Hospitality Design - August 2014 - 38

perspectives

sketchbook

cambria hotels & suites
> In an attempt to appeal to that everattractive Millennial customer, Cambria
Hotels & Suites is rolling out a new look.
"Millennials will outpace Boomers in four
to five years," in terms of travel, explains
Mike Murphy, senior vice president of
upscale brands for Choice Hotels. "It was a
combination of this customer evolution plus
the opportunities we see in the upscale tier of
the industry, which is rebounding well."
The rebrand was 100 percent data and
customer interview driven, looking at 140
experiential elements-from the F&B and
arrival experiences to the loyalty program.
The end result is a new prototype-conceived
in collaboration with Jonathan Nehmer +
Associates and Jacki Arena Interiors-meant
to make every person staying at a Cambria
feel like a high-value guest.
Upon entering, guests will be welcomed
by an open, inviting space, complete with a
standout light fixture and a reception desk

that's rounded to embrace the customer
instead of "placing the control behind the
desk," Murphy says. The lobby is now dubbed
the hangout, with a variety of seating options,
a fireplace, and a bar as the focal point, acting
as a coffeehouse by day and bar at night with
high-quality small plate options.
The biggest area of transformation, says
Murphy, is the guestroom. "There's a sense
of spaciousness. It feels like an upgrade," he
says. Gone are the dresser, sofa chairs, heavy
draperies, and PTAC units. They have been
replaced with window daybeds, "the sleeper
sofa of tomorrow," says Murphy, a spa-like
bath, and a headboard that does double-duty
as a desk. "What I learned over the last 30
years is that if you feel uncomfortable with
what designers created for you, that's a good
thing," explains Murphy. "After I walked the
model room with our CEO, he said, 'I am not
sure that works for me.' I said, 'Perfect, it's not
designed for you.'"

Photography by JIM WESTPHALEN

topnotch resort

> Perched on a hillside in Stowe, Vermont,
Topnotch Resort "has a phenomenal
setting and one of the best views of Mount
Mansfield of all the hotels, restaurants,
and bars in the area," says Kim Deetjen,
principal at locally based TruexCullins,
which has executed numerous design
projects for the resort over the last
decade. For the latest in a phased
renovation, the firm completed an addition
to the hotel that included the portecochère, lobby, and a new bar/café area,
the Roost.
Creating a design that celebrated

038

August 2014 hospitalitydesign.com

the setting and the spectacular views was paramount for Deetjen and
TruexCullins associate Keith Nelson. "We were influenced by the
precedence set by European models of towns and villages," he says, "and
how they organically use the topography and landscape that surrounds
them to create an intimate scale." The team created continuity with a
natural materials palette referencing the landscape that begins when
guests first enter and can smell the aroma from the woodburning
fireplace located in the casual lobby bar and lounge-which is complete
with a custom shuffleboard table and bird-shaped light fixtures
(including handmade bird house
lanterns by another of the firm's
principals, Rolf Kielman).
The bluestone pavers that appear
in the parking lot continue into the
floors of the lobby and lounge; the
bar's floor and some parts of the walls
and ceiling are clad in reclaimed
walnut and white oak; and a natural
zinc material, used on some of the
buildings' exteriors, appears again
behind the concierge and surrounding
the bar. "The intent is a minimal
transition so that it feels completely
natural to go from exterior to interior,"
Deetjen says.
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