Delivering quality craftsmanship

Works of art is how hotels, not only in India but across the globe, can be described as each comes up looking better than the former. For an industry like hospitality where the look and design of the property is one of the major drivers for customers when making a choice, the right architect holds utmost importance. Understanding the needs of the sector and the requirements of the customers is essential to be a successful architect, especially in hospitality industry, a role GPM Architects has been playing for the past few decades. 

“At GPM, hospitality design stands synonymous with quality craftsmanship. With constant evolution of the hospitality sector, we have kept ourselves updated with latest design techniques. We work in tandem with our client’s intimate needs to create beautiful spaces that lend themselves to finest customer service. However, while designing spaces that excite and inspire customers, we aim to deliver supreme service-driven designs with specific features and amenities,” explains Mitu Mathur, Director, GPM Architects and Planners. 

This is perhaps why the company has been able to deliver projects for some of the most high-end hospitality brands in the country. Having developed such diverse offerings for different brands, the process of the architecture changes with respect to each brand and the location they are catering to. “Hotels are representative of the destination. Including storytelling and local elements through design is an emerging trend. From the inception of any project, we assess all possibilities to ensure a climatically responsive design – with desired orientation and integration of the built form within its context while capturing the beauty of the immediate surroundings. The site and its culture are our most significant drivers,” says Mathur, adding that for this reason, highlighting the essence of a location and merging it with contemporary design ideas is of high significance for them. 

Balancing luxury, efficiency and sustainability

For GPM Architects, the most significant learning in the post-pandemic world has been that they can’t function in silos, instead needing to embrace local systems to become sustainable. “We aim to strike a balance between luxury and efficiency by adopting the best practices and intelligent technologies that help avoid the wastage of resources. A state-of-the-art design is not necessarily achieved by importing expensive materials from across the world but can also be achieved using local resources if appropriately organised. There has to be an element of trust in local culture. I believe consumers will want to know where things have come from,” she shares. 

“We promote ‘Sustainable – Inclusive Designs’ that include context, culture and climate. Climatically relevant models including passive solar designs to minimise energy dependence and enhance efficient use of water and conscious water features to support suitable micro-climate, are extremely important as a starting point. We engage with all stakeholders to brainstorm on how any hotel project enhances its effects on surrounding neighbourhoods and can positively impact local communities by making them feel a part of any development,” avers Mathur, citing the example of JW Marriott Resort & Spa at Shimla, a project close to her heart. 

She adds that recent hospitality architecture has witnessed an increase in more competent waste management and energy efficiency using innovative technologies, green practices and passive design techniques. These include smart air-conditioning, sensor lights, low-flow water fixtures, less water-dependent design elements, drip irrigation and capturing solar energy among others. 

Innovate to adapt

As newer aspects such as staycations and bleisure keep emerging, the concept of what a “hotel” is continues to change, adapting to global trends and evolving with technology. “One such growing trend is taking pride in highlighting the culture and creating a soft exchange of inside out experience: creating an experiential environment for the tourists where they merge and interact with locals, learning their skills, appreciating their customs and taking something meaningful back home,” Mathur explains, adding hospitality design has embraced adaptations based on the evolving consumer mindset, one of which is focussing on user experience over anything else. 

“The integration of latest technologies across the various spectrums of design, project implementation and O&M has been the top priority. In addition, 2023 is witnessing an increase in multifunctional spaces to accommodate business and leisure, allowing guests to fulfill work requirements while experiencing the destination,” she says. 

Potential of unexplored regions

Speaking about the Group’s expansion plans in the hospitality space, Mathur shares, “With such vast diversity, India is always attractive from both tourism and investment perspectives. With the right impetus from the hospitality sector, there is a lot we can do. With my experience in hospitality domain, I want to explore projects that engage communities and bring about a sense of pride, thereby impacting physical, social, and economic ecologies of these areas.”

Today, as everyone comprehends a new meaning for leisure and relaxation, post-pandemic, there is a considerable shift in rethinking hospitality design with respect to users’ health and wellbeing, thereby focussing more on holistic wellness. Against this backdrop, Mathur shares there are three things that get the Group excited about any project: innovative ways of incorporating greens – biophilic design elements, use of local materials in diverse ways – promoting indigenous arts and crafts and integration of the latest technologies in design across the various spectrums of design, project implementation and O&M. “A synergy among these can create a rejuvenating space for travellers, thereby crafting memorable experiences,” she avers.