Looking at the future of the sector, what directions to you think it is taking? What new developments do you expect?

At the moment the conversations of brands and developers revolve around time and cost issues. Construction costs, especially when it is about new buildings, are significant due to rising interest rates, which, in turn, affect material costs. The research must therefore focus on all-round concepts that adapt to the times and costs of the present. Who will be able to make changes in their modus operandi not at the expense of experience or narrative will go forward. In short, who will succeed will be the ones smart enough to capitalize on the increase in costs and expedite processes in certain time frames.

As an agency, we also need to think about our own process and the changes that need to be made to its management. Today, they all require projects to be delivered quickly and with value. There remains the need for creative minds, able to face the problems on the field and to adapt to brands that do not have the luxury of time. It is a changing world, a different world, and I sincerely believe that it will remain so. Implementing the great concepts to get value beyond the difficulties of time and cost was therefore the number one conversation of the end and beginning of the year.

What are the main sources of inspiration of your work? In what areas not strictly connected to hospitality do you search for new ideas? 

I could quote several sources, but I would say that the number one are people. I consider myself an individual who loves people, and therefore finds inspiration just by meeting people and appreciating their different facets. Whether it is a person in the industry or outside, a casual or scheduled meeting, I find satisfaction simply in opening conversations. It could be an unhappy dialogue that nevertheless turns a thought on something that can be improved in the hospitality industry. I often travel, for business and pleasure, and often find myself talking to those sitting next to me about their preferences on the menu. I try to get to know and learn from all those who are somehow linked to that experience to open my curious mind to new knowledge. Experimenting, challenging myself and, hopefully, developing an opinion are the steps of my creative process, which arises precisely from the interaction with the other.

Hospitality and F&D: What relationship binds them? How does this relationship present itself today and how is the face of hospitality changing? 

The relationship between hospitality and F&B is really intertwined. I believe that there are intrinsic values shared by the two, which bind and differentiate them from other sectors. During my career I have tried residential, commercial and retail, but in the end I have always returned to hospitality. In fact, in this area there is a sense of respect, a generosity, a commitment to quality, trust and reputation that is found in equal measure only in another sector, the F&B. The generosity of which I speak is that which leads this type of enterprise to go beyond in terms of guest service, beyond the established parameters, to plunge into complexity. Of course there are differences between the single business models, but at the same time they are intrinsically linked in the values. When I think about my work, the different facets of what we are designing, and how to improve brands, it is all about values in the end.

What are the types of services most sought after by guests and consumers of the high-end hospitality industry today?

I believe that in the contemporary age in which we find ourselves, the service that guests seek the most is seamlessness. Unlike retail, which has had to deal with the technological innovations from the birth of e-commerce, the hospitality industry has remained rather traditional. Today, what the consumer wants is those aspects of a somehow clumsy tradition to be removed. Whether it is seamlessness in terms of a value or a luxury, it is what everyone demands. Actions that today require three different steps must be completed in a single step, from banal topics like lighting system control to more complex issues. Some time ago I was near a house where a smart digital assistant was asked to turn on the kettle and change the lights with a single voice command. In some hospitality environments we are not yet at this point, but this is where we must aim.

How does contemporary luxury combine with sustainability, both in materials and processes?

We could spend an entire afternoon debating this issue and, in fact, I think it would be worth doing so. To be honest, as a business, we are still in the process of writing our philosophy on how to address this problem that affects everyone nowadays. Our planet is burning, we are polluting the seas, and in the meantime, for every little thing you can think of in relation to what our industry could do, and it is not doing, we have to act. Even about Blacksheep, I am constantly wondering what we could do more, and the margins of action are constantly expanding.

I do not have a definite answer to that, but I think energy is a massive problem that we are not tackling. I find it in different forms. For example, I continually see luxury projects in which the use of natural materials of rare beauty is specified. And as I read this, I think about how we are still extracting resources from the earth to put it into projects. We recognise what are sustainable materials, what are the ethical issues around materials, how to replace traditional materials with others respectful of the earth, yet we find ourselves extracting marble from the side of the Earth. In this way we are only diminishing the resources on the planet, making it smaller and smaller. In this I see an energy problem. The whole process of extraction and realization is really wasteful. I therefore think that there must be more alternatives and restrictive guidelines.