Billionaire Sheila Johnson's Salamander hotel in Washington DC is in talks to rebrand as a Marriott property

Sheila Johnson's Salamander Washington DC, the 373-room luxury hotel along the city's Southwest waterfront that she acquired for $139 million just four years ago, is in talks to rebrand as a Marriott property, according to a report by the Washington Business Journal.

The potential rebrand would mark a significant strategic shift for the property, which Johnson and London-based private equity real estate manager Henderson Park purchased from Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group in September 2022 and relaunched under the Salamander Collection flag. The hotel sits near the National Mall and overlooks the Tidal Basin, making it one of the more prominent luxury assets in the US capital.

Johnson, the entrepreneur who co-founded Black Entertainment Television with her then-husband Robert Johnson before selling it to Viacom in a deal worth nearly $3 billion, founded Salamander Hotels and Resorts in 2005. The Washington DC property was her brand's debut in the capital, expanding a portfolio that spans seven properties across Virginia, South Carolina, Florida, Colorado, Jamaica, and Anguilla.

Since taking over the former Mandarin Oriental, Johnson invested substantially in the property. A two-level Salamander Spa opened in December 2024 following an expansion that turned former office space into 14 treatment rooms. In September 2024, celebrity chef Kwame Onwuachi opened Dogon, an Afro-Caribbean restaurant inside the hotel that draws its name from DC surveyor Benjamin Banneker's connections to the West African Dogon people. The restaurant received national acclaim on opening and was named among the top two best restaurants in Washington by Washingtonian magazine in 2025.

A Marriott rebrand would place the property under one of the world's largest hotel distribution systems, potentially boosting occupancy and loyalty program access. It would also raise questions about the Salamander brand's footprint in the capital and whether the property's distinct identity, which Johnson personally shaped through art curation and community programming, would survive a transition to a global chain flag.

Henderson Park, which owns the real estate, and Salamander, which manages the property, would both need to be aligned for any rebrand to proceed. The terms of any Marriott affiliation, including which brand tier within Marriott's extensive portfolio the hotel would carry, have not been disclosed. Neither Salamander nor Marriott International responded to requests for comment by publication time.

Johnson, whose net worth is estimated at approximately $850 million, is the only Black woman to hold ownership stakes in three professional sports franchises simultaneously, holding positions with the NBA's Washington Wizards, the NHL's Washington Capitals, and the WNBA's Washington Mystics. She is also the first Black female billionaire in American history, having reached that threshold after the BET sale to Viacom.

The Salamander Washington DC sits at 1330 Maryland Avenue SW, steps from The Wharf development and the National Mall. It holds a Forbes Travel Guide four-star rating and AAA four-diamond designation.