Auberge Collection CEO Christian Clerc on luxury hospitality: stop replicating and start reinventing!

“The industry today, everybody’s using the same designers, the same standards, the same restaurant chefs, the same concepts,” Auberge Collection CEO Christian Clerc said during an interview. “We’re the opposite of that. Every experience we create, we reinvent the wheel every time, and you’ll never see it again anywhere else.”

The venues are deliberately intimate, between 100 and 150 people, allowing for storytelling and connection impossible in larger settings. Maren Morris’s September performance at Primland exemplified this approach. Between songs from her new album “Dreamsicle” and hits like “Bones” and “The Middle,” she spoke about the value of hearing songwriters discuss their creative process, reminiscing about her early days as a musician.

On October 7, Bridges performed at Bowie House, Auberge Collection in Texas, a location that carries additional resonance for the artist. The Fort Worth native regularly visits the hotel, and proceeds from the concert benefit his nonprofit The Big Good, which addresses community needs in North Texas. In November, actor-musician Luke Grimes of Yellowstone will perform at The Lodge at Blue Sky, Auberge Collection in Utah.

What unifies Auberge Collection properties despite their radical individuality? Clerc points to the “design-led, one-of-a-kind” philosophy and an obsessive focus on sense of place. At Primland in Virginia, which is set across 12,000 acres, that means locally sourced produce, team members predominantly from the Blue Ridge Mountain region, and experiences like stargazing from an on-site observatory with professional astronomers.

“We create this very authentic microcosm of the best that particular destination has to offer,” Clerc said. “We’re not a hotel chain. We’re a collection of unique, special hotels that are fiercely independent.” This approach resonates with contemporary luxury consumers who, Clerc argues, are tired of being told what to do, wear, or experience. The well-being program positions the hotel as a platform for guests to define their own version of wellness

“Everybody is looking for a unique story, bragging rights to be able to bring to their friends and family something they haven’t seen before,” he said. This drives demand for distinctive design, unique restaurant concepts, and one-time experiences like the concert series, performances guests will never see replicated elsewhere.

The company’s recent rebranding to Auberge Collection, from Auberge Resorts Collection, reflects the portfolio’s expansion beyond resorts into urban hotels, countryside estates and residences. With 30 properties worldwide and strategic growth focused on urban markets and Europe, the brand is positioning itself as an alternative to what Clerc calls “predictable luxury.”

“At some point, people look for differentiation,” he says. “You get enriched when you try something you’ve never tried before, when you put yourself in an environment outside of your comfort zone. It’s hyper stimulating.”

adapted from WWD