On a February afternoon in the Southern Utah desert, I’m in a tent staring at a leather backgammon board. Tent is the correct term, but it somehow feels, well, incorrect: there are hardwood floors that are covered with a beige knotted rug. Just beyond is a pool that juts out into the rugged landscape. White-cushioned chaise lounges sit by the edge of the water. And around the corner from me? A bathroom complete with an outdoor shower, indoor shower, a double sink, lavatory, and a bath that overlooks a towering red rust land formation. It just all so happens to technically sit within a canvas structure.
But that’s what one expects from Amangiri, a five-star resort in Canyon Point, Utah. The property is arguably the crown jewel in the luxury hospitality group Aman’s portfolio—currently, it is the most expensive hotel per night in the country. (Occasionally, it is surpassed by its sister property the Aman New York.) Hailey and Justin Bieber are repeat guests, as are the Kardashians, Jay-Z, and Beyoncé. DJ Tiesto loved it so much he got married there. And those are just the people we publicly know about—every given year, dozens of wealthy notables discreetly stay and don’t share what they did. In fact, so dedicated is Aman’s clientele that they’ve earned a nickname: “Aman Junkie.” (When I stayed, one visitor wore a t-shirt labeled as such, which he said he received after visiting his eighth property.)
Which brings me back to the tent and the backgammon board. I’m here because Aman knows their clientele is an uber-loyal one... and wants to evolve their brand beyond the hotel room and into a lifestyle. Enter Aman Cabana.
Aman Cabana is a a retail concept filled with Aman-designed clothes, luggage, skincare, and yes, even backgammon boards. Right now I’m at the outpost within Amangiri’s luxury tented camp, Camp Sarika, but there have been others, including at Amanpuri in Thailand. What each Cabana offers is curated specifically to location. The Aman Cabana in which I stand—which serves a moneyed, adventure-loving clientele—offers hiking gear like stainless steel water bottles, performance sunglasses, and backpacks as well as athleisure clothing: there’s a sand bike shorts and crop top set, as well as a burnt orange windbreaker with matching windpants. Hanging beside them is a terrycloth short-sleeved button-down and shorts. Baseball caps and bucket hats are artfully arranged on a display table, as are packing cubes and dopp kits. Most of the product comes in colors that reflect the resort’s natural surroundings. And all of it is designed and made in-house under the company’s new fashion and lifestyle line, Aman Essentials.
Overseeing Aman Essentials and the Aman Cabanas is Kristina Romanova, the longtime partner of Aman CEO Vlad Doronin. “People are so invested in this brand. I’ve never seen anything like it—[except] maybe Hermès,” says Romanova. She designed the Amangiri capsule collection based on an average day at the resort: most people, she says, wake up, go to breakfast, go hiking or climbing, then return to hang by the pool or visit the spa—hence the hyper focus on active and comfortable clothing. “I always think about what experience I had from the property, what I do, and what I wish I had over there to use,” she says. Ideally, a guest could show up to the Amangiri suitcase-less and find every single thing they need for a chic stay at the Cabana. “I want to come and just be taken care of when it comes to even clothes that I wear here,” she says. “I don’t have to worry about my wardrobe.” Many of the clothes, which are made in Italy and Portugal, also retail on Aman’s website.
Fashion brand collaborations with hotels are currently all the rage: Frame did a line for The Ritz Paris, and recently, Sporty Rich launched a collection with The Carlyle. Meanwhile, Emilia Wickstead made custom prints for Passalacqua. Yet the Aman is the only hotel that is doing their own fashion design on a mass scale. The Amangiri may sell hiking clothes, but at Amanpuri in Thailand, the focus is on swimwear and cover-ups. (Many of them boast an Aman monogram.) At Aman Le Melezin in Courchevel, there are cashmere sweaters and pants.
Plenty of fashion houses have successfully entered the world of hospitality—Ferragamo, for example, has a hotel in Milan, whereas LVMH oversees the Cheval Blanc hotel chain. Will Aman be the first to do the reverse?
