For their first year as a festival sustaining sponsor, World of Hyatt decided to bring festival-goers a hospitality- and wellness-forward space on Main Street for people to relax and get a taste of what Hyatt is all about.
“This is our first time doing a big brand activation at Sundance, and what we really wanted to do was showcase all that the World of Hyatt has to offer. People think about Hyatt Regency and our core brands, but we have so many amazing brands,” said Laurie Blair, the vice president of global marketing.
The World of Hyatt brand showcases arts and experiences based on hotel locations, Blair said.
“The World of Hyatt has these amazing spaces with life and soul and experience that offer you so much more and the ability to be present and in the moment, which is what we’re all looking for with travel,” she said.
Taking over a basement space next to Flanigan’s on Main, at 440 Main St., World of Hyatt constructed a lounge area with walls wrapped in the bold-colored designs of L.A.-based artist Upendo, who is doing live paintings in the space throughout the festival.
“I really wanted to be inspired by what (Sundance) is all about, which is celebrating artistry, but also a little bit of self discovery,” said Blair.
During the day, the World of Hyatt programming is open to the public, with first-come, first-serve activities in the morning, then special panel events after 3:30 p.m.
A mini bar offered complementary mocktails made with raspberry-jalapeno shrub and club soda, or with blood orange, grapefruit juice and non-alcoholic sparkling wine. Hot coffee and tea were also available.
“So at World of Hyatt, we’re really leaning into well-being. Well-being is different for everybody, so in some cases it’s mind, and some it’s body,” said Blair.
In the mornings at 10:30-11:30 a.m., guests are invited to a “Be More Grounded” experience, featuring guided meditation and journaling with Dora Kamau.
From noon to 2:30 p.m. the “Be More Inspired” and “Be More Present” events walk guests through hands-on creation — the first, a doodle session led by artist Upendo, the second, an interactive class to craft a unique perfume using Utah-based scents guided by perfumer Jess Mennella of FLWR Napa Valley.
“We have these types of experiences throughout all of our properties. There’s some amazing things and they’re sort of like the best kept secret, but we don’t want it to be a secret,” said Blair.
The “Be More Present” experience was titled “Scents of Sundance,” and Mennella explained how she believes scents are connected to living in the moment.
“This class, the ‘Scents of Sundance,’ it’s about being more present. It’s about giving you a moment to connect to the land here that we’re standing on. So the land of where Sundance is, the land of Park City, the land of Utah,” said Mennella.
Six of the seven scents featured were of native plants, she said — subalpine fir, juniper berry, high altitude lavender, pinyon pine, yarrow and black spruce. The seventh was bergamot, a light, citrusy scent that Mennella thought was reminiscent of the crisp mountain air.
Participants in the class were led through each scent, and Mennella explained more about each smell and asked students to share their associations.
“Scent is powerful and it’s directly related to memory and emotion,” she said. “The other thing is that scent is personal, right? So a rose for you is quite a bit different from a rose for me.”
After smelling all seven, we were given perfume spray bottles to add our own mix of scents which would bring back memories of the week of Sundance.
Learn more about World of Hyatt at hyatt.com.
