Hospitality Design - June/July 2021 - 8

from the editor
100 Broadway, 14th Floor, New York, New York 10005
guiding light
In 2004, as a young editor, I was asked to interview
the founders of AvroKO. The newly formed fi rm had just
won a couple of James Beard Awards for the design and
brand identity of New York restaurant PUBLIC, and I was
intrigued that it was a space they not only designed, but also
owned. Sitt ing down with the foursome-Kristina O'Neal,
Greg Bradshaw, Adam Farmerie, and William Harris-I
immediately knew that the college friends had a chemistry
that was special, and that this self-propelled project was the
beginning of journey that would benefi t us all.
Flash forward two decades, and not only have they
continued to craſt beautiful hospitality spaces and expand
their practice globally and into product design and
branding, but the partners have also helped move the industry forward with their out-of-thebox
ideas and processes (in our annual surveys, AvroKO is always voted as one of the three
most admired fi rms). Now they are opting to do more. Enter Hospitable Inc, a new division
that hopes to make the world a bett er place through the transformative power of hospitality.
One of the fi rst initiatives is Hospitable Bridge, an accelerator studio created to support
BIPOC/AAPI women entrepreneurs at a critical juncture in their business cycle.
The AvroKO partners are four of the 20 changemakers and big thinkers we profi le in
this year's People issue. They are among many in our industry who took the last year to
reevaluate, reinvent, and do bett er. Take Michael Chen. Pro bono work is nothing new for
the New York architect, but now he has created an offi cial outlet dubbed Design Advocates
dedicated to giving back. Meanwhile, Atlanta-based investor Kendra Plummer is helping
more Black people have the knowledge and resources to become hoteliers with her fi rm
Elise Capital and as a board member on She Has a Deal, which creates pathways to hotel
ownership for women through education, networking, and mentorship. It's a curated mix of
some incredible minds rethinking the status quo.
That's just the beginning. You will also meet a group of up-and-coming interior and
product designers that you should know, as well as a handful of the 100 speakers who will
off er insight and inspiration at the more than 30 conference sessions at this year's HD
Expo + Conference, August 24th-25th at Mandalay Bay Las Vegas (yes, in person). I have
never been so excited to get this industry back together! We just did our fi rst (albeit smaller)
CitySCENE event of the year in Chicago earlier this month, and the excitement of 200
people seeing each other face to face aſt er more than a year was overwhelming and magical.
Stacy Shoemaker Rauen
Editor in Chief/Senior Vice President, Design Group
Follow me on Instagram: @StacyRauen
hd editorial advisory board
Andrew Alford Andrew Alford Creative David Ashen dash design Jeffrey Beers Jeffrey Beers International Malcolm
Berg EoA Matthew Berman Workshop/APD Mark Boekenheide Las Vegas Sands Glen Coben Glen & Co. Meghann
Day HBA Gary Dollens Hyatt Sara Duffy Stonehill Taylor Deborah Lloyd Forrest ForrestPerkins Julie Frank Highgate
Hotels Timothy Griffi n Wellbrook Hospitality William Harris AvroKO Kemper Hyers Auberge Resorts Collection Amy
Hulbert Best Western International Tom Ito Gensler Gulla Jónsdóttir Gulla Jónsdóttir Architecture + Design Helen
Jorgensen Host Hotels & Resorts Jon Kastl Marina Bay Sands Aliya Khan Marriott International Raul Leal Virgin Hotels
Scott Lee SB Architects Jeremy Levitt Parts and Labor Tony Machado SH Hotels & Resorts Lisa McClung INT LLC
Margaret McMahon Wimberly Interiors Will Meyer Meyer Davis Julia Monk Hospitality Leader Alessandro Munge
Studio Munge Barry Nidiffer Barry Partners Lionel Ohayon ICRAVE Robert Polacek RoseBernard Studio Brian Quinn
Sonesta Adam Rolston INC Architecture & Design Lauren Rottet Rottet Studio Lisa Simeone Simeone Deary Design
Group Kellie Sirna Studio 11 Design Sam Suleman Equinox Hospitality Shawn Sullivan Rockwell Group Michael
Suomi Suomi Design Works Roger Thomas Roger Thomas Collection Larry Traxler Hilton Worldwide Audra Tuskes
Marriott International Sabine Vessnow Airbnb Joel Villalon BraytonHughes Design Studios Anne Wilkinson BAMO
editorial
STACY SHOEMAKER RAUEN < Editor in Chief
sshoemaker@hospitalitydesign.com
646.668.3751
JONATHAN MARSLAND < Creative Director
jmarsland@hospitalitydesign.com
646.668.3733
ALISSA PONCHIONE < Executive Editor
aponchione@hospitalitydesign.com
646.668.3749
KATIE KERVIN < Senior Managing Editor
kkervin@hospitalitydesign.com
646.668.3743
MATT DOUGHERTY < Associate Editor
mdougherty@hospitalitydesign.com
646.668.3728
WILL SPEROS < Associate Editor
wsperos@hospitalitydesign.com
646.668.3771
CAITLIN ST JOHN < Digital Editor
cstjohn@hospitalitydesign.com
646.668.3725
marketing + production
JENNIFER YARBER < Marketing Director
jennifer.yarber@emeraldx.com
770.291.5459
JACKSON SCHULTZ < Marketing Manager
jackson.schultz@emeraldx.com
770.291.5414
GRACE CASEY < Production Manager
grace.casey@emeraldx.com
646.668.3706
events
RACHEL LONG < Vice President, Content
rachel.long@emeraldx.com
813.785.8822
KARA KOBRZYCKI < Conference Director
kara.kobrzycki@emeraldx.com
770.291.5513
LAURA CASKEY < Senior Conference Manager
laura.caskey@emeraldx.com
770.291.5590
PAULINA GLOZMAN < Customer Success + Events Manager
pglozman@hospitalitydesign.com
646.668.3691
DERRICK NELLOMS < Operations Director
derrick.nelloms@emeraldx.com
770.291.5452
GANNON BROUSSEAU < Executive Vice President
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Hospitality Design - June/July 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Hospitality Design - June/July 2021
