Hospitality Design: What I've Learned

In May at HD Expo in Las Vegas, editor in chief Stacy Shoemaker Rauen sat down with keynote speaker Andrew Zobler, CEO and founder of the Sydell Group. The hourlong conversation touched on everything from working with Barry Sternlicht to starting the Sydell Group, named for his grandmother and known for its collection of brands, including the NoMad, the Line, and the Freehand. In this rare appearance, he shined a light on the evolution of lifestyle hotels.This episode is brought to you by Global Allies. For more information, go to globalallies.com.Thank you for listening! For more of our great interviews, find us at hospitalitydesign.com.

Jonathan Tisch, CEO and chairman of Loews Hotels, is a lifelong hotelier who jokingly refers to himself as a modern-day Eloise, having lived and worked in hotels all of his life. His properties can be found in immersive destinations that give people many reasons to visit. As he says, the hotel industry is just another arm of the entertainment industry.This episode is brought to you by Global Allies. For more information, go to globalallies.com.Thank you for listening! For more of our great interviews, find us at hospitalitydesign.com.

Christine Gachot credits much of her success with being in the right place at the right time. She worked on memorable projects like Gucci with Bill Sofield and helped André Balazs launch the Standard in New York before founding Gachot with her husband, John, in 2012. Since then, they've helped shape brands like Glossier, Eaton Workshop, and most recently Shinola, which opened its first upscale hotel in Detroit this year.This episode is brought to you by Global Allies. For more information, go to globalallies.com.Thank you for listening! For more of our great interviews, find us at hospitalitydesign.com.

A profound love of contemporary art as well as a desire to revitalize his hometown of Louisville, Kentucky led Steve Wilson and his wife Laura Lee Brown to create a hotel that showcased art in a museum-like setting. That idea grew into 21c Museum Hotels, which now counts eight properties in the U.S., mostly in rehabbed buildings, with a recent acquisition by Accor set to expand the brand internationally.This episode is brought to you by Global Allies. For more information, go to globalallies.com.Thank you for listening! For more of our great interviews, find us at hospitalitydesign.com.

Inspired by his restaurateur father, Will Guidara always knew he wanted to be in the business and open a New York restaurant. That dream soon became a reality. The Danny Meyer alum, along with chef Daniel Humm, took over and reimagined the Michelin-starred Eleven Madison Park and reinvented the hotel restaurant, first with the NoMad New York and since then in Los Angeles and Las Vegas.This episode is brought to you by Global Allies. For more information, go to globalallies.com.Thank you for listening! For more of our great interviews, find us at hospitalitydesign.com.

As a trailblazer in the wellness space, the Irish-born designer first got her start in fashion, but is now known for her zen-like designs for the likes of Six Senses and Miraval that immerse the guests in all five senses.This episode is brought to you by Global Allies. For more information, go to globalallies.com.Thank you for listening! For more of our great interviews, find us at hospitalitydesign.com.

Paligroup's Avi Brosh started his own residential development company at 30. When a client noted that if he added a restaurant and lobby, he'd have the perfect hotel, he decided to try his hand at hospitality, opening his first property in 2008. Since then, he has launched multiple Pali locations throughout LA and is expanding to Miami, Seattle, and San Francisco. His success lies in the fact that he is involved in every aspect of the design, listening to his intuition to create hyperlocal experiences.Thank you for listening! For more of our great interviews, find us at hospitalitydesign.com.

When Pesek noticed that restaurants were missing out on lucrative business during the day, he created Spacious, a technology-meets-hospitality company that turns vacant locations into bustling workspaces. As CEO and founder, Pesek is rethinking how we work today, equating his business more to a coffee shop than a traditional coworking space.This episode is brought to you by Global Allies. For more information, go to globalallies.com.Thank you for listening! For more of our great interviews, find us at hospitalitydesign.com.

Working alongside such revered chefs as Thomas Keller, Daniel Boulud, and Charlie Palmer, Tihany solidified his reputation as the father of restaurant design. "For me, restaurants are portraits of my clients," he says. "They always have been." As he embarks on his 40th year as a designer, one thing remains true: his unwavering commitment to his 15-person team. This episode is brought to you by Global Allies. For more information, go to globalallies.com.Thank you for listening! For more of our great interviews, find us at hospitalitydesign.com.

Bashar Wali left Syria 30 years ago, and got bit by the hospitality bug while in school. Now he's president of Provenance Hotels with over 14 fiercely independent properties that are full of human connections. He's not in the hotel business, he says, but in the theater business—always striving to create memorable, once-in-a-lifetime experiences.This episode is brought to you by Global Allies. For more information, go to globalallies.com.Thank you for listening! For more of our great interviews, find us at hospitalitydesign.com.