March 10th marks the official first day that Orient-Express Hotels, Trains and Safaris will be rebranded under the new Belmond moniker. While some question the decision and the name itself, ultimately the hospitality group had few choices but to redirect its marketing efforts after negotiating to extend its licensing deal with Orient-Express trains owned by SNCF, France’s national rail operator rail system, failed. As such, Orient-Express Hotels will know rebrand many of its iconic properties as Belmond Hotel Cipriani, Belmond Hotel Copacabana Palace, Belmond Safaris and Belmond Trains with the current exception of Venice Simplon-Orient-Express that retains its name.
Others question the likability of the overall name of Belmond, it’s two-syllable simplicity that’s an exception to the mouthy multisyllabic luxury market’s Dorchester Collection, Mandarin Oriental, Four Seasons or Ritz-Carlton �" industry insiders suggest that its Latin derivation that translates to “beautiful and world” will equate to “glamorous luxury” once people connect the brand name to its iconic portfolio.
So does Belmond prove Juliet’s age-old promise that, “A rose by any other name would smell as sweet"? We say yes, but let’s make sure the marketing campaign lives up to the class and sophistication of its incredible portfolio �" unlike so many of its British owned brand competitors.
