Hospitality Design: What I've Learned

Cofounder of his namesake development company, Keith Menin has spent his career building an eclectic portfolio in his native Miami with such notable openings as the Sanctuary South Beach, which he conceived when he was only 23 years old. Included in those buzzy projects is the redo of the Shelborne South Beach Hotel, and soon, the 51-story Natiivo Miami. The residential-hospitality-lifestyle hybrid is a nod to the evolving industry, as well as to Menin’s ability to create exciting spaces that respond to how people live, work, and play today.Thank you for listening! For more of our great interviews, find us at hospitalitydesign.com.

Robin Staten started her career in higher education but pivoted to hospitality in 2018 when she wanted do something that contributed more significantly to the world. Enter Tiny Urban Escapes. Launching in her native Indianapolis, Staten repurposes shipping containers into idyllic getaways that act as a welcome respite from city life. Thank you for listening! For more of our great interviews, find us at hospitalitydesign.com.

It seems there’s nothing Marquise Stillwell and his New York design and research firm can’t do. His projects promote inclusion and equity, rethink the norm, and bring people together, seen in forward-thinking concepts for Black Girls Code, the Lowline, and the DC public library. Stillwell is also a film producer and co-founder of Urban Ocean Lab, an organization focused on developing policy solutions for coastal cities. Our conversation spans the different, fascinating facets of his career, and it’s clear Stillwell’s mantra can be boiled down to one succinct remark he made: “Empathy is a muscle. It’s something you have to practice and build every day.”Thank you for listening! For more of our great interviews, find us at hospitalitydesign.com.

Larry Traxler joined Hilton in 2009 as senior vice president of global design, where he's helped double its portfolio to 6,500 hotels and overseen brand launches and refreshes that have transformed Hilton into a global powerhouse in nearly every segment. Traxler's thoughtful approach to his career and life is what makes him stand out in this industry. “It’s better to be lucky than good,” he says. “If you’re passionate about everything that you do and invest everything you have, opportunities will land in your lap.”Thank you for listening! For more of our great interviews, find us at hospitalitydesign.com.

This week, we spoke with creative director and principal of her own studio Nicole Hollis. A master of both hospitality and residential interiors, the renowned designer got her start in Manhattan studying at FIT before packing everything up and moving to San Francisco without so much as a job offer. It was the right move. She first became part of the team that conceived W hotels, and then cut her teeth with Howard Backen before starting her own firm. Almost two decades later, she is known for her curated black and white spaces that marry architecture and interior design seen in her warm, residentially inspired spin on hotels such as The Candler and El Prado, much of which is captured in her first Monograph, released last year. In this enlightening interview, she discusses what drives and excited her and our changing world.Thank you for listening! For more of our great interviews, find us at hospitalitydesign.com.

An unabashed free spirit hailing from Texas, president and CEO of EDG Jennifer Johanson walks us through her unplanned entry into the hospitality world, her evolved managing style thanks to COVID, the importance of collaboration, what she loves about restaurants versus hotels, and her secrets to success with an inspiring matter of fact approach. Her illustrious career spanning decades, our conversation spans her search on the San Francisco waterfront for a job to her instant classic the Andaz Scottsdale. Later this year, we also have the honor of inducting Jennifer into HD’s Platinum Circle.Thank you for listening! For more of our great interviews, find us at hospitalitydesign.com.

Since she was a child growing up in Detroit, Kimberly Dowdell, the former president of NOMA and principal in the Chicago office at HOK, saw how the built environment can improve the quality of urban life, leading her to pursue degrees in both public policy and architecture. This summer, amid Black Lives Matter protests and the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, NOMA—with Kimberly at the helm—addressed these twin crises by emphasizing the importance of mentorship, representation, inclusivity, and equity. This shift to advocacy and empowering communities has been a big part of Dowdell's journey, allowing her to tap into a reservoir of resilience, she says, that keeps her fighting for another day to do the work that’s so important.Thank you for listening! For more of our great interviews, find us at hospitalitydesign.com.

Prolific designer and architect Jeffrey Beers grew up traveling the world with his parents, which instilled in him a love of hospitality and design—a skill he honed under a who’s who of mentors, including Dale Chihuly, Oscar Niemeyer, and I.M. Pei. For the self-described rebel entrepreneur, his passion for the industry is as present today as it was more than three decades ago, cementing his legacy as one of the forefathers of hospitality design today.Thank you for listening! For more of our great interviews, find us at hospitalitydesign.com.

On this week’s What I’ve Learned podcast, hoteliers Alex and Carrie Vik of Vik Retreats discuss their properties, primarily found in South America, and sustainably immersing guests into their natural surroundings. In this illuminating conversation, the couple details how they first fell in love with Uruguay on family vacations and holidays before building properties there. They also speak to their passions for wine, art, agriculture, and the little things that make a design work.Thank you for listening! For more of our great interviews, find us at hospitalitydesign.com.

Long-time friends and partners at Toronto-based studio DesignAgency, Allen Chan, Matt Davis, and Anwar Mekhayech, discuss their beginnings working in restaurants and designing hotel branding before taking on sizable projects such as The Generator and Momofuku. Our extensive conversation puts their energy and kinship on display as they detail how they came together, their studio’s ethos, and what’s next for hospitality design.Thank you for listening! For more of our great interviews, find us at hospitalitydesign.com.