The Situation

When Amba Products launched two decades ago, its mission was simple yet ambitious: bring heated towel racks, long popular in Europe, into American homes. However, the U.S. market was largely unfamiliar with this product, and heated towel racks were seen as indulgent luxuries rather than practical amenities. Compounding the challenge, Amba lacked name recognition among interior designers and homeowners.

The Challenge

In the U.S., heated towel racks were often perceived as expensive and unnecessary, associated primarily with high-end spas or European hotels. In reality, they offer far more than luxury. They're cost-effective, energy-efficient, and promote both comfort and sustainability.

To grow its presence, Amba needed to educate the market, increase visibility, and build credibility around a product that many American consumers had never considered. The brand also needed a strategy to gain traction in the design space without a traditional foothold.

The Approach

To introduce heated towel racks to the American market, Amba turned to an industry already well-versed in delivering exceptional guest experiences: hospitality. By targeting hotel developers and operators, Amba aimed to demonstrate the benefits of heated towel racks in real-world settings and plant the seed for consumer adoption.

The Amba sales team focused their pitch on three core value propositions:

1. Enhanced Guest Experience
   Heated towel racks offered guests the comfort of a warm, fluffy towel—an elevated touch that added to a hotel’s spa-like atmosphere. This seemingly small amenity could create a memorable experience that set hotels apart in a competitive landscape.
2. Aesthetic and Functional Appeal
   The sleek, modern design of Amba’s towel racks added visual interest to hotel bathrooms, transforming them from sterile to sophisticated. With a wide range of styles, sizes, finishes, and even custom color options, Amba could match any design concept.
3. Sustainability and Hygiene
   The radiant heat from the racks not only dried towels quickly while reducing mildew and keeping bathrooms fresher and also encouraged reuse, cutting down on unnecessary laundry. This supported hotel sustainability goals while reducing operational costs.

As hotel developers recognized the potential to enhance both their guest experience and brand image, Amba began to secure more installations.

The Result

Amba’s initial push into the hospitality sector proved to be a powerful strategy. Hotel installations soon became a foundational pillar of the company’s business-to-business sales model. Dozens of properties adopted Amba’s products, helping to increase brand awareness and validate the value of heated towel racks in the U.S. market.

One standout success is Ambiente: A Landscape Hotel in Sedona, Arizona. A luxury adults-only resort known for its sustainable design and immersive natural experience, Ambiente integrates Amba heated towel racks as part of its carefully crafted guest experience.

“As part of our Guest Services room orientation, we introduce guests to the Amba heated towel rack upon arrival, ensuring it is turned on for their comfort,” said Brent Graef, General Manager at Ambiente. “While some guests are already familiar with this kind of luxury, for many, it’s a surprising and memorable detail that enhances their overall stay.”

In addition to elevating the guest experience, Ambiente leverages the racks to support its eco-conscious mission. Towels hung on the rack remain fresh and reusable, helping the hotel reduce laundry loads and conserve water. 

The visibility gained through hotel partnerships allowed Amba to strengthen its brand reputation and expand into residential design channels, including kitchen and bath showrooms. The same features that appealed to hospitality developers—comfort, design, and sustainability also resonated with showroom dealers and interior designers seeking to create spa-like home bathrooms.

The Impact

Today, Amba is a leading supplier of heated towel racks in North America, with applications across both commercial and residential markets. What began as a niche product unfamiliar to most Americans has grown into a must-have amenity for modern bathrooms.

Amba’s early commitment to hospitality partnerships laid the foundation for this success by demonstrating that betting on hotels was not just a workaround but a smart, strategic entry into the American interior design space.