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/ BUILDING DIALOGUE / DECEMBER 2014
Hotel Design and the Experience Economy
H
otel design continues to change at an ex-
ponential rate. Historically, hotels have
played an important role in the agrari-
an, industrial and information economies. Ho-
tel design must now respond to the “experience
economy” to maintain and expand its value. Like
Apple Stores and Cirque du Soleil, the new hotel
must offer something more visceral than a prod-
uct or a service. It must offer experiences so com-
pelling as to generate new demand and economic
value.
In the past, when the economy was based on ag-
riculture and industry, the hotel played a key role
as the center of the community. It was “the” des-
tination on Saturday night, Sunday afternoon and
for weekly community meetings. But hotels are los-
ing this identity as the industry becomes commod-
itized, franchised and overbranded. Hotels now risk
losing their position as the experiential, social and
romantic epicenter of the community.
In his prophetic 1980s book “Megatrends,” JohnNais-
bitt suggested that the more technological human in-
teraction becomes, the more important personal and
social experiences will become. Urbanites in the new
millennium thrive on vitality, “high-touch” choices
for social hiving and personal experiences.
To energize revenue and employment growth,
experiences must be created as a distinct form of
economic activity. In a world saturated with undif-
ferentiated goods and services, the greatest oppor-
tunity for value creation is experiential.
Thanks to Bill Kimpton, Ian Schrager, Chip Conley
Jim Johnson
Principal,
JG Johnson
Architects
Custom Creations Photography
Guest bath at the Crawford Hotel at Denver Union
Station.
TRENDS
in Hotel Design
