Why hospitality design is shaping the future of residential interiors
There’s a reason the most compelling homes today feel closer to boutique hotels or private members’ clubs than traditional residences.
In a recent project featured in Living Etc, we took a traditional Victorian terrace in London and reimagined it as a place that feels both expressive and restorative. A sanctuary for a family who travels widely and collects objects that matter to them.
What became clear as the project evolved was this: the atmosphere we were creating wasn’t purely residential. It had the emotional cues, rhythm and confidence of hospitality design.
That overlap is not accidental. It’s the direction our studio is now leaning into with intent.
What hotels and restaurants get right about how spaces feel
The best hotels and restaurants understand something fundamental: people don’t remember spaces, they remember how they felt inside them.
Great hospitality interiors don’t shout. They don’t over-explain themselves. They create a mood the moment you arrive and then quietly support you while you’re there.
You feel:
held, not overwhelmed
stimulated, but not restless
relaxed without feeling anonymous
That balance is hard to achieve and it’s exactly what many homes (and many commercial spaces) are missing.
From residential project to hospitality mindset
Although the London project was a private home, the design language drew heavily from hospitality principles:
Spaces that unfold rather than reveal everything at once
Lighting that shifts mood throughout the day
Materials chosen for patina and longevity, not perfection
Rooms designed for different states: arrival, retreat, conversation, pause
The result was a house that behaves more like a destination than a display. Guests instinctively slow down. Occupants move through it with ease. Nothing feels performative, yet everything feels considered.
This is the same thinking we now apply directly to hotels, restaurants, private members’ clubs and hospitality-led developments.
How hospitality spaces should feel - not just look
A well-designed hospitality interior should answer emotional questions before practical ones.
A hotel should feel:
calm but characterful
reassuring without being bland
confident enough to be memorable, not trendy
A restaurant should feel:
intentional from the threshold
immersive without distraction
designed for human behaviour, not Instagram
When design is led by feeling rather than fashion, spaces age better, photograph better over time, and create repeat visitors rather than one-off moments.
Why this matters commercially
Hospitality design isn’t decoration: it’s strategy.
Atmosphere affects:
dwell time
return visits
brand perception
how people talk about your space once they leave
Whether it’s a boutique hotel, destination restaurant or private members’ club, design becomes part of the guest experience and therefore part of the business model.
Our background in editorial, residential and now hospitality allows us to bridge storytelling with operational reality. We design spaces that feel intuitive, layered and commercially intelligent.
Residential and hospitality, designed with the same intent
Zoe Willis Design works across high-end residential and hospitality projects, bringing the same narrative-led approach to both.
For homeowners, that means spaces that feel like places you want to stay. For hospitality clients, it means environments that feel personal, grounded and emotionally memorable.
The line between home and hotel is becoming more fluid.
We design confidently on both sides of it..
