Opening date :
Accommodations :
Location :
General manager :
Owner :
Designer :
Design aesthetic :
Notable amenities :
Graduate Madison
Opening date :
May 14 , 2015
Accommodations :
72 guestrooms
Location :
Madison , Wisconsin ; next to the University of Wisconsin
General manager :
Bill Wellman
Owner :
AJ Capital Partners , Chicago
Designer :
Andrew Alford , chief creative officer , AJ Capital Partners
Design aesthetic :
Rustic meets modern . Plaid patterns throughout , wooden canoes hang from the lobby ’ s ceiling , hallway carpeting pattern resembles an aerial view of the Wisconsin state capitol and bookshelves are stocked with books about Frank Lloyd Wright and deer hunting .
Notable amenities :
Complimentary Wi- Fi , 24-hour fitness center , high-definition televisions in guestrooms , on-site restaurants ( including grab-and-go and sitdown dining options ), and rooftop bar estD .
G r
H a o
AJ Capital ' s Graduate Hotels marries collegiate charm with A new form of luxury .
When AJ Capital Partners opened Hotel Lincoln in Chicago in 2012 , founder Ben Weprin and Andrew Alford , former chief development officer at Joie de Vivre Hospitality , which operated the hotel , were quickly surprised by their clientele . Located about a mile from DePaul University , a considerable amount of business came from visitors , families and other guests associated with the school . This observation ultimately inspired Weprin to explore hotel development in underserved college markets .“ The math really added up and we realized college towns were full of art , culture and great food ,” Alford explains . “ These locals are excited about what they have , but the hotel product usually doesn ' t match up with the passion of the community .” d
20 redefined
14 t u e l a s t by Brittany FarB , associate editor e
The following year , Weprin convinced Alford to close his new San Francisco-based design business , Dirty Lines Design , to join him in Chicago full time to work exclusively on developing the Graduate Hotels brand . Today , five Graduate Hotels properties are open in several U . S . college towns , with several additional locations in the pipeline . Most recently , hotels in Madison , Wisconsin ; Charlottesville , Virginia ; and Oxford , Mississippi , opened as part of the Graduate Hotels collection .
“ We aren ’ t trying to recreate the typical college experience . Rather , we want to create a luxurious college experience ,” Alford says .
Mad-for-plaid in Madison Formerly the Campus Inn , the
www . hotelsmag . com November 2015 HOTELS 49