Autograph Collection member hotels will be grouped into one of six categories:
Urban Edge—Forward-leaning major-market lifestyle properties
Boutique Arts—Hotels with a core competency surround art
Exotic Retreats—High-end hunting lodges
Resorts
Gaming
Iconic/Historic—Likely to be the largest of the categories, for hotels with exceptional independent branding

The categorization process is meant to deliver a sort of brand promise to consumers, in lieu of actual branding, says Don Semmler, executive vice president of brand management for Marriott International. "Each hotel will be highly unique and distinct with its own identity, appealing to a growing segment of our customers who are looking for an experience that an independent hotel can deliver," Semmler says.

Marriott sees Autograph as a win-win for itself and independent hoteliers. Member properties get to tap into Marriott's industry-leading global reservations system and sales and marketing platform. Meanwhile, Marriott grows its portfolio at essentially zero cost, ideally gaining footholds into high-barrier-to-entry markets—especially continental Europe, where international brand penetration remains relatively low.

"It's been hard for us to really get into Europe, and we think this would be really attractive to give [European hoteliers] the reservations network while also letting them run their hotels as they see fit," Semmler says. "There are a lot of really good independent hotels that have been built in the six-year run-up after 9/11, and they were doing well, but in this downturn they've really been disproportionately affected."