Redefining Miami’s new high-rises with global automobile and luxury brands
Hospitality and luxury branding is the collection of elements that express one’s unique value proposition to a revered demographic. The branding presents a story that reflects an organization’s core values to its customers and clients, typically through the design and quality of the product or service. This now includes luxury branding for Miami high rises.
The phenomenon of branding Miami-area high-rise condos actually began in the early 2000’s, when new hotels like the W Hotel in South Beach and the St Regis in Bal Harbour began offering residences in addition to hotel accommodations. According to Forbes.com, such branded residences have grown to around 700 globally.
Now, however, luxury residence labeling has transcended hospitality providers to branding from all types of consumer products, especially from European automotive and clothing designers. “We are a city that is built by continuous waves of immigration. With immigration comes new ideas, comes intellectual capital, comes financial capital,” says Alicia Cervera, Managing Partner of Cervera Real Estate, which has listed over 115 luxury high rise condominiums in South Florida with a total of $16 billion in sales. “In that connectivity comes the new ideas and with that the new brands from around the world.”
In real estate, the first luxury branded building in South Florida was the Fendi Chateau Residences, which opened in Surfside in 2016. This was followed by The Porsche Design Tower, which opened in Sunny Isles in March 2017, the first automotive-branded luxury high rise in Miami (the tower, developed by Dezer Properties, offers a private glass elevator that takes you straight to your home.) This was followed with Residences by Armani Casa, which opened in 2019, also in Sunny Isles.
Now the trend has hit downtown Miami and Brickell, with a parade of super-tall towers that include the just-opened Aston Martin residences, to be followed by Bentley residences and a Mercedes-Benz tower in 2027, and a Dolce and Gabbana tower in 2028. The newly minted Aston Martin Residences is a 66-story skyscraper located on the edge of the Miami River at Biscayne Bay. It is the tallest all-residential building south of New York City. According to Cervera, who is responsible for its sales and marketing, the building sold out over a 7-year development time period, with most of the units sold 6 months before the project was completed.
“You are looking at a limited number of buyers to invest in this type of home, so the ultra-luxury has to be exceptional – and it is,” says German Coto, CEO of G&G Developments, developer of the Aston Martin Residences. “The Aston Martin Residences is a unique proposition not just in Miami but globally. It is the first Aston Martin Venture anywhere in the world.”
Adds Irene Fernandez, the founder of Elite Properties Miami which specializes in luxury real estate: “Branded projects like Aston Martin become an important staple in Miami as a status symbol and guarantee when it comes to quality and finishes, interior design, and proper maintenance of the buildings.” For the Aston Martin building even the head of Aston Martin automotive design was involved. Everything down to the door handles and leather used reflected the authenticity of the brand.
“Different brands represent different aesthetics and luxury branding is not just about slapping a name on a building but making sure that brand is an integral part of the development and design of the building,” says Cervera. “If the brand is on the real estate then that real estate will and should reflect the core values of that brand.”
Next will come residences by German automaker Mercedes-Benz, who with JDS Development Group will complete their 67-story mixed-use tower in the Brickell neighborhood in 2027. This first Mercedes-branded building in North America will have 791 private homes.
On the fashion branding side, Dolce and Gabbana will join Armani and Fendi with a building at 888 Brickell Ave., set to open in 2028. The building will transpose Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana’s fashion style with Italian residential craftsmanship, including hand-selected Nero Saint Laurent and Camellia Green marble for the façade. Signature dining, lifestyle amenities, and a hotel will be offered along with an onsite Rolls Royce house car. “There is nothing greater than a successful brand that knows and can identify their consumer than to design for that person,” says Cervera.
