NEXT MOVE

Leaders from the hotel industry help understand the implications of the pandemic on hospitality design and spot the difference between short-term fads and long-term trends

- RASHMI NAICKER

Let’s face it: we yet do not know how this crisis will play out, and therefore its implications on hospitality design remain just as uncertain.

But the one thing that’s for sure is that hospitality design will never look the same again. As architects and designers navigate a landscape changed forever by a worldwide pandemic, we look at how social distancing translates into hospitality design.

Experts opine that to navigate such a future, designers will need to take a transformational approach, one that embraces the spirit of continuous improvement and evolution, as the market evolves into the new normal.

To understand this journey, we’ve brought together industry leaders and professionals to map the landscape of hospitality design after the height of the pandemic. They help spot the difference between short-term fads and long-term trends with predictions that the pandemic will accelerate many hospitality design trends that were already in motion.

These include increased automation through robots and apps, demands for greater originality and escapism in design concepts, the decline of buffets and sharing concepts and pressure on housekeeping to maintain hygiene and safety.

• Gurmeet Singh, Sr. GM, Brigade Hospitality & Signature Club Resort.

• Ravi Sarangan, Director, Edifice Consultants

• Partha Banerjee, Projects Head, Park Hotels

• Indrani Tiwari, Director of Rooms, Vivanta New Delhi Dwarka

What has been the impact of the low-touch economy on hospitality design? Can you identify what will be the short-term fads and long-term trends?