thought out offerings are at the core of every piece launched within the original campaign. Barker's interpretation of the campaign adds humanity to the creative using people, real entrepreneurs', compositions and silhouettes to spell out A-C-H-O-T-E-L-S.

"Nigel's distinctive visual style complements our new campaign with a touch of humanity, bringing to life AC Hotels' clean, modern philosophy," said Toni Stoeckl, Vice President Lifestyle Brands, Marriott International.

A sneak preview of the campaign was revealed on October 13 during the grand opening party for the new AC Hotel Atlanta Buckhead at Phipps Plaza. The event was also a celebration of Travel + Leisure's inaugural Photography Issue, which profiles Barker. In addition to Barker, photographers featured by Travel + Leisure including Jeffrey Milstein and Matthew Pillsbury, were in attendance and installations highlighting their works will be on display to inspire both guests and locals beyond the event.

Travel + Leisure's November Photography Issue is on newsstands October 14 with content also on www.travelandleisure.com. "At Travel + Leisure, photography is central to everything we do. As much as we love a great travel yarn, we know that images have incredible power to draw attention, to intrigue, to inspire you to say,Now that's a place I have to see," said Travel + Leisure Editor in Chief Nathan Lump in his Editor's Note in this special issue. "Technology and social media have helped fuel a golden age in travel photography, from your own iPhone shot of the sun setting over the Grand Canyon to master photographer Jeffrey Milstein's exquisitely composed aerials that turn the landscapes below into beautiful abstractions. At T+L we celebrate this full spectrum of photos—within it, there's a whole world to discover."

Based on the belief that purposeful design improves lives, AC Hotels carves away what is unnecessary to provide guests with thoughtfully designed moments of beauty; experiences that elevate their stay and help them focus on what is important to them. AC Hotels' guests get only what they need, without paying for what they don't. The result is sophisticated yet unpretentious style, innovative beverage and food programming with locally inspired experiences for both guests and locals.

AC Hotels currently offers a portfolio of more than 90 hotels globally. Growth plans include more than 60 hotels set to open within the next three years throughout the U.S., Canada, Europe, Latin America, the Middle East and Africa.

To learn more about AC Hotels by Marriot, please visit: http://achotels.marriott.com

About Noble Investment Group

Founded in 1993, the Noble organization specializes in making value-added, opportunistic investments in the lodging and hospitality retail sector. Through its private equity real estate funds, Noble has invested more than $3 billion throughout the United States in primarily select service and extended stay hotels which are affiliated with premium brands by Marriott, Hyatt, Hilton and InterContinental. For additional information, please visit www.nobleinvestment.com.

About Marriott International

Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ: MAR) is based in Bethesda, Maryland, USA, and encompasses a portfolio of more than 8,100 properties under 30 leading brands spanning 139 countries and territories. Marriott operates and franchises hotels and licenses vacation ownership resorts all around the world. The company offers Marriott Bonvoy^®, its highly awarded travel program. Connect with us on Facebook and @MarriottIntl on Twitter and Instagram.

Victoria Hart
Director, Public Relations, Lifestyle + Luxury Brands
301-380-8825
Marriott