An Interview with Nile Tuzun
The BLLA Events Team sits down with Nile as she prepares to speak at the 2021 Boutique Hotel Investment Conference.
How did you come to enter the hospitality industry?
While I was in architecture school, during the summers, I started interning at WATG, one of the most prestigious hospitality design firms with an impressive portfolio of hospitality projects. This was my first exposure to the hospitality industry from a hotel creation point of view. After graduation, I was offered a permanent position with WATG where I was designing hotels all over the world and in the US. Later in my career, I was recruited by Fairmont Hotels and Resorts International as the director of design and construction for the Americas designing hotels for the hotel operator making sure the intended design was able to function properly for hotel operations. Since then, I have been working side by side with hotel owners and developers as their creative director bringing their hotel projects to life.
What design changes have you seen over the years that boutique hotels have had a big influence on?
Boutique hotels have always been great at telling stories through design. Good hoteliers know that a good narrative is a must when it comes to selling rooms. Owners, operators, and marketing directors all want to hear a compelling story because a good narrative generates media coverage and goes viral on social media. It becomes a self fulfilling prophecy. Boutique hotels have a sense of history, sense of place, culture, experience, and cool crowd following which attracts onto itself. In their design, boutique hotels feel cozy and personal yet they are innovative by identifying, pinpointing and understanding the needs of their guests. Boutique hotels use natural light and natural materials whenever possible. They incorporate biophilic design by including curvy patterns found in nature into the design of carpets and furnishings. Boutique hotels pay attention to how people move through space and create areas of refuge, where guests can feel private and protected. Communal areas are just as important where socializing is encouraged. These ideas are similar to the design thinking when creating private homes. Boutique hotels also celebrate their creators, owners and designers to give it that important extra layer of connection to the property, hence the authentic experience that the sophisticated traveler is looking for.
Do you see your role changing after the pandemic as far as how you interact with hoteliers that are renovating or doing ground up development?
My role as a hospitality designer and a storyteller is to be adaptable and flexible in the way we approach our clients and hoteliers. The pandemic was a great disruptor for the hospitality industry but no matter what the times bring or what changes we must encounter in our industry, our role is first and foremost to be adaptable to these changes and to be good communicators. That said, it is business as usual for us.
What are you hearing out there about investment in the boutique hotel sector?
Investment in boutique hotels is still among the most profitable hospitality investments. Especially after the pandemic, I see this to be more true. More and more investors are preferring to invest in boutique hotels as they see the amount of additional revenue it takes to justify a big name hotel brand and realizing that this does not necessarily ensure a successful project. Properties with excellent locations where demand is present do not need to rely on generic marketing efforts of chain hotels but rather attract and retain their guests through personalized and unique experiences. Boutique hotels prosper when they are tailored to their location. Boutique hotels are trending as travelers are seeking the authentic experience of living where they are visiting. I see this trending continuing in the future. The hotel traveler is looking for a different kind of experience more now than ever which makes boutique hotels even more attractive investments for hoteliers.
Why are you excited to speak at the 2021 Boutique Hotel Investment Conference by BLLA?
BLLA is a unique association which brings like minded individuals, executives and creatives who are die-hard believers of the boutique movement in the hospitality industry. I am excited to have this great opportunity to speak at the 2021 Boutique Hotel Investment Conference by BLLA so that I can re-connect, re-energize, share and get re-inspired by what boutique lifestyle and hospitality means for us die-hards.
What does boutique mean to you?
I believe in the boutique movement because boutique represents consciously curated, authentic and intentional experiences that uplift, encourage and energize the human spirit. 'Boutique' is a lifestyle, an attitude. It is memorable, genuine, intimate and special. Boutique is a feeling, kind of like 'magic' when you know you connect with something at a soul level and the future is all about the 'soul'.