Big interview Left: Rosewood
Residences Doha is the company’s upcoming fi ve-star Qatar venture.
Opposite: Rosewood’s Vienna Suite is one of many luxury options for guests.
prioritising privacy, safety and experiences more than ever before”. It is a fair point – and not just because the residential hotel market grew by 170% in 2020 and 230% in 2021, according to a report by Savills. Berry, after all, is a residential veteran, with over two decades of experience in the industry. During that time he has worked everywhere from Vancouver to Dubai, making his name at prestigious firms like Four Seasons. Last January, as the pandemic raged, Berry made his latest jump, becoming vice-president of global residential development at Rosewood. It is a match that feels entirely appropriate. Like Berry himself, this is a company on the move, with broad plans to radically alter how operators plan and build properties. Not that residential hospitality will be all those changes. Buoyed by the boom in long-stay residential properties, regular hotels could adapt too – with colossal consequences for hospitality.
In the house
He may have reached the pinnacle of residential hospitality just as his sector started soaring, but Berry still remembers how things used to be. “Up until 15 years ago there was primarily a handful of luxury hotel brands operating in this space,” he says, adding that Rosewood has been in the sector for over 20 years. Yet that relative stability has changed. “Recently,” he says, “we have seen an uptick in new brands, both at the luxury, lifestyle and mid-range market, entering the space due to demand.” Beyond that headline growth, this is certainly reflected by the numbers. According to research by Savills, for instance, global hospitality will boast over 900 residential projects by 2026, together encompassing well over 100,000 units. Much of this growth can be chalked down to the
pandemic. With lockdowns and social distancing transforming many into relative hermits, customers are looking for places they can relax in privacy. Berry
Hotel Management International /
www.hmi-online.com
also suggests that the “remote work trend” has punters thinking differently about where their primary residence actually is. Why commute to a chilly Wall Street if you can buy a suite at a luxury hotel in the Caribbean instead, safe in the knowledge that your bed will be made and your minibar restocked once you get back from dinner? With this scenario in mind, it should come as no surprise that opulent residential properties are particularly popular here. As Berry puts it, many customers are increasingly looking for experiences that “seamlessly blend the residential and luxury hotel experience”. As this last point implies, much of this growth would be impossible without hotel brands themselves. Though traditionally focused on short-term stays, many businesses are adding residential wings to new hotels – or even developing bespoke residential properties. Rosewood is ahead of the curve here, with 50% of its pipeline projects boasting a residential component. Even so, the Hong Kong giant is far from alone. Four Seasons, Fairmont and Ritz-Carlton are just three of the high-end brands boosting their residential stock, with Ritz-Carlton alone increasing its supply by 64%. And for Berry, this enthusiasm makes perfect sense. In a world where guests are increasingly discerning – 60% of Americans have higher hospitality expectations than before the pandemic, as stated in a report by SiteMinder – developers understand that branded residences lend credibility to a property in a way that non-branded alternatives never could.
Artist’s residence
When it opens, sometime in 2023, Rosewood Half Moon Bay will offer customers everything they might expect at home. That covers everything from private gardens to handsome stone-rimmed bathtubs and private plunge pools. The difference, of course, is the location. Rather than crouching in a plush suburb like Westchester or Weybridge, Half Moon Bay instead
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Rosewood Hotels and Resorts
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