Why do some hotels have two brands, chain and independent? (Some hotels have names like these : Four Seasons George V, Fairmont The Plaza, Fairmont The Savoy, Four Seasons Beverly Wilshire, etc. Are these type of agreements common? Would these be considered managed properties instead of franchise or other form of agreement?)

These are merely location descriptors, not part of the brand itself (except for the individual property described); and have nothing to do with whether the property is managed directly by the chain that owns the brand or is franchised . . .

They’re necessary in places where there is more than one property operating under that brand in a single city, town or place. The most ‘obvious’ example of the need that I’ve ever seen was the Marriott Crystal City and the Marriott Crystal Gateway, two entirely separate, self-contained, big-box Marriott hotels, but both located in the Crystal City complex in Arlington, Virginia, about 1500 feet and across the U. S. 1 traffic artery from each other. But in order to have the Hampton Inns in your town designated as the Hampton Inn-North and the Hampton Inn-Airport, your town only has to be large enough to have two Hampton Inns, one in each of those parts of it.

They may be desirable where an individual property has a history of its own as an iconic property prior to its affiliation with its current brand. Some examples would be the Radisson Hotel Bethlehem in Bethlehem, Pa., back when the Historic Hotel Bethlehem was a Radisson; and the The Omni Grove Park Inn in Asheville, N. C. (The Grove Park Inn was there for the better part of a century before it signed with the Omni brand). With some iconic, high-profile hotels, it’s almost like allowing them to use the chain affiliation as a soft brand.

Originally appeared on Quora