NH Hotel Group has celebrated the début of its nhow brand in France with the inauguration of the nhow Marseille.   nhow Marseille is the Group's fourth nhow hotel, with seven more in the pipeline including the nhow London, due to open in 2019.

The new establishment, previously operating under the NH trademark, has been transformed by Marseille-based architects and representatives of SHPB (Société Hôtelière du Palm Beach), Claire Fatosme and Christian Lefèvre, and Italian architect, Teresa Sapey.

nhow Marseille is located on the Corniche waterfront between two bodies of water, the freshwater of the Roucas Blanc spring, in the original part of the building, and the salty seawater, which the spring flows into. It is an ideal destination on the Mediterranean coast for a holiday, an idyllic escape or a memorable corporate event, with 150 rooms - 99 of which have a balcony or large terrace - as well as:

• A Sky-Bar, located on the third floor, featuring an original chandelier made up of 4000 steel sardines, created by English artist Frances Bromley. With an eclectic and surprising artistic programme, it will be a benchmark in mixology and a meeting point to celebrate all kinds of events, both day and night.

• A Tunnel Bar, on the ground floor between the freshwater of the Roucas Blanc spring in the original part of the building and the salt water of the sea into which the first flows. It is this passage between shade and light, coolness and heat that expresses the masterpiece of the décor designed by Teresa Sapey.

• A Cactus Bar, on the ground floor, evokes the exotic gardens of the Mediterranean coast and the bright Provençal sun.

• A restaurant run by local chef Benjamin Mathieu and a roof bar, overlooking the Mediterranean. They have a hip and elegant atmosphere, and a simple and laid-back seaside chic, while the menu is playful, based on Mediterranean cuisine and using products that Benjamin Mathieu unearths to surprise the guests.

• A Phytomer spa, which offers all of the brand's signature treatments, and a swimming pool at the sea's edge, supplied by the Roucas Blanc spring. The spa is located on the ground floor and, like the Tunnel Bar, also shows the transition between the city and Mediterranean nature.

The hotel's location, on the Corniche, between the Old Port and the Prado district, is an undeniable advantage for the organisation of events in a unique and accessible setting. It has 14 meeting rooms - 7 of which have sea views - with capacity for up to 421 people and a 322-seat auditorium, all fitted out with the latest technology.

The new establishment under the Group's most chameleon-like brand joins the three existing nhow hotels in the cities of Berlin, Milan and Rotterdam.  These will be soon accompanied by seven new nhow hotels in Brussels, London, Rome, Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Santiago de Chile and Lima, as the Group rolls out the disruptive, innovative and creative spirit of a brand that has arrived to break moulds.

nhow Marseille is the Company's fourth hotel in France where it also has an NH Collection property, similarly located in Marseille, and two hotels operated under its NH Hotels trademark in the cities of Lyon and Nice. “France has become a priority market for us, particularly in the premium and luxury segments. Our aim is to open around 20 hotels, 10 under our high-end trademark NH Collection, two or three under our iconic nhow brand and seven under the NH brand”, said Hugo Rovira, Managing Director for NH Hotel Group in Southern Europe and the US.

nhow Marseille, all sides of the city in one

Architects Claire Fatosme and Christian Lefèvre were tasked with renovating the hall, the glass lookout on the second floor and the Sky Bar.  The corridors, decorated with images of graffiti found on the streets of Marseille, also feature their imprint, as do the rooms, considered an ode to the sea and light, the nhow penthouse suite and the spa. “We sought to capture all sides of the city of Marseille through its artists. A fresco and visual cartoons by local artist Tristan Bonnemain, graffiti reinterpreted by Marseille's graphic arts designer Guy Bargin and visual graphics by another local graphic arts designer Adrien Bargin give the various spaces a unique, inspiring and emblematic local feel”, said Fatosme and Lefèvre.

Meanwhile, renowned Italian architect Teresa Sapey was asked to design the common areas on the ground floor including the Cactus Bar, Tunnel Bar, restaurant, terrace and M&E areas. Sapey said of the experience “I attempted to layer the contradictions and energy of Marseille into the hotel's identity to give it a unique and decidedly Marseillais personality. The Cactus Bar, for example, looks like an enormous submarine platform under the Corniche's rock. The hand basins are designed in the shape of the soap of Marseille and the floors, in a palette of blues and emerald greens, are a true reflection of the colours of the sea.”

nhow

nhow is the NH Hotel Group brand that singles out its most iconic hotels. It adapts to the city hosting it and is constantly evolving. Inspired by the world's most vanguard cities, nhow hotels are designed by the most creative minds of our times - Foster+Partners, OMA (founded by Rem Koolhaas), Karim Rashid, Sergei Tchoban and Matteo Thum, among others. They are an explosion of creativity concentrated in one place. Nothing at an nhow hotel is preordained. Everything is unexpected, iconic, inspirational and surprising. The nhow experience is unique for each guest but has the 'wow' factor in common. Located in trendy areas of town in the midst of change and transformation, nhow hotels quickly become benchmarks for self-discovery, experimentation and creativity.