St. Moritz sets an example in summer tourism with St. Summer®

Brand management in alpine summer tourism

St. Moritz does what only St. Moritz can do - and with "St. Summer" declares summer to be the strategic future. The new campaign manifests the long-term positioning with the aim of establishing itself as a leading destination in the summer season too.

Climate-related new realities are making themselves felt: In southern Europe, "warm" is increasingly becoming "hot" in summer - too hot for many. The peak season for Mediterranean tourism is shifting to early and late summer. And what was previously considered low season in the mountains is becoming the playground of a new, discerning summer audience. Marijana Jakic, CEO of St. Moritz Tourism, explains what this means for St. Moritz:

"They say Go North is the future of European midsummer tourism. We say: Go Up - because St. Moritz is also an absolute top destination in summer. This is the aim of our long-term positioning, which is why we have registered "St. Summer" as an international brand."

Summer brings new target groups

Not only the weather is changing, but also global travel patterns. In Switzerland, this can be seen in the continuously growing summer business in alpine tourism. In the future, not only will more guests come, but also others. It is estimated that the summer months will increasingly converge with winter in terms of demand, occupancy rates, purchasing power and spending behavior.

"Climate change is already evident in the shift in the guest structure. International travelers with high purchasing power will increasingly discover the qualities of the Alpine summer and appreciate the unique combination of Engadine nature and St. Moritz lifestyle." Jakic is convinced.

Two seasons, one strategy

The high altitude makes St. Moritz one of the most snow-sure ski resorts in the long term, which further strengthens its already very strong position in winter. In summer, St. Moritz can now take advantage of the momentum - and position itself as a leading summer destination with targeted offers, relevant events and strong communication. This is where "St. Summer" comes in, as a campaign and the title of a long-term tourism strategy. Accordingly, event strategy, offer design and communication are now consistently geared towards the development of summer business. Jakic explains the strategy as follows:

"Our origins as a summer health resort are an obligation. Alpine winter tourism was only born in St. Moritz in 1864. With "St. Summer", we want to do justice to this heritage and rethink summer - inspired by the spirit of the times and geared towards the needs of today."

Minimal branding with maximum impact

The campaign kicks off with a bold, radically reduced appearance: "St. Summer" as the headline in the style of the "St. Moritz" brand, which has been protected since 1937. No claim. No sender. No explanation. Completely reduced for maximum impact. Only an iconic brand like St. Moritz - the world's first geographical brand with international trademark protection - can do that. Or as Silvan Metzger, CEO of the creative agency MRB, puts it in a nutshell:

"The new posters for the "St. Summer" campaign also caught the eye of design experts - and were included in one of the world's most important poster collections on the very first day after they appeared. We are happy to quote Christian Brändle, Director of the Museum für Gestaltung Zürich: " "The latest St. Moritz campaign is brilliant: self-confident, memorable and funny." " The campaign can currently be seen in the greater Zurich area and is supported by individual measures within the destination.

Responsible at St. Moritz Tourismus AG:

Marijana Jakic (CEO), Dirk Jacobs (CMO) and Carmen Baumann (Head of Marketing Services)

Responsible at the creative agency MRB:

Silvan Metzger (CEO); Jürg Schmid (Strategy); Frederick Rossmann, Cyrill Wirz and Conny Eiwanger (Creation); Valérie Hüppi and Linda Meier (Consulting); Giacomo Wyss and Bruno Breitenmoser (Production); Nicolas Quiniou, Gabriel Tesserolli and Dave Bouskill (Photography)

For questions and further information: www.stmoritz.com