Michaella Solar-March named Graduate CMO

Graduate Hotels has appointed Michaella Solar-March as chief marketing officer. Based in the brand’s Nashville headquarters, she will drive global marketing strategy for the company’s more than 33 hotels across the U.S. and U.K.

Solar-March brings nearly two decades of diversified experience leading integrated marketing efforts for leading companies in the lifestyle, hospitality and real estate industries, including Rockefeller Center, Tishman Speyer, Soho House & Co. and Sonos.

She most recently served as a managing director at MA Financial based in Sydney, Australia, as chief marketing officer for MA Hotel Management, a hospitality platform with six funds across a $2-billion hospitality portfolio. She was responsible for strategic brand marketing and creative for all assets under management, including Redcape Hotel Group portfolio, which owns and operates 35 community-focused venues, as well as 24 bottle shops, three accommodation venues and The Australian Brewery.

Prior to MA Financial, Solar-March was based in New York City and served in a dual role as chief marketing officer for Tishman Speyer, a global real estate owner, operator, developer and fund manager headquartered in Manhattan, and the chief marketing officer for Rockefeller Center, a landmark asset within the Tishman Speyer portfolio. During her time, she oversaw all brand marketing for Tishman Speyer, including a global rebrand of the firm, as well as the rebrand of Rockefeller Center. As CMO for Rockefeller Center, Solar-March was inspired by the idealism and promise Rockefeller originally had for the ‘city within the city,’ and led with a focus on brand, community and cultural commerciality to introduce modern programming and strategic partnerships that would eventually lead the center to become one of the most in-demand cultural venues in New York. Leveraging her strength in connecting commerce with culture, she also oversaw the campus’ ambitious public art program, which included strategic partnerships with Frieze and Art Production Fund.

She additionally served as global director of members events & brand programming for Soho House & Co., where she led an international team across 10 countries to drive original brand programming and cultural content partnerships to drive member engagement and retention. During her tenure, Solar-March oversaw the strategy, development and production for creative programming and live experiences globally including creative partnerships, communications strategy, original content development and pop-up experiences. Before Soho House & Co., she worked for Sonos where she played an integral role in the customer experience and marketing for Sonos’ first flagship retail environment in Soho, NY, as well as driving the omnichannel integrated marketing and communications campaigns for Sonos retail.