Hyatt has created a dedicated regional leadership position for marketing and loyalty across Europe, the Middle East and Africa, a move that signals how seriously global hotel groups now treat brand building and membership as engines of growth. Geoffray Maugin steps into the newly formed role of Vice President, Marketing and Loyalty for EMEA, and will be based in Zurich.
The appointment brings a long record in luxury hospitality and consumer goods to a region where Hyatt is expanding quickly. Maugin spent more than two decades working across international brands, most recently at Accor, where he oversaw guest experience and commercial performance for a portfolio of more than 5,000 hotels. His earlier career included senior roles at Moet Hennessy under LVMH, Coca-Cola, Accor Hotels and Sofitel Luxury Hotels, a mix that spans premium spirits, mass market beverages and upscale travel.
Why a regional marketing and loyalty role now
The decision to carve out a single regional owner for marketing and loyalty reflects a wider shift in hospitality. Hotel companies have learned that rate and occupancy alone do not build durable demand. What keeps guests returning is a clear brand promise paired with a rewards program that feels worth the effort. By combining marketing and loyalty under one EMEA leader, Hyatt is treating the two as a single growth system rather than separate departments.
Maugin will focus on sharpening how Hyatt brands stand apart in a crowded market, deepening guest engagement and turning loyalty into measurable commercial results. In practice that means aligning campaigns, on property experience and membership benefits so that a traveler who books once has a reason to come back, and a reason to choose Hyatt over a rival the next time.
Growth the role is built to support
The timing matters. Hyatt closed 2025 with a record development pipeline of about 148,000 rooms, up roughly 7 percent year on year, and its World of Hyatt program grew close to 20 percent to pass 60 million members worldwide. A larger member base gives marketers more first party data to work with and more direct channels to fill rooms without leaning on third party booking sites.
The Middle East is a particular bright spot. Recent openings include Miraval The Red Sea in Saudi Arabia, with Grand Hyatt The Red Sea planned for 2026, and the company has said it wants to triple its room count in Saudi Arabia by 2030. Expansion at that pace needs marketing and loyalty leadership that can introduce new properties to the right audiences and pull them into the rewards ecosystem from day one.
The wider signal for marketers
For the broader industry, the creation of this role is a useful marker. Loyalty is no longer a back office points scheme. It is becoming the backbone of how large travel brands acquire, retain and understand their customers. Placing a senior marketing leader in charge of both brand and membership at the regional level shows that the value of a guest is now measured across a lifetime of stays rather than a single transaction.
Maugin inherits a strong starting position, a growing pipeline, a fast expanding membership base and clear regional ambition. The task ahead is to convert that momentum into loyalty that holds, and into brand preference that travelers carry with them across borders.