Hospitality Design - November 2018 - 16

from the guest editor

monumental talent
Photo by CHAD BATKA

When you create a new business, there

are three principle paths of opportunity: You can do
something based on providing great service, something
based on achieving the excellent and efficient execution of
your business model, or something that's truly innovative
and original. I respect people who are great at the first
two, but what interests and attracts me are the people who
come up with something that hasn't been done before.
These 11 innovators think outside the box, dare to take on
the status quo, and advance society.
Jacques Herzog and Pierre de Meuron have been
my architects of choice for many years now. They are
absolutely brilliant and one of a kind. What makes them so special is they don't have a
signature look. They do something inventive and different every time, offering tailored
solutions for each project. Their intellect and worldly vision continue to amaze me.
John Pawson is uniquely talented, and I love his work. It's restrained, elegant,
powerful, subtle, and without artifice. There is not a wasted or superfluous gesture. It was
funny, I originally went to John, who is known as the consummate minimalist, and said
I want something simple and pure, but not something that can be considered or labeled
as minimal. Since then, we have worked together many times and have become very
good friends.
Ole Scheeren is an adventurous yet thoughtful architect with distinctive ideas. He
worked on the CCTV tower in China, which is unlike anything ever done before. This
reinvention of the skyscraper deeply resonated with me. When you work with him, you
know the result will be something exciting and innovative.
Arne Sorensen is probably the one man in my life, other than my father, who has
had the biggest influence on me. He is as smart (or smarter) than anyone I've ever
known, thoughtful, and a gracious gentleman who is always curious. He is a modernday Renaissance man with the gift of temperance, balance, and razor-sharp judgment.
Everybody was skeptical about EDITION and our partnership, but since the beginning,
Arne believed in it and in me, and was ready to rethink and reinvent the hotel space.
Developers Liran Wizman and Eduardo Alié Zanini are both interested in doing
something special. It is always a fight to achieve something that stands out from the
crowd. You have to have a development partner who is willing to go to battle alongside
you, and Liran and Eduardo have that same commitment to excellence that we do.
Jason Atherton and Jean-Georges Vongerichten are not only immensely talented, but
they aren't married to one type of cuisine-a rare breed. They are the antithesis of the
brilliant chef as a diva, which is why I've chosen to work with them time and time again.
They are lovely people, easy to work with, and adventurous risk takers.
Norma Kamali floated into Studio 54 in the late 1970s wearing one of her draped
creations, braids in her hair, a real cowboy saddle handbag, and cowboy boots. Since then,
she's become a lifelong friend and sounding board for me, and is one of the most creative
people I know. She's as innovative in her work now as she's ever been. If you know
Norma, that wouldn't surprise you; she has always marched to the beat of her own drum.
It's difficult to find people in the nightlife business who don't look like vampires
during the day and are well liked-it's a hard business and it usually consumes the people
in it. Ben Pundole is a rare exception: He is intelligent, enthusiastic, and creative. He
knows the nuances of nightlife inside and out, and he's not afraid to break the rules. He is
an effective manager, with a full plate of approximately 100 different facilities.
Whether it's hotels, design, culture, entertainment, fashion, theater, film, or music,
innovation is what separates the men from the boys and the women from the girls. If
you're not going to innovate and lead people to something they don't even know they need
or want, there's no point in doing it.

-Ian Schrager

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November 2018 hospitalitydesign.com

Hospitality Design Exposition &
Conference (HD Expo)
May 15-17, 2019
Mandalay Bay Convention Center, Las Vegas
hdexpo.com
Contact us:
1145 Sanctuary Parkway, Suite 355
Alpharetta, Georgia 30009
770.291.5400
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jonathan.marsland@emeraldexpo.com
646.668.3733
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keeli.schmidt@emeraldexpo.com
770.291.5433
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jana.roesch@emeraldexpo.com
770.291.5604
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770.291.5513
LAURA CASKEY < Conference Manager
laura.caskey@emeraldexpo.com
770.291.5590
JENNIFER YARBER < Marketing Director
jennifer.yarber@emeraldexpo.com
770-291-5459
JACKSON SCHULTZ < Marketing Coordinator
jackson.schultz@emeraldexpo.com
770.291.5414
DERRICK NELLOMS < Senior Operations Manager
derrick.nelloms@emeraldexpo.com
770.291.5452
JOE RANDALL < Executive Vice President
joe.randall@emeraldexpo.com
770.291.5454

PHILIP EVANS
Interim President and CEO
BILL CHARLES
Chief Information Officer
DAVID GOSLING
Senior Vice President, General
Counsel and Secretary
LORI JENKS
Senior Vice President,
Operations

JOANNE WHEATLEY
Senior Vice President,
Marketing Services
DAVE SUNDERLAND
Senior Vice President,
Finance
EILEEN DEADY
Vice President, Human
Resources

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Hospitality Design - November 2018

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