The Student Hotel rebrands as The Social Hub with a new marketing campaign and the launch of two new properties in Barcelona and Madrid
• Agencies Halal Studios, 72&Sunny and Studio Dumbar helped deliver the company’s $5M rebrand as it doubles down on digital media
• The new brand identity reflects The Social Hub’s community-focused hospitality concept and belief that “together, we create a better society”
• The marketing campaign created by Amsterdam’s Halal Studios seeks to inspire consumer to take a new adventure with its ‘whatever your journey, it starts here’ creative
Today, The Student Hotel has made a major rebrand to The Social Hub, with its new website and identity now live at www.thesocialhub.co
The Student Hotel has rebranded as The Social Hub to better reflect its guest profile and mission, with ambitions to double the number of properties within seven years.
Originally designed to help students find their purpose and change the world, the last decade has seen the hotel group broaden its offering beyond accommodation, to become a true social hub in its host communities. Offering a fantastic range of uniquely designed spaces to learn, work, stay and play, the company now attracts tourists, entrepreneurs, travelers and digital nomads. They’re all drawn to its hybrid-hospitality offering, from its bars, restaurants, gyms, and retail shops to its meeting rooms, event venues and premium co-working spaces.
The rebrand and repositioning has been brought to life by HALAL Studios, who were the architects behind the ‘Open Doors' concept - a lively and colourful 360° introduction campaign called ‘Whatever Your Journey, it Starts Here’. The ‘Open Doors’ creative aims to give people a sneak-peek into the different rooms at The Social Hub, sparking imagination and inspiring people to start a new journey. Using photography and a bright cinematic video that transitions effortlessly between indoor and outdoor scenes, The Social Hub’s role in being at the heart of social connections is encapsulated in the work.
HALAL Studios Creative Director, Pascal Duval, said: “It’s not often that you get the chance to work together with a brand on a rebrand and repositioning like this. The first campaign under the new platform is aimed at getting eyeballs on the new brand, to intrigue their existing audience and excite a new kind of clientele.”
The campaign video of ‘Whatever Your Journey, it Starts Here’ depicts the journeys the brand’s community go on and how these come together through experiences at The Social Hub – from a personal growth journey of a student, to a business growth journey of a entrepreneur building an impactful business, to travellers meeting new people. The video shows connections being made and is an invitation to join The Social Hub’s community.
A largely digital campaign, it will launch across YouTube and Meta platforms as well as a newly launched TikTok, alongside display promotion. The brand will also increase investment in organic social media content as part of the campaign.
The campaign will be geo-targeted to the cities where The Social Hub is located via Youtube, Display and Meta. The campaign will also include Google Search, Bing, LinkedIn, Affiliates and geo-target countries. It will mainly be focused on audiences with the same mindsets and will be delivered through dynamic messaging.
Jason Steere, Managing Director of Brand and Experience at The Social Hub said: “The rebrand to The Social Hub represents a 10-year journey and the evolution of our community. We have a hybrid clientele of students, entrepreneurs, digital nomads, travel guests and more – and we’re proud to have such social spaces that are unrivalled in the mix of use, flexibility and sense of community they offer as an inclusive experience to all guests. With the help of our brilliant partners bringing it to life, our new identity truly represents what we do and who we are, and we’re excited to launch new openings in the coming months that reinforce that ethos.’’
The Social Hub worked with 72&Sunny on the overall rebrand strategy, and collaborated with Studio Dumbar, on the new branding and visual identity, whilst Greenhouse, Hammerfest and Edelman supported on paid media, social media, and PR respectively. The new brand identity has been developed to encapsulate
The Social Hub’s commitment to creativity and social impact and the revamped logo is meant to represent the idea of coming together.
The rebrand will kickstart with the exciting launch of two new hotels this autumn: Madrid, opening in October, and Barcelona Poblenou, opening in November.
About The Social Hub
Driven by a purpose to create a better society, The Social Hub is a pioneer in the hybrid hospitality industry, offering spaces where guests from all walks of life can learn, stay, work and play. With hotels located across Europe’s most dynamic cities, The Social Hub connects and creates a unique community of travellers, students, business professionals, neighbours, and more.
From hotel facilities, student and extended stay rooms, co-working spaces, through to auditoriums, gyms, event spaces and a comprehensive social impact programme, The Social Hub is a place where people can connect and learn from one another, build a community and engage in unique experiences that help spark ideas and make change happen.
Founded in 2012, The Social Hub is headquartered in Amsterdam and counts with more than 1,000 employees. The Social Hub’s total locations amount to 23, including 18 hotels and over 10,000 rooms currently operating in Amsterdam (two hubs), Barcelona, Berlin, Bologna, Delft, Eindhoven, Florence, Glasgow, Groningen, Maastricht, Madrid, Paris, Rotterdam, San Sebastián, The Hague, Toulouse, and Vienna. Five hubs are currently in development and opening in 2024 in Porto & Florence Belfiore, Rome in 2025, and Lisbon and Turin further ahead. For more information: www.thesocialhub.co.