Entries for SBID International Design Awards 2023 are Open

Click here to discover the last year's SBID Awards winners!

Visit sbidawards.com for more information.

In this week's interview with SBID Awards Product Design judge and Director of Design at IHG, Henry Reeve talks about the most important design and functional aspects of hotel interiors, key product specifications that influence choice and shares his personal sources of inspiration.

How can interior design influence greater guest experiences in hotel environments?

Good Interior Design I feel can make or break a guest experience. You need both form and function, yes of course we want to wow our guests with incredible atmospheres rich in detail and finesse but there is little point creating a spectacular environment if the space just doesn’t ‘work’. It's easy to create that spaces that impress but are poorly equipped or ill-thought through and don’t accommodate guests needs and functions. I think one of the most important aspects of hospitality interior design is to ensure our guest don’t ever feel stupid. Our guests are in an unfamiliar environment, and we want them to feel at home, to relax and unwind. Designs must be intuitive, how many times has one had to desperately search for the light switch, or struggle to find a plug socket or worse cant find the wardrobe!

How do you approach product specification for hospitality projects? What are your key considerations?

Specifying product particularly recently has become even more tricky,  there is a wealth of options out there but so many factors go towards influencing choice, yes of course shape and form but external factors are now more than ever influencing specification, lead times, environmental impact, over-use and of course cost are playing a huge role.

Why is product innovation so essential for the interior design sector, and how can we expect the relationship between manufacturers and designers to evolve going forward?

Constant innovation is mandatory in this sector, the world is moving fast and constantly looking to what’s next. Environmental factors are becoming ever more influential on both consumer choices and economic too. I feel this will become in time a far more important aspect of specification than it perhaps once was. Product life-cycle too is something I am interested to see how the wider industry addresses, how is product recycled/re-used when coming to the end of its life?

What inspires you both professionally and personally?

Inspiration comes from anywhere, but I must admit that Travel is certainly one source of inspiration to me that I am thrilled is now possible once again. To experience how different cultures use spaces opens ones eyes to new possibilities.

Finally, what advice can you give to designers entering the SBID Awards?

Put your best work forward, ensure photography is exemplar and try to explain your work in a succinct way. I look forward to seeing some wonderful entries!

Questions answered by Henry Reeve, Director of Design, IHG.

In this week's interview with SBID Awards Product Design judge, Maria Vafiadis discusses the compatibility of luxury design and sustainability, addresses the unique challenges between designing private residences and hotels, and shares her views on repurposing in the industry.

How would you define luxury today? Is it compatible with sustainability?

The luxury experience today is defined by space and how this space encourages us to make time for rejuvenation. This is one reason why many resorts and hotels are choosing to create standalone villas, cottages and treehouses where guests can quietly share time with family and friends and engage with the natural world.

Our new luxury values are increasingly compatible with sustainability. Government regulation, the marketability of eco-destinations, consumer demand and evidence that guests will pay a premium for experiences that respond to environmental and local community issues are coming together in a union which is already having an impact on hospitality. We are seeing a new, more thoughtful attitude to what luxury means together with a growing desire among owners and consumers to be better custodians of our planet’s resources.

How different are your priorities when you are designing a private residence versus a hotel?

My single focus when designing a private residence is the owner and his/her family. It is all about the owner’s aspiration and the family’s way of life, and the end result should reflect their personalities. By contrast, hotel design has several parties to please – the owner, the operator and, of course, the guest. As a hotel designer, it’s key to create a narrative as the wellspring for the guest experience while you also have to respond to an array of commercial and operational realities.

In your opinion, which offers the more interesting design opportunity – renovating a much-loved historic hotel or creating a new one?

It depends so much on the client and their aspiration; we have had amazing experiences working on both. Take for example Costa Navarino in Greece. It’s difficult to believe now but when we began our work on this resort it was no more than a bold vision to achieve a luxury destination which would celebrate the heritage and natural world of Messinia. It felt truly meaningful to work from a blank slate and create a new hospitality benchmark in the region.

Several years later, we were appointed on the recreation of The Burgenstock Resort in Switzerland. In its heyday, this had been a glamorous and pioneering destination and it was our task to take this legacy forward into a new era. This was a project that involved repurposing, refurbishment, extensions and new buildings. Its strapline ‘The Future has a Past’ was fascinating to honour and reflect in our work.

I must admit that I do enjoy delving into the past, discovering what was there and helping it to flourish again by combining the old and the new. We have just had a wonderful opportunity to do this in creating Matild Palace Budapest, a Luxury Collection Hotel. The lifestyle of the Archduchess of Austria who commissioned the original building was our inspiration and we wove our narrative around her imagined presence in the new hotel.

