Today’s guest is a creative design sage. With more than 20 years of experience in the hospitality industry, today’s guest is truly an expert in this field. Andrew Alford is the  Founder/Owner/Designer/ Chief Creative officer/chef/cook and bottle washer of Andrew Alford Creative.  Andrew worked his way from answering phones at a high-end residential design firm to leading his own company where he gets to let his true creativity shine. Andrew joins the host Dan Ryan to talk about his journey through design and hospitality and what it all means to him.

Takeaways: 

• The real innovation in hospitality comes from the people who grew up with little to nothing to their name. People like that grow up wanting a luxurious environment and want to give that idea of luxury to everyone.
• Hotels should be an experience that helps lift away any suffering you have and transport you to a better state of mind. They are the backdrop to our most precious memories.
• The whole objective for design is not to make something look good or to be a background in a selfie. The actual point is that design should be something that makes you stop and appreciate the beauty around you and be a transformative experience in itself.
• A work life balance is something that is incredibly important and can help prevent you from feeling burnt out. You want to make sure that you aren’t working after your normal hours and set boundaries so that you can enjoy your work and not have it feel like a chore.
• When it comes to design, you want to make sure that you stand out and that you are unique. The same bland, beige and boring designs won’t get noticed. If you are going to stand out like a unicorn, stand out like a unicorn in every way.
• The word “interbeing” comes from a Buddaheist poet Thich Nhat Hanh. It describes the relationship between everything in the world and how it all works together in order to create the environment we see around us.
• Design has been so serious for many years, and it’s time that the seriousness needs to be stopped and new, creative ideas need to be implemented. Every design doesn't have to copy something else that is already out there. 

Quote of the Show:

15:37 “Design [is] not to make it pretty, it's not a selfie background. It's a transformative experience.” 

Links:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewalfordcreative/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/andrewalfordcreative/

Shout Outs:

4:41 Kimpton Hotels

5:22 IHG

9:44 Ed Labrano

13:25 Raptor roller coaster

14:46 SpringHill Suites by Marriott

26:25 Hospitality Design Summit

28:00 Alec Baldwin

41:58 American Utopia by David Byrne

43:18 Thich Nhat Hanh

45:14 Free Think

46:58 Star Trek

47:09 Reasons to be Cheerful

50:00 Soho House

50:20 Delano

50:21 Philippe Stark

50:32 Ace Hotels

53:10 Modern Elder Academy

53:12 Chip Conley

1:02:38 The Hoffman Process

Ways to Tune In: 

• Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0A2XOJvb6mGqEPYJ5bilPX
• Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/defining-hospitality-podcast/id1573596386
• Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZGVmaW5pbmdob3NwaXRhbGl0eS5saXZlL2ZlZWQueG1s
• Amazon Music: ​​https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/8c904932-90fa-41c3-813e-1cb8f3c42419
• Podbean: https://www.defininghospitality.live/
• Youtube : https://youtu.be/UCzEZwSoRIU