Fashion checks in: How brands are teaming up with hotels

From Ritz Paris-branded cashmere to Swedish-designed resort wear on Lake Como and African style at luxe safari reserves, fashion has officially checked into the hotel industry, writes Eleanor Edstrom.

In 2016, Alessandro Michele, then creative director of Gucci, shared a photo on Instagram. It showed the courtyard fountain at Chateau Marmont, embellished with a stone carving of Pan, Greek god and mascot of the hotel. To the untrained eye, it was but a whimsical holiday snap. Several years later, Pan’s silhouette resurfaced – this time emblazoned in graphic form on a T-shirt sent down Gucci’s Cruise 2019 runway in Arles. Fire flickered; models stalked through tombs. Somewhere in all of this, fashion had struck up a formal relationship with the hotel industry.

The T-shirt was part of a Chateau Marmont-branded capsule collection, inspired by Michele’s stay at the Sunset Boulevard hotel. Legendary for its louche parties and fleet of elite former guests (Marilyn Monroe, Madonna and Robert De Niro among them), the scandal- scented Hollywood haunt where John Belushi infamously breathed his last proved a natural muse for Michele’s eccentric, rock-infused vision. Michele blended the faun with Gothic-style lettering of the hotel’s logo and a floral Gucci motif in an exclusive line-up of accessories and ready-to-wear pieces. Arguably, Gucci’s drop marked the vanguard of a swiftly accelerating phenomenon: the high-end hotel as fashion collaborator. Around the globe, numerous upscale retreats are co-creating exclusive merchandise lines with lauded fashion labels.

High-end hotel as fashion collaborator

In many ways, the movement feels inevitable; both hotel and fashion brands trade in the promise of escape, reinvention and transformation. Hotels are no longer a mere place to sleep, and souvenirs are no longer a trite postcard or generic tee. Today’s sartorial traveller can bring home a luxury capsule wardrobe: perhaps a monogrammed jacket from The Ritz-Carlton reinterpreted by a Spanish streetwear label or a baseball cap (still the tourist staple) rendered ultra exclusive and très Parisien. Each piece is a wearable memento of place, moment and mood.

In 2021, The Ritz Paris paired up with American denim and casual wear brand Frame to deliver its first-ever clothing range – a partnership born from a friendship between Ritz custodian Camilla Fayed and Erik Torstensson, co-founder of Frame. So successful was the collaboration that two further collections were introduced in 2022 and 2023: think walnut brown leather jackets, pleated trousers and chic cashmere crewnecks in a palette of warm greens, neutrals and navy. Following suit, The Ritz-Carlton co-conspired with Madrid-based brand Late Checkout in 2024 on a capsule collection intended to distil the carefree spirit of a well-spent holiday. Showcasing white logo tees and royal blue bombers, a whimsical campaign film directed by Rogelio González and starring Hunger Games actor Josh Hutcherson christened the launch.

Emily Oberg’s Californian fashion brand Sporty & Rich is another leading voice in the movement, bringing its vintage-inspired wellness aesthetic to several five-star sanctuaries. Cashmere sets, varsity jackets and cropped hoodies in autumnal tones featured in the 2024 collection with The Carlyle, a Rosewood Hotel, which played on the Madison Avenue hotel’s glamorous history. Back in France earlier this year, Le Bristol Paris announced its second collaboration with Sporty & Rich to celebrate the hotel’s centennial. Favouring a timeless minimalism, the capsule is characterised by fluid cuts suitable for indoor and outdoor play, along with understated hues of midnight blue and chocolate.

Hotel du Cap Eden-Roc, a grand French Riveria icon, has also linked up with Sporty & Rich (the Los Angeles brand, it appears, is keeping things delightfully non-monogamous). An ‘it’ one-piece swimsuit and yacht- appropriate pique cotton shorts with matching navy polos – enhanced, of course, by the hotel’s iconic buoy and crest symbol – set the mood for this 25-piece-strong run of upscale resort attire. But the capsule isn’t the hotel’s first dip into the fashion universe. April 2024 saw the Antibes-based address mingling with Lacoste, united by their French savoir-faire and strong connection to tennis. The line included a series of sporty polo shirts, a pleated skirt and an ‘off-court’ wardrobe bearing Lacoste’s iconic crocodile icon.