What are your priorities in making FF&E selections for your projects?

We love to work with artisanal and locally sourced products and, since sustainability is high on our agenda, we are always interested in re-purposed items. We believe in the inherent beauty of natural materials, tactility and in products that are well-made – longevity of things is one of the greatest gifts we can bestow on our planet.

You have recently published a book called Design Alchemist. What was the thinking behind this title?

At MKV, we believe in the power of design to affect behaviour and elicit emotion. This requires design that combines location, culture, history and modern life in any number of contextual stories which we tell. When they come together in the right balance for the particular project, alchemy results and a kind of chemistry is released between the space and its users.

Cover image: Alpine Spa, Burgenstock Resort

Questions answered by Maria Vafiadis, Founder & Managing Director, MKV Design.

SBID is excited to introduce a new weekly blog series - the Judges' Interviews - in which, leading up to the 2022 SBID Awards ceremony, you will get to meet and find out more about the people who will be evaluating the contestants' projects this year!

In this week's interview with SBID Awards Product Design judge; design advisor & founder of Habitus Design Group, Samantha Drummond discusses her views on the hospitality sector, what innovations are needed in those spaces and how hospitality design can shape the guest experience.

How would you define the power of design?

Design is a means to problem solving. In a hospitality setting, this begins with understanding the customers', as well as the client's, needs and aspirations and from this developing a framework for concept development, innovation and creativity. Such an approach is as much linked to strategy as it is to aesthetics. Yes of course the look and feel are important but what matters even more is how the design makes guests feel. Are they at ease? Is their curiosity aroused while their sense of belonging is stimulated? Will the memories they take away with them convert family and friends into your next guests? Design has the power to evoke emotions, to change the way people experience a space and to encourage them to stay longer.

You design both extraordinarily large resorts and boutique, single-purpose hospitality destinations. How would you compare the challenges?

In fact, the creation of large resorts and small hospitality destinations face many similar challenges. All projects, regardless of size, require the same fundamental disciplines.

However, one thing that is different is that the larger the project, the larger the team and therefore more people management is required, sometimes internationally across different time zones. Also, it’s often the case that larger projects have more aggressive deadlines in order to achieve completion on multiple spaces simultaneously.

How do you use design to shape the guest experience?

Hospitality design is a wonderful opportunity to create a stage for guests to live a charmed life during their stay. We aim to craft experiences that make guests feel glamorous, special and cherished. There are many elements that go into the design mix but I do think lighting is very important in shaping the experience as are unexpected surprises – a beautiful repurposed item for example or curated collections of books and, of course, bespoke artwork. Such things help guests connect emotionally, add layers of meaning and create memories.

What inspires you both professionally and personally?

So much inspires me – I think that’s the nature of being a designer... food, art, music, craftmanship, the natural world. In my work, I love to take on an empty building, a vacant plot of land or even nothing more than a vision in the client’s mind. That’s when I really have to use my imagination to come up with something genuine which hasn’t been done before while also engaging my Advisory head and making a sound business case for my proposal.

There is also the ‘who’ inspires me and here I have been so lucky. From my extraordinary clients who have taught me so much about business over the years to the many world-acclaimed architects, designers, artists and chefs I have been privileged to collaborate with. They have all been an inspiration.

Do you think there are any hospitality sectors that would particularly benefit from product innovation?

Wellness is a sector that is constantly evolving in terms of treatments, new experiences and now the wide offering from pampering to medical interventions, mind and body wellbeing. I am sure there is opportunity for product innovation here. I also think that in the aftermath of the pandemic, “working from alternative locations” has become a way of life and the hotel bedroom desk could be ripe for a renaissance. However, this will not be as before. An innovative approach to resolving the room’s working space is definitely called for.

Cover image: Private Residence, Denmark

Questions answered by Samantha Drummond, Design Advisor & Founder, Habitus Design Group.

In this week's interview with 2021 SBID Awards winners of the Interior Fittings category, Finfort, discuss the complexity of their product, share tips on creating convenient and consumer-focused products, as well as the key considerations to have in mind when approaching the specification of security solutions.

How important is it to enter the SBID Awards & receive industry recognition for your work? What are the benefits?

