Hospitality Design: What I've Learned

Cherishing the creative process, hotelier Jason Pomeranc continues to push it to its limits and redefine the hotel experience. First, in the early 2000s, as a cofounder of the industry-disrupting Thompson Hotels brand before following up his success with SIXTY Collective, the operating company of SIXTY Hotels. Pomeranc is also behind the recently opened, theater-centric Civilian hotel in New York—a natural fit for his design approach which he describes as cinematic. When entering a building for a new project, he likes to envision people in the space and watches it play out like a movie, which he then uses as inspiration.Thank you for listening! For more of our great interviews, find us at hospitalitydesign.com.

Libby Sims Patrick’s Southern U.S. roots are both the foundation of her upbringing and her approach to design. Born in Memphis, Tennessee, Sims Patrick grew up in Decatur, Alabama and graduated from Auburn University before starting her career in Georgia. Reflecting the southern hospitality her mother, a restaurant owner, instilled in her, Sims Patrick says great relationships are as important as great design. Having built her firm, Sims Patrick Studio, through word-of-mouth marketing and referrals, she employs a people-first approach with her clients and team to this day. Since 1999, Sims Patrick has designed a myriad of residential and commercial projects across the U.S., including the historic Battle House Hotel and multiple locations for longtime client Sonesta. Next, she will step into the role of owner-developer with The River Runner Hotel in 2024.Thank you for listening! For more of our great interviews, find us at hospitalitydesign.com.

Dyonne Fashina,  founder and principal designer of Toronto-based studio Denizens of Design, takes an empathy-first approach to her work. She designs with sensitivity, compassion, and a sense of cultural awareness. This is evident in projects like the McMichael Canadian Art Collection, where she sourced everything locally, reflecting the gallery’s emphasis on Canadian artists. In 2021, Fashina was honored with HD's inaugural HDAC Awards of Excellence, which recognizes exemplary work in the industry by those working to advance the field through the promotion of diversity, inclusivity, and equity. Indeed, throughout her career, Fashina has always remained true to herself. Trust the process, she says, and you’ll get to where you want to be. Thank you for listening! For more of our great interviews, find us at hospitalitydesign.com.

After graduating from Cornell with a bachelor's of architecture, Chad Oppenheim continued his education by living in Spain, Israel, Italy, and Japan. Once he returned to the United States, he spent five years working at Arquitectonica in Miami before founding Oppenheim Architecture + Design. Informed by his travels and appreciation for nature, his firm specializes in ambitious creations which celebrate the land such as the lush Ayla Golf Academy and Clubhouse in Aqaba, Jordan, or the Desert Rock Resort in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, built into natural rock formations. Thank you for listening! For more of our great interviews, find us at hospitalitydesign.com.

Sweden-based, Norway-born designer Erik Nissen Johansen always felt drawn to the creative world. After studying design in Florence, Italy, he went on to found his firm Stylt Trampoli AB, which has been pushing the boundaries of hospitality design worldwide for more than 30 years. Using a film director like creative approach, he often cites, “Never do the film without doing the script first.” When pitching to clients, each project is accompanied by a short, written story, connecting emotion to physical design. A testament to the firm's creatvity, one of his most recent projects is Pater Noster, an 1868 lighthouse off the coast of Sweden he and his team revitalized into a 10-room hotel. Thank you for listening! For more of our great interviews, find us at hospitalitydesign.com.

In November, during ICFF and WantedDesign, editor in chief Stacy Shoemaker Rauen sat down with multidisciplinary design Ini Archibong for a candid one-on-one discussion. Archibong's work transcends disciplines: He’s crafted furniture for the likes of Bernhardt Design and Knoll, he’s designed a watch collection for French luxury brand Hermés, conceived the Pavilion of the African Diaspora for the London Design Biennale, and recently landed his first solo gallery exhibition in New York scored with his own music. The conversation dove into Archibong's process, which is centered on storytelling that combines empathy, philosophy, spirituality, and everything in between.Thank you for listening! For more of our great interviews, find us at hospitalitydesign.com.

Tye Farrow is a bit of a philosopher when it comes to design, seeking out projects that inspire hope where the future is unknown. He cut his teeth with renowned German-Canadian architect Eberhard Zeidler before starting Farrow Partners in Toronto in 2004. It’s here that he launched his visionary Cause Health movement, which creates places where people can thrive through an intricate co-creation process. In fact, his firm is working on a slew of audacious projects, including the ambitious Venice Archipelago, which proposes a necklace of new and existing linked islands that promote ecological health in a city that is being devastated by climate change.Thank you for listening! For more of our great interviews, find us at hospitalitydesign.com.

Born in Taiwan, Tony Chi moved to New York when he was 9 years old, cultivating a global sense about the world that is embedded into everything he touches, including the studio’s work with Rosewood Hotel Group. The firm has had a hand in bringing the brand international recognition, from revitalizing the Carlyle in New York to reimagining a Belle Epoque building in London. Chi compares his role to that of a composer, where he must ensure that every member of his symphony is playing the right notes for a flawless performance.Thank you for listening! For more of our great interviews, find us at hospitalitydesign.com.

Lyndon Neri and Rossana Hu's  Shanghai-based practice is as prolific as its work is thought-provoking, thanks to the leadership provided by the husband-and-wife duo, who met while they were studying architecture as undergraduates at the University of California, Berkeley. They both cut their teeth with Michael Graves before deciding to go out on their own in 2004 after moving back to Shanghai. One of their early projects was the Waterhouse hotel, which established Neri&Hu as a firm known for a sensitive approach to design. In addition to helming the firm, they both teach at Harvard’s Graduate School of Design as visiting professors. Beyond the iconic buildings they’ve created, the duo sees it as their legacy to give back what they’ve learned to the next generation of designers and architects.Thank you for listening! For more of our great interviews, find us at hospitalitydesign.com.

EDSA principal Kona Gray says he stumbled upon landscape architecture, and for the past 25 years, he’s been a crucial voice in creating immersive environments for  resorts to senior living facilities and everything in between. One of Gray's initiatives is bringing more people of color into the field, where less than 10 percent of graduating landscape architects are BIPOC. He believes that everyone is meant to have good landscape architecture no matter the cost. It’s a view that fits into his definition of success: being a good, kind person who gives back. “Having a fantastic landscape makes you a better person,” he says. “It’s simple and we overlook it despite walking through it all day. These are things that are integral to human survival.”Thank you for listening! For more of our great interviews, find us at hospitalitydesign.com.