Inspired by destination

Other collaborations lean more strongly into hotels’ locations for inspiration. In Italy, Lake Como villa retreat Passalacqua recently joined forces with Swedish label CDLP for a collection of summer resort wear – tailored swimwear, hand-drawn silk scarves and Como-printed pool shirts modelled by the ever-dapper Robert Rabensteiner. It follows a 2024 collab with British designer Emilia Wickstead, whose kaftans and swimsuits remain available via the hotel’s luxury retail platform Sense of Lake. The Lake Como series, however, isn’t all CDLP has in the oven. In February this year, the brand also partnered with the Grand Hotel Stockholm to launch ‘The Long Stay Suit’, a unisex pyjama-meets- leisurewear set inspired by the mystique of the long-stay hotel guest. Sleek and versatile, it can seamlessly transition between flight, business dinner and slow morning in.

Meanwhile on our own home soil, The StandardX Melbourne has welcomed an apparel drop co-designed by Erin Deering, founder of swimwear label Triangl. Honouring Melbourne’s spirited music and culture scene, the range of totes, tees and caps are edgy yet restrained. Also new in 2025 is the Lingua Franca x The Bowery Hotel capsule. Here, we see striped apple-red pyjamas and hotel clock-embroidered knits channelling New York’s downtown irreverence with added cosiness.

These exclusive retail experiences are certainly not limited to the West. In Indonesia, NIHI Sumba released a line of viridian and ultramarine board shorts with Australian sartorial savant P. Johnson, brought to life by Sumbanese traditional house motifs. In Asia, Sporty & Rich’s 14-piece collaboration with Rosewood’s Asaya offers clean-lined activewear in cream and powder blue colourways. And in Africa, Singita teamed up with fashion mastermind Thebe Magugu to create a ‘Heritage Series’ of dresses inspired by nine African cultures. Each hand-illustrated and infused with maternal symbolism, the dresses were sold onsite at Singita’s safari lodges – a far cry from the duty-free rack at Johannesburg airport.

Each piece is a wearable memento of place, moment and mood.

“Seeing the women in my family have to carry children on their back and supplies on their head always reminded me of Afro totem poles; a showcase of utter physical and symbolic strength, and I wanted to pay homage to this memory,” Thebe says of the creative project. Singita CEO Jo Bailes adds, “Singita has a long legacy of celebrating contemporary design in Africa,” highlighting how such partnerships allow hotels and style brands to explore shared cultural and creative interests.

Even the labels themselves are expanding. Hotelier Marie-Louise Sciò of Tuscan jewel Il Pellicano has launched Issimo, a digital concept store housing collaborations with the likes of Italian shoe house Allagiulia and sleepwear marque Schostal. Highlights include olive green unisex pyjamas and mustard velvet loafers that put complimentary hotel slippers to shame. Fashion has always sought to associate itself with stories, places and status. Now it has checked into the lobby, raided the minibar and made off with the branding. At heart, it’s the oldest kind of commerce: memory for sale. We’ve always brought back keepsakes – a shell from the beach, a bag from the markets, a sweater. Now it happens to be made of Italian cashmere and comes with a lookbook. Pan, one suspects, would approve

Collections you can shop right now

Mandarin Oriental Bangkok is celebrating 150 years by dropping a collection with Sporty & Rich, including co-branded crew necks, T-shirts, pyjama sets, tote bags, caps and more. The premium apparel and accessories feature the hotel’s signature celadon colour and will be available in the hotel, at Central Group malls in Bangkok, and at Mandarin Oriental New York in March 2026. Worldwide shipping will also be available.

The Dorchester Collection’s The Beverly Hills Hotel has partnered with La La Land, a mission-driven coffee shop known for its high-quality organic coffee and teas. This is a first-of-its-kind pink and green-inspired capsule collection between the beloved ‘Pink Palace’ and the cafe. Co-branded apparel and merchandise is available to purchase exclusively at the hotel’s Signature Shop and La La Land café locations throughout February 2026. 

Raffles Hotels has unveiled ‘The Butler Did It’ collection, a playful yet polished edit of fashion and homewares. Created in collaboration with Globe-Trotter, Frette and Christofle, and styled by renowned fashion director Jessica Diehl, the collection spans refined ready-to-wear, accessories and lifestyle pieces, alongside bespoke travel and home accents, including a custom palm-print suitcase, velvet slippers and a coffee cup. The collection is available exclusively at Printemps New York and Paris, with select pieces online,until 10 March 2026.