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primary home or a pied-àterre , such as the lobby lounge and café , a rooftop pool with a strong food and beverage concept , gym and spa , pickleball court , a karaoke room and / or co-working spaces . We currently have four branded residences that are selling well : The Standard Residences in Midtown Miami and Lisbon are both over 90 % sold , most of which were sold without a sales center or spec and at a premium to our collective underwriting — just on the strength of the brand and the reputation of experienced developers , like Carlos Rosso and Stone Capital , respectively . We also recently launched large scale standalone Standard Residences in Hua Hin and Phuket . Sales have been incredible .
HOTELS : Standard has and still is known to be that sexy , cool , hip place to hang . That ’ s how it started . How do you adapt over the last two decades to keep it that way ? Asher : At the heart of our success is a celebration of design , culture and community . We are very fortunate to work with our chief design officer , Verena Haller , who has a talent for curating collaborations with artists and designers , such as Jaime Hayon of Hayon Studios , Nicolas Villamizar , Matt Goodrich , just to name a few . These partnerships result in spaces that feel both familiar and new . As we have expanded our offerings with the Bunkhouse collection of hotels , The StandardX , branded
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residences and more to come , we have made sure there is something for everyone in each market . This adaptability keeps The Standard fresh and exciting for all who love it .
HOTELS : The hotel industry continues to be dominated by a small number of global lodging companies , who are always on the lookout to bolt on smaller brands to fill a particular gap or niche . How do you continue to operate amid this landscape and do you listen to potential suitors on the M & A hunt ? Asher : Frankly , we try not to pay too much attention to what others are doing . We are well capitalized and have a large pipeline of incredible projects . We just continue to do what we have always done which is create incredible experiences for our guests and local communities . Being independent allows us to push boundaries and take risks which big companies cannot or will not do so in many ways . That consolidation sets us even further apart from the competition and plays to our strengths . As it relates to potential suitors , we are often approached , as you can imagine .
HOTELS : You launched a sibling brand StandardX recently . Why was it time for it , the need and how does it complement Standard Hotels ? Do you envision it as a brand that is easier to develop ? Asher : The Standard ,
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The Standard , Brussels is slated to open in 2025 .
The Standard , High Line in New York opened in 2009 and has become an icon in the city ’ s Meatpacking District .
Hollywood was beloved and brilliant in its simplicity and contained an X-factor that people were drawn to . There wasn ’ t over-the-top design budget or Michelin-level culinary concepts ; it was just the true essence of lifestyle hospitality . It offered an approach that kept things interesting . We ’ ve evolved since then and have continuously elevated our design to create incredible concepts that are unlike our counterparts in
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major cities like London , Ibiza and Bangkok . The StandardX was an opportunity to return to that raw simplicity that was accessible to the next generation traveler looking to experience a city through the lens of The Standard brand . It ’ s a more linear , straightforward concept , but we always keep it interesting . Following our Melbourne opening , we ’ re excited to grow the sub-brand into other markets including Bangkok , which debuts in late 2024 . |
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July / August 2024 hotelsmag . com 33 |