Collect / Research & Analyze
The Poipu Beach Hotel, one of the oldest hotels on the Hawaiian island of Kauai, was built in the 1960s and was destroyed by Hurricane Iniki in 1992. Thankfully, 15 years later it was under reconstructed. Littered with big brands and traditional Hawaiian ambiance, the island of Kauai was a prime spot for eco adventure fans who wanted a boutique luxury hotel experience. Built on the original footprint of the Poipu Beach Hotel, CTF Hotels offer luxury amenities and an unmatched proximity to the ocean.

Articulate / Strategize & Simplify
The challenge was in creating a new personality for the old hotel’s reputation as well as positioning towards a younger market interested in adventurous and luxurious vacations. Originally CTF Hotels wanted to reopen the hotel by its former name, but after our recommendation about its new boutique positioning and marketing, it made sense to make the change. We helped CTF Hotels develop a simple name in Hawaiian, that was also short enough to appeal to the jet-set crowd along the Pacific Rim. “Kòa Kea,” which means “White Coral” in Hawaiian, set the tone for the rest of the communication materials.

Deliver / Produce & Amplify
Working with the interior designer’s color palette, we designed the brand identity and delivered the full guest experience. We created press communication tools for the sales team that included a folder, first and second letterhead, business cards, note cards, note card envelopes, HTML email blast templates and email signatures. The full identity standards guide was later created and the secondary color palette was specified to complement and extend the brand into signage, promotions, gift shop items, and apparel. A hotel Web site with a custom content management system was created to facilitate fresh content and encourage reservation booking. Service materials such as restaurant and lounge menus, room stationery, room directories, gift cards and privacy door tags were also designed to continue the brand presence into guest rooms.

Elevate / Measure & Perfect
The press folder encouraged many press pick-ups and interviews in magazines like Go Hawaii, Los Angeles Times, and Kauai Discovery. The Web site was designed to elevate service expectations of the property and had drawn major traffic in its first month after launch, with almost 30,000 views before the hotel even opened. It was well-coded and optimized for Google, as evidenced by the analytics showing 25% of the traffic was through new searches by keywords, and the rest of the traffic from planned press, social media and online campaigns. The hotel officially opened in the spring of 2009 to wide acclaim and they are continuing to experience success.