Accor Celebrates Future Design Leaders at 2024 Awards During Maison&Objet Fair
(IN SHORT) Accor announced the winners of the 2024 Accor Design Awards at the Maison&Objet Fair in Paris. The competition, focused on reimagining luxury hotel design for the Sofitel brand, attracted nearly 100 entries from students worldwide. The winning designs, selected by a panel chaired by designer Lázaro Rosa-Violán, showcased innovative concepts that blend luxury, sustainability, and cultural engagement. The awards highlight Accor’s commitment to fostering new talent and advancing design in the hospitality industry.
(PRESS RELEASE) Paris, France, 2024-Sep-4 — /Travel PR News/ — Accor has announced the winners of the 2024 Accor Design Awards at the prestigious Maison&Objet Fair in Paris. The awards, now in their eighth year, highlight innovative concepts in luxury hotel design, with this year’s competition focusing on reimagining the future of luxury hospitality in partnership with Accor’s iconic Sofitel brand.
The 2024 edition attracted nearly 100 entries from architecture and interior design students worldwide, representing 20 schools across eight countries. Students were challenged to create visionary designs that blend luxury, sustainability, and cultural engagement, with the winning concepts set to influence the future direction of the Sofitel brand.
The competition’s judging panel, chaired by renowned designer Lázaro Rosa-Violán, selected winners from a shortlist of ten finalists. These projects showcased a diverse range of ideas, from integrating nature and sustainable practices into hotel lobbies to creating spaces that celebrate cultural heritage and community.
Elodie Noël, Global SVP Brand Design for Sofitel, praised the students’ creativity and foresight, emphasizing the importance of aligning design with evolving guest expectations in the luxury hospitality sector. The winners were announced during a ceremony at Maison&Objet on September 5, highlighting the event’s role as a hub for global design innovation.
This year’s awards not only celebrate the winners but also reflect Accor’s commitment to nurturing new talent and driving forward-thinking design in the hospitality industry. The collaboration with Sofitel, a brand synonymous with French elegance and art de vivre, provided a fitting platform for students to explore the future of luxury hotel design.
About the shortlisted projects
Fashion Institute of Technology, NYC, US
- Sofitel, Le Terminal: Adventure and welcome combine to create an experience freely inspired by transport. This proposal draws on the imaginative worlds of travel and France to create a legendary New York property.
- Sofitel Chinatown: this project aims to introduce travelers and visitors to the richness of Chinese culture. A Shanghai-inspired tribute to Gen Z and the Chinese-American community that gives Chinatown its unique energy. A blend of modernity and tradition.
École Camondo, France
- Sofitel Nourishing Garden: this project aims to bring together humanity and nature in an invitation to share and consume responsibly. The lobby is home to a vegetable garden… or is it the other way around? Guided by a spirit of generosity, harmony, happiness and French art de vivre, the designers have come up with a design that is environmentally sensitive without compromising the luxury hotel experience.
UNSW, Australia
- Sofitel (Re)trouvaille: this project combines the charm of French sophistication with the magnetic appeal of Australian nature and culture. With (Re)trouvaille, the students have teased out intimate connections between the two worlds to design a lobby inspired by the Little Prince that connects travelers to sustainable practices.
Pratt Institute, NYC, USA
- Sofitel, The Light Beyond: this project draws on the brand’s esthetic roots and Sofitel’s history in Shanghai. Taking joie de vivre as its creative guiding light, this team’s proposal seeks to create a memorable experience for guests and employees alike.
École de Design Nantes Atlantique, France
- Sofitel Copacabana: an exceptional setting for a space that brings together tourists and locals. The students have used food, dance, music and entertainment to create not just a venue but a must-visit cultural hub.
- Sofitel Midori Hotel: to celebrate Sofitel’s 60th birthday, this team has brought the brand to Kyoto. Drawing on a combination of unsurpassed luxury, harmony and expertise, they have reinvented the art of hospitality with a lobby that changes with the seasons.
Esail, France
- Sofitel Eclat des Bulles: the lobby of this imaginary Sofitel sparkles with bubbles of brut, white, and rosé Champagne. Furniture and materials are carefully chosen and every space is filled with art to create an environment that inspires joy in guests and staff alike.
IFAT, France
- Sofitel Célébration: as soon as you walk through the door, you enter into a singularly refined place. This team has reimagined the lobby as a transitional space in the form of a finely chiseled crystal.
Academy of Art University, SF, US
- Demantin Hotel Sofitel: drawing on the Icelandic word for diamond, this New York-based team conceives of Sofitel as a jewel among luxury hotels. For the Accor Design Awards 2024, they have designed a lobby bathed in brilliant light. What better tribute to Sofitel’s expertise, elegance and luxury?
Some 20 schools have met the brief and submitted student projects for the Accor Design Awards 2024, including: Academy of Art University, SF, US | American University of Dubai, United Arab Emirates | Baeksok University, South Korea | Berlin International University, Germany | École Camondo, France | Esail, France | Fashion Institute of Technology, NYC, US | Florida International University, Miami, US | leD Bilbao, Spain | leD Madrid, Spain | IFAT, France | École de Design Nantes Atlantique, France | Pratt Institute, NYC, US | SCAD, Savannah, US | UNSW – Australia
About Accor
Accor is a world leading hospitality group offering experiences across more than 110 countries in 5,700 properties, 10,000 food & beverage venues, wellness facilities or flexible workspaces. The Group has one of the industry’s most diverse hospitality ecosystems, encompassing more than 45 hotel brands from luxury to economy, as well as Lifestyle with Ennismore. Accor is committed to taking positive action in terms of business ethics & integrity, responsible tourism, sustainable development, community outreach, and diversity & inclusion. Founded in 1967, Accor SA is headquartered in France and publicly listed on the Euronext Paris Stock Exchange (ISIN code: FR0000120404) and on the OTC Market (Ticker: ACCYY) in the United States. For more information visit group.accor.com or follow us on X, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram and TikTok.
Media Contact:
Alexis Blottière
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Source: Accor
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