Hotel Design Podcast

We're back! Enjoy this new episode and many more coming in 2022! In this episode of the Hotel Design Podcast, we welcome Glen Coben, President and Owner of Glen & Company. Coben is a huge driving force within the hotel design community, and brings a unique point of view from the retail environment where he previously worked with Nike. They start by discussing his background, and how stories are told in various sporting cultures globally. Coben reveals how he keeps things fresh by continuing...

Design expert Mike Suomi is back to talk about how COVID continues to influence the future designs of hotels. Plus, we take a look at some great projects. This episode was originally aired as part of the series No Vacancy Live with Glenn Haussman and Anthony Melchiorri. Watch this episode on video here: https://youtu.be/4g-1PWj1iK4 We'll be returning soon with all new Hotel Design Podcast episodes!

In today’s episode, Cheryl speaks with Barbara Best-Santos, Principal of ForrestPerkins--a Perkins Eastman company. During their conversation, Cheryl asks Barbara the question, “How does having the kind of design expertise and experience in hospitality help you in your healthcare design projects?” To give you a little background, for 20 years Barbara Best-Santos has led the design of boutique and large-scale hotels, spas, restaurants, and resorts! Barbara’s answer was inspiring. She shares,...

In this episode of the Hotel Design Podcast we welcome Tom Ito, Principal at Gensler. Tom Ito is a force in the hotel design community and created the hospitality division of Gensler back in the late 1990s. Since then, it has been a whirlwind of creating some of the most incredible hotel designs we’ve ever seen – some of which have had far more impact than the building itself. Tom Ito and host Glenn Haussman start by discussing downtown Los Angeles and the impact that the L.A. Live...

In this episode of the Hotel Design Podcast we welcome Siobhan Barry, Design Director at Gensler. Like everything we see with hospitality design lately, projects are grounded in ‘experience’ - something that Barry says is essential to satisfying today’s customer. Good thing that she has had plenty of experience doing just this sort of thing since the 1990s. That’s when she spent a considerable amount of time working on nightclub related projects, where experience is essential. Glenn and...

In this episode of the Hotel Design Podcast we welcome designer Kimberly Daoust, who is principal at Tandem - a Las Vegas-based interior design firm that she co-founded in 2005. While she lives in Austin, TX, she commutes by plane to Vegas. The conversation starts out with how Las Vegas is a great place for design freedom. Kim loves that by nature, the city is impermanent and so is its design. Glenn and Kim then discuss the first casino resort project that she ever took part in 25 years...

In this episode of the Hotel Design Podcast we welcome Tina Wichmann and Craig Palacios of the Las Vegas based design firm, Bunnyfish. They have been involved in some major projects, such as helping entrepreneur and CEO of Zappos Tony Hsieh reinvent downtown Las Vegas. The conversation starts with the duo dissecting a project they did in Reno, Nevada to reinvent the Renaissance Reno Downtown Hotel. That brand was on the cusp of irrelevancy, but Marriott wanted to reinvent it. The folks at...

In this episode of the Hotel Design Podcast we welcome the founder of TAL Studio, Todd-Avery Lenahan. Based in Las Vegas, TAL Studio has been an integral part in designing huge projects for many major companies, including Disney and Wynn. In fact, since we recorded this show in late spring, TAL is merging with Wynn entirely. So there’s been a little change in the company’s structure, but not its ethos. Todd has always loved hotels. From his earliest days traveling with family and staying in...

In this episode of the Hotel Design Podcast, we welcome Beth Campbell – CEO of global interior architecture firm Wilson Associates. The company has designed some of the world’s most iconic addresses across the globe, and Campbell is looking to ensure its future success. This episode begins by highlighting Campbell’s personal journey from starting as a designer, to her shift to the operations side of the business, and then to the challenges of being a new CEO. They discuss what it’s like...

In this episode of the Hotel Design Podcast we welcome design industry icon Paul Steelman. He’s been involved in some of the most influential casino resort and hotel projects around the globe. His company Steelman Partners, has been closely tied to the leaders of the casino resort business such as Steve Wynn, Sheldon Adelson and Kirk Kerkorian. Glenn and Paul touch on it all, from his start in a pre-gaming Atlantic City to a chance design the Golden Nugget and how that led to a seminal...

In this episode of the Hotel Design Podcast we welcome Valeriano Antonioli, CEO of the Lugarno Collection, an ultra-luxury hotel company reinventing the luxury hospitality experience. The company operates properties in Florence and Rome. The company’s newest brand Portrait is designed to be an extension of the community in which its located and Antonioli shares the critical nature of this strategy as travel trends change. Oh yeah, it happens to be owned by luxury fashion brand Salvatore...

In this episode of the Hotel Design podcast, we speak to Mike Suomi from Stonehill & Taylor, who discusses his and his team’s work on the iconic Eero Saarinen’s TWA building at JFK along. For Suomi, it’s a matter of getting into what Saarinen wanted to originally create when designing this incredible space. They talk materials and expected experience, how the original terminal was designed without straight lines and how that informed the design approach to arrive on a 1960’s aesthetic that...

On this episode of the Hotel Design Podcast we’re featuring Amy Hulbert, Vice President, Boutique and Upscale Brands at Best Western® Hotels & Resorts. Though Amy no longer has the word design in her title, she’s been responsible for creating the look and feel of the company’s brands such as Glo and Vib, and actively helped create its newest brand entrants. In this episode Amy reveals her design approach to the changing nature of hotel rooms sizes, and what it takes to reinvent a guestroom...

Today on the Hotel Design Podcast we have Lauren Rottet FAIA, FIIDA, Founding Principal and President of Rottet Studio. Lauren is one of the most celebrated interior designers and architects in the world and holds fellow status of both the American Institute of Architects and the International Interior Design Association. Lauren is a Lifetime Appointee to the U.S. General Services Administration’s National Register of Peer Professionals for Design Excellence. In addition to her extensive...

Today on the Hotel Design Podcast we a have Mitch Patel, President & CEO of Vision Hospitality Group, one of the most highly regarded developers and owners in North America. Mitch is a second generation hotelier, starting his company in 1997 with seed capital of just $3000 after cashing in his 401k and divesting his career as a civil engineer. He makes light of his modest startup funding by telling the story of his father who immigrated to the US with just $8 to his name, but eventually...

The Gettys Group consistently ranks amongst the top hospitality design firms in the world. In this edition of the Hotel Design Podcast, we are joined by Ron Swidler, Principal and VP of Branding & Design. Our discussion takes a deep dive into the history and formation of the boutique hotel business, Ron gives a tip of the hat to boutique founding father Bill Kimpton and fast forwards to today’s segment which sees The Gettys Group designing boutique properties in tertiary cities. Ron cites...