Travelers and city dwellers have become more discerning as far as the design, the style and function of a place is concerned, with this new level of taste elevated by social media. Hotels or condotels that are appealing to the selfie generation – from the check-in desk to the lobby and other facilities – will always win hands down because they provide the background that is most shareable on social networking sites.
As a favorite tourist and business destination, the Philippines’ hospitality and residential businesses are bustling, with successive groundbreaking, construction, renovation, and launches of more places to call home, no matter how temporary or permanent. Each new establishment that opens is even more impressive or innovative than the last.
“It’s all about the experience now, especially for today’s discerning visitors,” explains Norman Agleron, director of world-renowned hospitality design firm Hirsch Bedner Associates’ (HBA) Philippine Design Office. “Being aware of their target market’s shifts in preferences and their familiarity with global trends, the hospitality businesses know they need to deliver in order to stay relevant and counted among the top destinations,” he adds.
Established in Los Angeles, California, HBA has been a consistent top choice, having been able to create brand-strengthening moods, scenes, and experiences for several top hotels, resorts, residential buildings, and business establishments worldwide.
“There is a lot more involved than many realize, to put together a resort, a hotel, or one’s home; to be able to visually captivate and transport anyone who walks in, and to bring a sense of whatever it is they want infused in the venue. What our company is known for is our concept-driven approach to design. We listen to what our clients want and need, and we check this against the location and the architecture,” Agleron says.
In Manila, HBA’s projects include the recently opened Shangri-La at the Fort in Bonifacio Global City, Inagiku and Sage Bar in Makati Shangri-La, and the soon-to-open Mercure Hotel Manila in Ermita.
Agleron – who has over 20 years of international design experience in hospitality, retail, high-end residences, architecture and construction including notable work in award-winning projects such as The Fullerton Singapore, The Four Seasons Jakarta, and The Siam Kempinski in Bangkok – looks forward to leading the Manila design office in BGC in offering world-class design consultancy services to hotels and operators in the country and throughout Asia. Having spent several years overseas, he considers the move back to the Philippines a privilege, “especially because of the booming hospitality landscape along with the unprecedented growth in the Philippine economy.”
The Philippine office belongs to the over 21 offices of HBA around the globe, with more than 85 percent of its employees now outside the United States. HBA’s international presence, combined with its extensive knowledge of the interior design industry, has facilitated the ability to rewrite the language of design with each new project.
“What each of our client’s gets, apart from the service and intuitive design and work excellence we have been known for, is access to the specialties of the other HBA global offices,” Agleron says.
For more on the design firm and its projects, visit www.hba.com.