Design Mashup | Ian Schrager & Marriott Create Edition Hotels

Lobby in Waikiki Edition HotelDesignTracker| Onetime Studio 54 and boutique hotelier co-owner Ian Schrager declares: “I’m turning my back on ‘design on steroids’. Teaming up with Marriott Hotels to create the Waikiki Edition, Schrager sees the Edition brand as a concept acknowledging that superior design is not the substance of what travelers seek in a hotel.

“Having the best-looking place in town isn’t enough anymore,” he says. “You have to have a great business center, a guest room that’s incredibly functional. You have to have everything.” Undergirding this, he believes, should be “simple, sophisticated, confident design. No tricks—no three-legged chairs and things we did because we were looking to get noticed.” via Metropolis

Suddenly, ‘being seen’ in the lobby isn’t the top priority for clients. A room that works is! If you’re like us, worrying that you need a master’s degree in electrical engineering to get the lights on in your hotel room, the intimidation factor is gone. The Waikiki Edition has actual switches that operate without a manual.