BLLA Soft-Launches New Websites, Programs

LOS ANGELES—BLLA, the association of the world’s boutique hotels, is re-energizing and extending its brand with the debut of two websites that offer benefits and enhanced features for hotel members and boutique-loving customers.

Continuing to expand the global boutique experience, BLLA has launched Stay-Boutique.com which offers a master list of the world’s authentic boutique and lifestyle hotels that are bookable on the site, along with integrated city guides to showcase boutique businesses.

“BLLA continues to be one of the most forward-thinking organizations in the hospitality industry and we’ve been pushing boundaries and breaking barriers on behalf of our members and the boutique industry-at-large for over a decade,” shared Frances Kiradjian, BLLA founder/CEO. “StayBoutique is a natural extension of our original philosophy and creates an agile and scalable platform for multifaceted segment growth. The site’s development was fueled by research and feedback from BLLA members as well as key input from its board of advisors.”

The new StayBoutique site can be found at stay-boutique.com, while the newly designed BLLA site can be found at blla.org. More information on the launch and purpose is found here.

Key Features

StayBoutique’s new digital platform will enable visitors to search and book hotels that have been authenticated as being boutique lifestyle properties. The prominently displayed and one-click link between StayBoutique and the hotel’s reservation site provides hotels with an unfiltered opportunity to interact directly with their customers, according to the company.

The exclusive Cherry-Picked Program is a membership perk that is part of the master list, giving members additional promotion. The cherry emblem will prominently distinguish those properties or businesses that support BLLA’s mission. Future enhancements will include links to reserve special promotions from member hotels and boutique businesses.

Additionally, the private log-in membership portal enables approved boutique hotels, businesses and vendors access to exclusive trend and educational content, discounts and the ability to connect with each other through the platform as well as through a private social network launching later.

“Boutique hotels, forever BLLA’s first love, stand at the forefront of what StayBoutique has coined ‘The Modern Renaissance’ with respect to the purpose and use of public spaces,” said Frances. “Nearly eliminated by digital commerce and significantly impacted by increasingly sophisticated consumer demand, this concept is being reimagined and repurposed with creativity and innovation with StayBoutique leading the way.”

BLLA’s Evolution of Firsts

After this rebranding process, BLLA is taking the association into a new phase of growth.

“BLLA’s innovative practice naturally created some industry ‘firsts’ such as: the first to recognize the power of boutique hotels and the first to open up the community to other types of boutique businesses. Additionally, we were the first to brand this movement as a new cultural revival, what BLLA calls The Modern Renaissance which is redefining tradition,” said Ariela Kiradjian, BLLA’s COO and co-founder of StayBoutique. “We look forward to helping our industry flourish into the next decade.”