American Express today announced changes to its SPG card portfolio that is moving under Marriott Bonvoy branding effective February 13, 2019.
Card design is changing among some of the benefits. You can information about available cards below.
You can access Amex’ page for Bonvoy products here.
Here are the changes in a nutshell:
New Card Names – Starting February 13, 2019
- The Starwood Preferred Guest® American Express Luxury Card will now be called the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card.
- The Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express will now be called the Marriott Bonvoy™ American Express® Card.
- The Starwood Preferred Guest® Business Credit Card from American Express will now be called the Marriott Bonvoy Business™ American Express® Card.
New Card Benefits
In addition to the current benefits, more benefits will be rolled out this year to further reward and enhance Card Members’ travel experiences:
Elite Night Credits: As of January 1, 2019, all Cards within the Marriott Bonvoy American Express cobrand Card portfolio will offer Card Members 15 Elite Night credits per year to help reach the next level of Marriott Bonvoy status even faster.
Limit one 15 Elite Night Credit per Marriott Bonvoy member account; benefit is not exclusive to Cards offered by American Express
$100 Property Credit: Starting March 28, 2019, Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card Members can get up to $100 in property credits per stay when they use their Card and a special rate code to book 2+ night stays at The Ritz-Carlton® or St. Regis®.
Additional Free Night Award: Starting March 28, 2019, Marriott Bonvoy Business™ American Express® Card Members can get an additional free night award (valued at up to 35,000 points) when they spend $60,000 or more annually on the Card. With the new enhancements to the Marriott Bonvoy Business™ American Express® Card, the Card’s annual fee will increase from $95 to $125 starting on March 28, 2019.
New Rich Offers
In celebration of the refreshed Marriott Bonvoy™ American Express® Card portfolio, we will be introducing rich offers for both new and existing Card Members.
100K welcome offers for Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant and Marriott Bonvoy Business Cards
Starting February 13, 2019 through April 24, 2019, eligible new Card Members who sign up for the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card or Marriott Bonvoy Business™ American Express® Card can receive 100,000 points after they spend $5,000 in the first three months of Card Membership.
Points offer for existing Marriott Bonvoy Card Members
Starting on February 24, 2019, eligible existing Marriott Bonvoy™ American Express® Card Members can register to earn 25,000 points for every $25,000 in eligible purchases on the Card, up to four times for a maximum of 100,000 bonus points, based on the total amount of purchases starting from when the Card Member registers through the end of the year. Eligible Card Members will soon receive more information about this offer and how to register their Card.
Here’s the press release:
Today, American Express and Marriott International, Inc. announced upcoming changes to the current Starwood Preferred Guest® American Express Cobrand Credit Card portfolio following the recent unveiling of Marriott’s new loyalty brand, Marriott Bonvoy™, which will replace the travel program’s three current loyalty brands, Starwood Preferred Guest, Marriott Rewards® and The Ritz-Carlton Rewards® on February 13, 2019. On that date, the current Starwood Preferred Guest American Express Cards will be rebranded to Marriott Bonvoy™ American Express® Cards, and will soon offer travelers and businesses additional valuable benefits, rich points offers, and new artistic Card designs.
Starting February 13, 2019, the Starwood Preferred Guest American Express Cards will be rebranded as follows:
- The current Starwood Preferred Guest® American Express Luxury Card will be rebranded to the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card
- The current Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express will be rebranded to the Marriott Bonvoy™ American Express® Card
- The current Starwood Preferred Guest® Business Credit Card from American Express will be rebranded to the Marriott Bonvoy Business™ American Express® Card
“In line with the changes to the Marriott International loyalty program, our rebranded Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card portfolio will maintain the same great benefits and rewards that have enhanced our Card Members’ travel journeys over the years, as well as offer compelling new designs, names and benefits,” said Eva Reda, Executive Vice President, Global Cobrand Partnerships at American Express. “Building on our successful 50-year relationship with Marriott, we are looking forward to entering this exciting new chapter and continuing to bring incredible value and service to our Card Members wherever life or business takes them.”
“Marriott Bonvoy is more than a loyalty program, but rather a holistic travel program built on the idea that travel enriches each of us and connects the world,” said David Flueck, Senior Vice President, Global Loyalty, Marriott International. “The incredibly rich benefits and earning opportunities the American Express Cards provide will accelerate our members’ ability to pursue their passions when they travel.”
