George Hammer

George Hammer is the Global Head of Luxury Marketing (CMO) for some of the world's most prestigious hospitality brands, including The Ritz-Carlton, St. Regis, EDITION, Bulgari Hotels & Resorts, JW Marriott, The Luxury Collection, and W Hotels. Reporting directly to the President of the Luxury Division, George leads a global team dedicated to building the most desirable luxury businesses and brands. In his first two years with the Luxury Group at Marriott International, George's leadership resulted in a remarkable 15% increase in brand Consideration, 20% increase in revenue and a 60% growth in the high-net-worth members. Key initiatives contributing to this success include the launch of the Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection, the creation of a new brand sensory experience with Flamingo Estate X JW Marriott, and the enhancement of the digital site experience, which doubled the growth rate. Additionally, George’s team spearheaded the development of new brand experiences such as St. Regis X Café Ginori, the social launch of a fashion line with Late Checkout X Ritz-Carlton, and the innovative EDITION X Sotheby’s collaboration, revolutionizing how brands create and sell memories. Before joining the Luxury Group, George served as the Chief Content Officer at IBM, where he led several high-profile campaigns. His career also includes roles as the Creative Director for Digital Marketing at Discovery Channel and leadership positions at Digitas. His team's work has been recognized with four Cannes Lions and countless awards for work such as Small Business Saturday with American Express, Destination Beauty with L’Oréal, Blackout with Taco Bell, Take it from a Fish with AstraZeneca, Google MotoX launch, and IBM Watson. George holds an MBA from the University of Chicago and a storytelling degree from Second City in Chicago. He is passionate about using marketing as a force for good and leveraging innovation to rethink traditional approaches to work. A natural storyteller, George has published numerous articles, podcasts, and films. He believes that marketing is not just about selling products or services but about creating meaningful connections and experiences that make a difference in people's lives.