Entering the ‘SBID Awards’ was without a doubt, the best decision Finfort made in 2021!  The ‘SBID Awards’ recognise and celebrate the value of design and innovation - so having launched our innovative range of elegant high security door locks with automatic deadbolts in 2020, we were naturally very keen to be part of it. The awards also provided the perfect opportunity for us to proudly showcase our exciting new designs to the interior design industry.

We were thrilled to discover our FinBolt Triple Door Lock set won the SBID Product Design Award for the interior fittings category.  Not only did the award help boost our credibility as authentic and trusted innovators, but it also demonstrated the high-end quality of our products whilst providing an invaluable level of media exposure. This really helped us gain traction as an emerging brand.

What do you think made this particular design an award winner?

The FinBolt lock is a major innovation in door security, combining ultra-safe convenience and beautiful craftsmanship. The award winning FinBolt Triple Door Set makes it possible to secure a door at multiple points, with independently operating locks which automatically deadbolt every time the door is closed. With the FinBolt lock, busy homeowners never need to worry about whether they’ve locked their doors properly again! Once the door is closed, it’s totally secure - without ever needing to turn a key! Not only is it functional, but it’s aesthetically pleasing, with the FinBolt Triple Door Set proving high security doesn’t have to mean ugly! FinBolt’s visible door furniture is boastfully sleek, elegant and complimentary of any door. We think it’s this combination of beautiful aesthetics and unparalleled functional delivery that makes this a standout product.

Tell us about the product development process behind FinBolt. How do you use architectural expertise and technical knowledge to produce effective security products/mechanisms?

As with all our products, we’re proud to start with the needs of the consumer. In this case, a need for convenient high-end security was our starting point. When our co-founder (and architect) Timothy Finn couldn’t find a recessed automatic deadbolt for a client who was always too busy to lock his door properly, he engaged his passion for engineering and set about designing it himself!

Product development involved several iterations of designing, patent application, prototyping and testing to ensure the product worked flawlessly and also conformed to the rigorous British standards. We’re particularly proud that the FinBolt is manufactured in the UK, leveraging expert craftsmanship and the very best of British engineering.

We will also always be committed to refining our designs to perfection, so we sought technical feedback from 100s of locksmiths, by exhibiting prototypes at the Master Locksmith Association Expo Trade Shows in 2019, and we were both thrilled and honoured to receive their ‘Best Product Award’.  We were grateful to have also collaborated with The Guild of Architectural Ironmongers, who provided valuable input on the technical challenge of offering bespoke finishes!

Ultimately, key to producing an effective security mechanism is a consistently reliable automatic deadbolt – something we’ve managed to achieve through our patented ‘trigger and bolt’ balanced action, together with a high-security cylinder and key registration.

From a client perspective, what are the key considerations a designer should have in mind when approaching the specification of security solutions?

It’s simple…high-security, user convenience and an aesthetic fit.

There are several high-security door locks available on the market (look for the ‘British Standard’ certification); however, very few deliver the convenience of automatic locking whilst fitting the aesthetics of a classic British door. Think about the average homeowner for a moment – busy people with busy lifestyles. There’s little value in installing high-security manual locks which require specific effort to secure, each and every time you want to leave the house. It’s inevitable that you’ll forget at some stage, leaving your home and its contents vulnerable. Furthermore, your door can set the aesthetic tone for the rest of your home, so door furniture and finish is critically important. Even a slight mismatch of colour will ruin the overall impact and leave homeowners frustrated. This is why all six FinBolt finishes have been perfectly colour matched to the extensive M. Marcus Heritage Brass Ironmongery range for a stunning and perfectly matched finish.

Now that you’ve won an SBID Award, what are the next steps? Is there anything new you are excited to be working on?

Since the SBID Awards last October, we’ve been collaborating with Avocet ABS (our cylinder supplier) to increase the range of standard finishes we can offer to our customers. The FinBolt Triple Door Set with 3 star kitemarked cylinders from Avocet ABS will shortly be available in 6 finishes, which includes the very popular Antique Brass and Matt Bronze. We’re very excited to now be seeing our ethos of bringing security and style together, coming to fruition!

We also have two new product designs underway: a fire-tested automatic deadbolt lock for apartment doors, and a high security lock case that integrates the FinBolt automatic deadbolt with smart handles, combining the ease of smart keyless entry, with mechanical automatic deadbolting!

What advice can you give to young designers starting out in the design industry?

Keep the needs and wants of the ultimate end-user at the forefront of your mind, whilst aiming for that perfect balance between function and aesthetics! There will always be an appetite for convenient, beautiful designs which enhance people’s lives. Product design (especially highly technical design) can be arduous and requires tenacity to really challenge the status quo and find better, aesthetically pleasing solutions which ultimately satisfy the consumer.

