Makeover for First W Hotel

The Starwood Hotels and Resorts brand plans to triple its footprint by 2011, with more than 30 new properties on the drawing board in four continents.

Nicholas Tamarin -- Interior Design, 12/18/2008

International architecture and interior design firm BBG-BBGM has completed a $40 million dollar renovation of the 10-year-old W New York, allowing the brand’s very first property to trade its Clinton-era chic for naturalism befitting the Obama epoch.

Using nature as inspiration, the firm reinterpreted the guest quarters based on scale, transparency and graphics. Rooms were updated with zebrawood-wrapped beds, which are topped by custom-designed headboards featuring backlit photo silhouettes of the human body.



Suites are now equipped with double-height ceilings, to accommodate second-story loft bedrooms, along with dark hardwood floors, bronze coffee tables, pendants inspired by Indian water vessels and custom backlit acrylic panels from Farmboy Fine Arts. The hotel also boasts new "Extreme Wow" suites that feature wraparound outdoor terraces, teak flooring, oversize daybeds, pool tables and solid raw cedar cocoon chairs.

"BBG-BBGM's innovative design provides a unique platform to layer in W signature experiences and programming," says BBG-BBGM partner Nadia Biski of the property’s first-ever renovation. "The newly refurbished guestrooms are relaxing and playful, while suites are nothing less than amazing -- they truly offer a one-of-a-kind sensory experience."



The New York renovation offers a prelude of sorts to the rapid development that Starwood Hotels and Resorts is planning for its W brand. More than 30 new W Hotels are currently on the boards in four continents, a move Starwood expects will triple the brand’s footprint by 2011. Cities on the W radar include Atlanta, Boston, Washington D.C., Athens, London, Milan, St. Petersburg, Bangkok, Shanghai and Marrakech.



All images courtesy of BBG-BBGM.