NEW ADDITIONAL BENEFITS
In addition to the value introduced to the Marriott American Express cobrand Card portfolio last year, more benefits will be rolled out across the Card portfolio this year to further reward and enhance Card Members’ travel experiences.
As of January 1, 2019, all Marriott Bonvoy American Express Cobrand Card Members now have access to a 15 Elite Night Credit each calendar year1.
Additionally, starting March 28, 2019, Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant American Express Card Members can get up to $100 in property credit per stay when they use their Card and a special rate code to book stays of two or more nights at The Ritz-Carlton® or St. Regis® properties2. This builds on this Card’s rich existing benefits, which include 6X points on purchases at participating Marriott Bonvoy properties worldwide, 3X points on U.S. restaurants and flights booked directly with airlines, up to $300 in statement credits each year of Card Membership for eligible purchases at participating Marriott Bonvoy properties, complimentary Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite Status, and an annual free night award (redemption level at or under 50,000 points) at participating hotels every year after their Card account anniversary3, Priority Pass membership, no foreign transaction fees4, and more. The Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant American Express Card will continue to have an annual fee of $450.4
Additionally, starting March 28, 2019, Marriott Bonvoy Business American Express Card Members can get an additional free night award (redemption level at or under 35,000 points) when they spend $60,000 or more on the Card annually 5. This new benefit is in addition to the valuable existing benefits already offered on this Card, which include 6X points at participating Marriott Bonvoy properties and 4X points at U.S. restaurants, U.S. gas stations, on wireless telephone services purchased directly from U.S. service providers and on U.S. shipping purchases, as well as an annual free night award (redemption level at or under 35,000 points), complimentary Marriott Bonvoy Silver Elite Status, no foreign transaction fees4, no annual fee employee Cards and more. With the new enhancements, the Marriott Bonvoy Business American Express Card’s annual fee will increase from $95 to $125 starting on March 28, 2019.4
American Express will no longer accept new applications for the Starwood Preferred Guest American Express Card after February 12, 2019. When the Card is rebranded to the Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card on February 13, 2019, existing Card Members will continue to get access to the Card’s great benefits and offerings, including 6X points on purchases at participating Marriott Bonvoy properties worldwide, the new 15 Elite Night Credit benefit, Automatic Silver Elite status, and an annual free night award (redemption level at or under 35,000 points). The Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card will continue to have an annual fee of $95.4
NEW RICH OFFERS
In celebration of the refreshed Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card portfolio, American Express and Marriott will be introducing rich new offers to further reward both new and existing Card Members.
From February 13 through April 24, 2019, eligible new Card Members who apply for the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant American Express Card or Marriott Bonvoy Business American Express Card can earn 100,000 Marriott Bonvoy points after they spend $5,000 in purchases on their Card in the first three months of Card Membership.6
In addition, starting February 24, 2019, Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card Members whose accounts were opened before January 23, 2019 will be eligible to earn up to 100,000 bonus Marriott Bonvoy points. Once registered, eligible Card Members can earn 25,000 bonus points for every $25,000 in eligible purchases on the Card, for up to 100,000 points through the end of the year. Eligible Card Members will receive more information about this offer, including the relevant terms and how to register their Card soon.
NEW CARD DESIGNS
To further bring to life the new Marriott Bonvoy brand, American Express and Marriott are excited to announce a collaboration with Manhattan-based mural and studio artist, Tony “Rubin” Sjöman to design the new Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card. Rubin’s modern artistic Card design is inspired by Marriott’s new visual identity and aims to evoke the desire to travel and explore.
“The shapes within the design emulate a cityscape and the color palette is intended to mirror sunrise and sunset reflecting off buildings,” said Rubin.
Additionally, the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant American Express Card will be offered in a sleek stainless-steel Card design and the Marriott Bonvoy Business American Express Card will be offered in a sophisticated blue-gray plastic Card design.
The new Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant American Express Card and Marriott Bonvoy Business American Express Card designs will be available to new Card Members starting March 2019, and the new Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card design will be available starting May 2019. Existing Card Members will automatically receive the new Card designs over the following months.
More information about the revamped Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card portfolio can be found here. Terms and limitations apply.
Conclusion
The entry level card certainly has interesting early 1900’s style. The other two cards have more traditional designs.
Seems that they are launching new and additional bonus offers to get cardholders to swipe their products more often.