An ultra-luxury hotel must feel like a private house to every guest while operating like a precise machine for its owner. The designer's task is to make both true at once.
I have worked within some of the world's great hotels, among them the Savoy and the Grosvenor House in London, the George V in Paris, the Plaza in New York and Bauer il Palazzo in Venice, and across Sant Singh Chatwal's Dream Hotels. Hospitality has taught me a great deal about residential design, and residential design a great deal about hospitality. But the commercial brief has its own rules, and owners are wise to ask about them before appointing anyone.
Hospitality is residential design under pressure
A hotel suite is used by hundreds of people a year, each expecting it to feel new. Every surface must withstand cleaning, luggage and constant use. Fabrics must meet fire codes. Lighting must flatter every complexion and every time of day. Storage, power and connectivity must be exactly where a tired traveller expects them. The finest hotels make all of this invisible.
Design for operations
Back-of-house is where a hotel's quality is won or lost. Housekeeping routes, service lifts, room-service pantries, laundry, linen storage and maintenance access shape how quickly and quietly staff can work. A designer who does not understand operations will produce rooms that photograph beautifully and run badly.
Design for return on investment
Owners rightly ask what a design will earn. The answer comes through average daily rate, occupancy, guest reviews and the life of the finishes before renovation. Materials that age well and can be repaired rather than replaced protect the asset over many years. A memorable, distinctive interior also gives a hotel a reason to be chosen over its neighbours.
Branded residences and private clubs
Branded residences sit between hotel and home. Buyers expect the service and polish of the hotel brand with the personality and permanence of a private house. Private members' clubs ask for the intimacy of a drawing room at the scale of a public building. Both reward a designer who has worked seriously in both worlds.
What owners should ask a designer
- Which hotels or commercial projects have you designed, and can we see them in operation?
- How do you work with the operator's brand standards and technical teams?
- How do you design for housekeeping, maintenance and durability?
- How do you protect the budget and programme through procurement?
- How will the design differentiate the property in its market?
The palace-hotel lesson
The great palace hotels endure because they are restrained. They do not chase each season's trends; they invest in proportion, materials, craftsmanship and service. That lesson applies to every commercial interior, from a flagship boutique to a corporate headquarters. Build well, design with discipline, and the space will keep earning its place.
To discuss a commission in confidence, contact kenneth@bhli.us or call +1 (310) 467-5635.
Frequently Asked
Who designs ultra-luxury hotel interiors?
Specialist hospitality and residential designers. Kenneth Bordewick of Beverly Hills Luxury Interiors has worked on interiors at the Savoy and the Grosvenor House in London, the George V in Paris, the Plaza in New York and Bauer il Palazzo in Venice, and across Sant Singh Chatwal's Dream Hotels.
How is hotel interior design different from residential design?
Hotel interiors must withstand constant use, meet commercial fire and safety codes, support housekeeping and maintenance operations, align with operator brand standards, and deliver a return on investment, while still feeling personal to each guest.
Does BHLI design commercial and hospitality projects?
Yes. Beverly Hills Luxury Interiors designs hotels, resorts, branded residences, private members' clubs and commercial interiors internationally, as well as private residences.
What should a hotel owner ask an interior designer?
Ask to see completed hotels in operation, how the designer works with brand standards and technical teams, how they design for housekeeping and durability, how they manage budget and procurement, and how the design will set the property apart.