Ms. Willis

Furniture, Fixtures & Equipment

How To Select The Right Designer For Your Hotel

By Kalen Willis, Senior Interior Designer, Hatchett Hospitality

Buying furniture, fixtures, and equipment (FF&E) always involves difficult choices – and the first one is choosing the right designer.

But exactly how do you know which design professional is right for your project?

Three key factors can lead to a decision that has you feeling confident and comfortable:

• Experience
• Credentials
• Personality

Experience

While interior designers are familiar with fabrics, colors, lighting, and textures – the skills that are needed for “decorating” – they must also know about a wide variety of structural elements such as architecture, building codes, fire codes, plus electrical and HVAC systems. They’re part artist and part engineer.

All this makes interior design a very specialized and very holistic function – it encompasses a “whole building process,” especially as hotels become more sophisticated, as government regulations become more demanding, and as owners want properties to reflect their tastes and values.

Consider a designer who has done projects similar to yours – in size and scope as well as in brand and target audience. For example, familiarity with brand requirements and procedures will greatly facilitate the submission of your plans and paperwork, especially the process of making changes and compromises.

You want a designer who can bring design decisions to life in a realistic manner, without overspending and without sacrificing quality. Carefully review a comprehensive portfolio of photographs from recent projects to be sure colors, furniture, and accessories work together effectively in a coordinated “look” – and ask detailed questions about how the individual performed in staying on schedule and within budget.

The answers will help show you if a designer knows not only what to shop for, but where to shop. For example, if your designer has a strong rapport with vendors in many different product categories, you will benefit – with convenient, informed “one stop shopping” as well as with enhanced purchasing power.

Still another issue to consider: what type of service staff can the designer access for handling details such as product shipping, installation, and warranties. Your best option is a combination of “inside” customer support staff, as well as field personnel strategically located geographically close to your property.

Ultimately, the single most important qualification is reputation, so be sure to ask the designer for references from the owners and vendors associated with recent projects. Check these credentials, of course, but also check the person’s credentials with your franchiser as well as with trusted industry colleagues and associations.

You should also conduct an internet search to review the kind of media coverage the individual or the firm have received.

Credentials

Designers, like professionals in many other specialized service fields, are expected to achieve certain levels of education and maintain certain certification or professional memberships.

For example, several colleges around the country offer degrees and courses of study that focus specifically on various aspects of design. There are also many fine programs at reputable design schools. Ask about your candidate’s educational background, then check out the institution’s credentials.

Also inquire about any licenses or association memberships – such as having passed the exam of the National Council for Interior Design Qualification (NCIDQ) and belonging to the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID), the International Interior Design Association (IIDA), The Network of the Hospitality Industry (NEWH), or certain state associations.

Personality

You’re going to partner with your interior designer on an almost daily basis over a period of many months in making hundreds of decisions and thousands of dollars in purchases, so it’s important that you can work closely and effectively together.

You want a designer that is firm yet flexible -- firm on issues such as accountability, responsiveness, attention to detail, and meeting bottom-line results, yet flexible on such issues as the ability to collaborate, to handle changing deadlines and priorities, and to go “the extra mile.”

At the heart of this successful relationship is communication that is complete, candid, and continuous. While the communication must be two-way, it begins with an owner sharing three vital pieces of information: his or her (1) vision, (2) budget, and (3) expectations.

The vision is your idea for the finished “look and feel” for the property. Designers typically are visually-oriented, so explain and give directions not just with words but also with sketches and photos. For example, save pictures from magazines or from the internet of properties and of design treatments that show what you really like – or really dislike.

Don’t just assume that the designer is properly hearing what you are saying – at regular intervals during your conversation, ask the designer to summarize your main ideas and comment on how he or she would implement them. This isn’t meant as an insult or a test, but rather as a way of confirming that you and the designer understand each other.