Questions answered by Timothy Finn, Founder, and Hilary Duggan, Co-Founder, Finfort.

In this week's interview with 2021 SBID Awards Winner Lalique, UK Managing Director, Frederick Fischer explores the effort and craftsmanship that goes into creating their products, and dives into the company's values and work processes.

How important is it to enter the SBID Awards and receive industry recognition for your work?

It is very important and an honour for us to achieve recognition from our esteemed industry peers in such a beautiful and enjoyable setting at such a well organised event. Aside from the obvious accolade for which we are extremely grateful – particularly to everyone who took the time to vote, it assures our design teams and hugely talented craftsmen and women in our factory in Alsace that what they are producing and creating is the very best. It also of course helps when we are speaking to clients and customers from across the world to say a piece has been celebrated in this way.

What do you think made this particular design an award winner?

The Cactus coffee table is a reimagined classic design first created in 1951. It is a beautiful, timeless and strong design that embodies the creative genius and unique expertise of our design masters.

In order to participate in the creation of the Cactus table, our craftsmen and women must have received the distinction of Best Craftsmen of France. Successfully bringing together talent, timing and temperature, six dedicated glass masters combine an exceptional mastery of modern technique. It takes around 10 weeks to create the piece and craft the legs alone.

What was the inspiration behind reimagining a classic Lalique design to create the Cactus Coffee Table?

Across all our collections, the original designs of Rene Lalique are an inspiration. We work with our heritage and know how – from the archives but also with our creative teams in Paris led by creative director Marc Larminaux to create pieces that will work with interiors today. We were asked by clients many times if we could create a coffee table to suit contemporary and traditional interiors and the Cactus design sits perfectly within this.

The Lalique factory will soon celebrate 100 years. To what do you attribute the brand’s long-standing success, and how does this translate into the products you design?  

The Lalique name is synonymous with craft, luxury and savoir faire and the French art of living well which is evident in all our pillars – hospitality, art, interior design, decorative items, jewellery and perfumes.

It takes around seven years to qualify as a glass maker in the factory and it is an extraordinary skilled and precise craft. It is a gift to be able to work so cleverly and skilfully with your hands.

Lalique CEO and Chairman, Mr Silvio Denz is also a visionary and we have collaborated and worked with some of the most celebrated artists, architects and designers as well as like-minded luxury brands such as Damien Hirst, Sir Elton John, Zaha Hadid, Mario Botta, The Macallan and Singapore Airlines to name a few.

Now that you’ve won an SBID Award, what are the next steps? Is there anything new you are excited to be working on?

It is a very exciting time to be at Lalique as our world expands and grows.

We have some very exciting collaborations coming up and we also recently opened a new gourmet restaurant and the first Lalique boutique in Scotland at The Glenturret – Scotland’s oldest working distillery which is also home to the finest whiskey bar in the world – designed and created by Lalique.

What advice can you give to young designers starting out in the design industry?

Work hard, be resilient, travel and explore as much as possible and be kind and polite. The design industry is a small world.

It’s a world of opportunity for young designers now as the barriers between art/interiors/fashion and design merge and we have some very talented creatives – good luck!

Questions answered by Frederick Fischer, UK MD, Lalique.

This week's instalment of SBID's Product of the Week series features an unconventional lighting design by 2021 SBID Awards Finalist, Light.iQ.

Shin Kong Place South (SKP-S) in Beijing has opened its doors on December 2019, and it promises to change the way luxury retail is perceived. Gentle Monster and SKP wanted to engage all our human senses (by hearing, smelling, seeing, and touching) once we enter this department store. All luxury brands embraced this unusual concept and created innovative interiors.

The lighting departed from the traditional forms of shopping illuminations too. Dark and moody corridors were introduced instead of flat and evenly lit ones. The result is an immersive experience full of art installations combined with interactive displays to keep customers on their toes even when they are circulating between shops.

Click here to discover the last year's SBID Awards winners!

To enter, visit sbidawards.com for more information.

This week's instalment of SBID's Product of the Week series features a standout kitchen design by 2021 SBID Awards Finalist, Roundhouse.

This standout kitchen offers a serious amount of space with doors to the back terrace and a woodburner for winter comfort. Complete with an island that features polished concrete worktops, an underside in patinated corrugated iron and splashback in Lilac Milas marble, the textures used are purposefully varied and wonderfully original. With reused and recycled elements from the original barn, this is a space designed to be seen and used for all occasions.