EVENTS
HD Expo 15-17 May 2012 – Sands Expo & Convention Center, Las Vegas
Words: Catherine Martin Photography: Courtesy of Hospitality Design Group
The USA’s largest hospitality design exhibition sees a 10% increase in attendance, while oraganisers develop events in the UK and Asia.
T
he 20th annual Hospitality Design Exposition & Conference took place in May, attracting a record number of exhibitors
and attendees. Over 7,500 hospitality design professionals flocked to the Sands Expo & Convention Center in Las Vegas to join in a programme of conference sessions, site visits, and networking events. Keynote speaker Adam D. Tihany was the
star attraction in an on-stage interview with Hospitality Design magazine’s Editor-in-Chief Michael Adams. An engaging storyteller, Tihany told of his early days designing restaurants and the birth of the profession. His unique approach of studying the food to be served in the restaurant before putting pen to paper, has lead to designing spaces for celebrity chefs such as Heston Blumenthal, Daniel Boulud and Charlie Palmer. Tihany went on to talk of his current hospitality projects revealing that he is spearheading the restoration of Dorchester Collection’s Beverly Hills Hotel for its 100th anniversary, working in an extension of The Joule, Dallas, and redesigning The Oberoi, New Delhi, in a style that is described as a contemporary interpretation of Sir Edward Lutyens’ Indian influence and traditional Indian craftsmanship. Tihany is also working on his
eighth project for restaurateur Sirio Maccioni, soon to open in The Pierre, New York. Equally insightful was Rethinking the
Lobby: Creating a 24-7 Social Space, in which senior executives from international hotel groups presented their newly-implemented lobby spaces. Vito Lotta, Senior Director Design, Hilton Hotels, explained that lobbies are no longer about arrival and departure only. As part of its newly announced online tool Hilton Design Studio, the group has divided the lobby into eight zones which include spaces to work, rest and play. George Scammell, Vice President Global Design, Wyndham Worldwide, revealed that its lobby spaces aim to attract locals as well as the staying guest, while Eric Nicholas, Director Global Brand Management, Holiday Inn family of brands at IHG, applied the trend to the midscale market.
Other conference highlights included a
look at holistic spa design with ESPA founder and CEO Susan Harmsworth, and the well- attended Hotel Owners’ Roundtable, which allowed hospitality designers direct access to countless industry leaders and decision- makers to openly discuss trends, ideas and forecasts.
Site visits to The Cosmpolitan of Las Vegas, Bellagio and Mirage added another element to
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the programme and provided an opportunity for the groups behind the properties to showcase their latest designs. Evenings were filled with networking events, including HD’s own Party By The Pool held at Caesars Palace, soon to be the world’s first Nobu Hotel. On the show floor, 842 exhibitors filled more than 250,000ft2
with new products
designed for the contract hospitality market. Increased attendance reinforced the importance of the exhibition to the hospitality design community and lead to a buoyant show floor. Surfaces specialists 3form showcased four new designs including the modular wall treatment Edge; Mark David used its exhibition space to create two suites and a lobby designed to demonstrate its fine furnishings in situ; Architectural Systems presented Interwoven Eco-Panels, a 3D wallcovering in Walnut, Maple, or American Oak; and Humanscale showed its high- performance task chair, Diffrient World. Carpet manufacturers were at the forefront
of innovation with Brintons and Milliken both presenting collections woven in high definition technology. Brintons unveiled its newest collection, Dark Fairytale, designed in partnership with Stacy Garcia Inc, while Milliken showed Allumé, inspired by light. Innovation took centre stage with the
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