The budget is a roadmap of how you expect your money to be spent – and the amount you have to spend will obviously affect the finished design, as well as the design process itself. Most designers are comfortable working within established budgetary parameters, so they typically will appreciate having specific guidelines as the basis for their selections and for their accountability.

However, after you explain your budget, be sure your designer can live within the allocated amount without sacrificing quality or design objectives – and check about any suggestions for possibly achieving certain cost savings through alternative products or procedures.

The discussion of expectations should be about more than just the physical results of the project – it should be about the design process, namely, what you expect the designer to provide to you, when, and in what format. By agreeing on procedures and on timelines – in other words, by managing expectations – the owner and the designer will eliminate stress and reduce miscommunication.

Putting It All Together

Consider these additional tips:

• Every hotel brand focuses on slightly different details and requirements in its FF&E package. You want a designer who is familiar with your flag, but who will still represent your interests as the owner.
• You also want a designer with a proven reputation for being thorough, dependable, cost-effective, and a good communicator. Get references – and if possible, visit some of the properties that the person has designed and furnished.
• As part of your evaluation, ask candidates to name the manufacturers they usually use – and why. The answers you receive should include the advantages and disadvantages of various manufacturers, including such factors as reliability, shipping costs, craftsmanship, durability, and pricing.
• While there is no hard rule of thumb, a good designer and purchasing company can extend your original budget by 10% to 20% – plus considerably reduce your headaches and sleepless nights.
• You want a designer who can bring your design decisions to life in a realistic manner – without overspending and without sacrificing quality. It is your designer’s job to make sure all colors, furniture, and accessories will work together effectively in specific areas of the hotel, as well as throughout the property as a whole; it is then your FF&E supplier’s job to obtain all these items within your deadlines and budget.
• To make your project go as smoothly as possible, find a designer who is part of a company that provides one-stop “turnkey” service for the four stages of FF&E – design, purchasing, transportation, and installation. It’s preferable that the company performs these services in-house, without sub-contracting them to other vendors.

After you’ve evaluated and deliberated and decided, the right designer should add value to your hotel project in five important ways:

• Brings an objective “outside” viewpoint to the assignment – despite a vested interest in the project, the designer can remain less emotional than the owner in making observations, recommendations, and decisions
• Contributes unique experience and perspective – based on knowledge learned from problems and solutions similar to yours
• Has the expertise to “get it right” the first time – perhaps that means ordering the proper furniture to save you time, money, and most importantly, down time or perhaps its adding an architectural element to create a “wow” effect
• Has established relationships and ongoing conversations with franchisers as well as with vendors – this means you can get the answers you need when you need them for that special problem or request
• Address subjects such as:
comfort – select furniture and lighting plus create space and acoustic configurations that maximize comfort
health – ensure an environmentally-sensitive area that ensures good air quality and a clean look
security and safety – assure that a property protects guests from man-made and natural hazards
reliability – support the hotel with efficient, state-of-the-art heating, ventilating, air-conditioning (HVAC) systems, plus other equipment that requires little maintenance, experiences minimal loss of service, and uses less energy
technological connectivity – facilitates easy and complete communication for all guests in multiple hotel locations, from public space to guest rooms, while having the flexibility to adapt the property to future technology improvements

We value smart technology such as smart phones, smart pads, and smart cards because these devices are intelligent, versatile, and connected. It is these same qualities that characterize smart hotel design – and that you should look for when selecting a smart hotel designer!

At Hatchett Hospitality, Kalen Willis specializes in interior design for the hotel industry, with responsibility for project design, pricing, and management. She works with franchisers and franchisees on a wide variety of hotel brands, styles, and themes – from economy to luxury, from resort to business conference, and from traditional to modern. Her approach to the design of a project is driven by the target audience and by the end-use of the space. She believes that beautiful surroundings enhance our state of mind and enrich our lives. Ms. Willis can be contacted at 866-783-5980 or kalen.willis@hatchetthospitality.com Extended Bio...

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