When it comes to running hotels, men have traditionally ruled.
But a new generation of female entrepreneurs is shaking things up and changing the face of the industry.
“A hotel isn’t just about design but about an entire sensory experience,” Emma continued.
Nathalie Jordi at Hotel Peter & Paul.Credit: Em Ferretti
“It’s something I think women are very good at.”
“I think the industry would be so much better if there were more females in it.”
They headed south on a road trip and wound up inJoshua Tree, about 45 minutes outside Palm Springs.
Emma Goodwin in the Surfrider hotel’s library.Jessica Sample
Images of the place soon went viral, thanks to Sara’s natural eye for interiors.
She grew up in Connecticut and studied environmental design at the Maryland Institute College of Art.
“It’s about creating an entire mood.”
From left: The Surfrider’s sign sits high above the Pacific Coast Highway; the rooftop overlooks Surfrider Beach.Jessica Sample
“They’re kind of like folk songs.”
Turner and her husband, Jack Barron, opened theCarpenter HotelinAustin’s Zilker neighborhood in 2018.
“How do you move about a space, what do you need on a bedside table?
From left: A piece by local artist Ali Beletic in the lobby; the hotel’s entrance.Jessica Sample
Those are all things that I really put thought into.”
“One thing people have always said about the Carpenter is that we thought of everything.
Maybe that’s something women do not necessarily better, but more often,” she said.
From left: Sara Combs at the Joshua Tree House, in California; one of the property’s desert-inspired guest rooms.Nolwen Cifuentes
“How do you move about a space, what do you need on a bedside table?
Those are all things that I really put thought into.”
At the time, Jordi was living in the Marigny district, known for its jazz clubs and cafes.
From left: The dining room at the Hacienda; the swimming pool.Nolwen Cifuentes
I was excited to create that," explains the developer behindHotel Peter & Paul.
The complex sat abandoned for 13 years until Jordi took an interest and found out it was for sale.
“A hotel is a living thing.
Sylvia Wong, owner of the Roundtree.Amanda Villarosa
We are just continuing a conversation the neighborhood has been having for hundreds of years.”
She approached the New Yorkbased design firm ASH NYC about a site visit.
They all agreed it was a dream project.
From left: The check-in lounge of the Roundtree’s Main House; the building’s classic shingled façade.Amanda Villarosa
After all, where else could you build an entire hotel from the grounds of a 19th-century religious compound?
“A hotel is a living thing,” Jordi said of her hospitality philosophy.
“We are just continuing a conversation the neighborhood has been having for hundreds of years.
Jen Turner at the Carpenter Hotel.Miranda Barnes
We wanted the layers and patina to be palpable.”
From left: Vintage chairs in the lobby at the Carpenter Hotel; a guest room.Miranda Barnes
From left: The entrance to the old schoolhouse; a guest room in a former convent.Em Ferretti
