Therese Virserius's guest appearances

Therese Virserius

The Chaise Lounge Podcast

Hotel Design Podcast

Nina Magon

Charu Gandhi

David Stark

Cheryl Janis

Rachel Cannon

Erin Gates

Susan Jamieson

Benjamin Moore

Matthew Quinn

Maria Killam

Thom Filicia

Laurence Carr

Toma Clark Haines

Lori Weitzner

Betsy Helmuth

OwlTail

In this episode of the Hotel Design Podcast, we welcome award-winning designer Therese Virserius, Founder of Virserius Studio. She’s worked on projects such as W Atlanta Midtown, Renaissance Paris La Défense Hotel, Hyatt Regency Montreal and others such as the Arizona Biltmore.   Host Glenn Haussman and Therese start off by discussing how she envisioned some of the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas’ suites and its guestrooms. “It was a massive project,” says Therese, as she describes the process of renewing the property five floors at a time, touching 3,000 rooms. The two discuss artistic point of view, Therese’s Swedish heritage, her global travels around Europe and Asia, and how experiences with many cultures affects her design approach. Interestingly she worked with IKEA, but in business development and logistics. Turns out that wasn’t satisfying enough, and her curiosity propelled her in the direction of hotel design. They move on to discussing the reimagining of the Frank Lloyd Wright inspired Arizona Biltmore Waldorf Astoria hotel, and the challenges and opportunities to modernizing a historic hotel while still paying respect to its iconic roots. They discuss the delicate balance of adding new design elements. Her biggest challenge: harmonizing a property that has had many expansions and “potentially less diligence in honoring the original design.” Turns out that over the decades, renovation drifted from the original concept, so they discuss balancing the need to honor the hotel’s historic nature vs. newer elements where permitted, opening up spaces for more flow, creating new spaces that evoke a historic feel and modernizing the cottages. Therese discusses the importance of materials, managing historic vs. non historic project elements, reinventing the event space around the main lawn with a new bar/ lounge, site line connections, the hotel’s signature cottages, opening up congested spaces in the main building and more. Plus, they discuss the use of LVT as a design element and how it adds to the overall look and feel of the newly reinvented cottages. Then Glenn and Therese move from the desert environment to one decidedly beachier, The Ray Hotel Delray Beach, Curio Collection by Hilton in Florida. The two use this property to discuss creating something inherently of the region; one that is a beach hotel, yet not actually on the beach. Plus, they discuss the challenges and solutions to creating an eye-catching hotel required to follow many specific architectural related regulations. Here, Therese created an escape that manages to feel upscale and modern with a design she dubs “tropical modernism”. Some tricks she leveraged was to create different zones in public spaces that freely flow but also feels distinct. It’s also about breaking down the barriers between the staff, customers, and the overall experience so that a guest can feel more comfortable and ultimately hopefully feel more at home. She also discusses design strategies such as utilizing mirrors to create the feeling of more space, how lighting affects mood and can be utilized in different ways throughout the day, and other useful pieces of advice. They also talk about the continual journey of learning and how to leverage the nuances of different desires, cultures, consumer behavior to create memorable, functional designs and how to keep yourself mentally fit and constantly creative. Follow along with some great project visuals on our website - http://hoteldesignpodcast.com/ - and subscribe to our new Youtube page to watch the video interview!

In this episode of the Hotel Design Podcast, we welcome award-winning designer Therese Virserius, Founder of Virserius Studio. She’s worked on projects such as W Atlanta Midtown, Renaissance Paris La Défense Hotel, Hyatt Regency Montreal and others such as the Arizona Biltmore. Host Glenn Haussman and Therese start off by discussing how she envisioned some of the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas’ suites and its guestrooms. “It was a massive project,” says Therese, as she describes the process of renewing the property five floors at a time, touching 3,000 rooms. The two discuss artistic point of view, Therese’s Swedish heritage, her global travels around Europe and Asia, and how experiences with many cultures affects her design approach. Interestingly she worked with IKEA, but in business development and logistics. Turns out that wasn’t satisfying enough, and her curiosity propelled her in the direction of hotel design. They move on to discussing the reimagining of the Frank Lloyd Wright inspired Arizona Biltmore Waldorf Astoria hotel, and the challenges and opportunities to modernizing a historic hotel while still paying respect to its iconic roots. They discuss the delicate balance of adding new design elements. Her biggest challenge: harmonizing a property that has had many expansions and “potentially less diligence in honoring the original design.” Turns out that over the decades, renovation drifted from the original concept, so they discuss balancing the need to honor the hotel’s historic nature vs. newer elements where permitted, opening up spaces for more flow, creating new spaces that evoke a historic feel and modernizing the cottages. Therese discusses the importance of materials, managing historic vs. non historic project elements, reinventing the event space around the main lawn with a new bar/ lounge, site line connections, the hotel’s signature cottages, opening up congested spaces in the main building and more. Plus, they discuss the use of LVT as a design element and how it adds to the overall look and feel of the newly reinvented cottages. Then Glenn and Therese move from the desert environment to one decidedly beachier, The Ray Hotel Delray Beach, Curio Collection by Hilton in Florida. The two use this property to discuss creating something inherently of the region; one that is a beach hotel, yet not actually on the beach. Plus, they discuss the challenges and solutions to creating an eye-catching hotel required to follow many specific architectural related regulations. Here, Therese created an escape that manages to feel upscale and modern with a design she dubs “tropical modernism”. Some tricks she leveraged was to create different zones in public spaces that freely flow but also feels distinct. It’s also about breaking down the barriers between the staff, customers, and the overall experience so that a guest can feel more comfortable and ultimately hopefully feel more at home. She also discusses design strategies such as utilizing mirrors to create the feeling of more space, how lighting affects mood and can be utilized in different ways throughout the day, and other useful pieces of advice. They also talk about the continual journey of learning and how to leverage the nuances of different desires, cultures, consumer behavior to create memorable, functional designs and how to keep yourself mentally fit and constantly creative. Follow along with some great project visuals on our website - <a href="http://hoteldesignpodcast.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">http://hoteldesignpodcast.com/</a> - and subscribe to our new <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKej92FSxBQSVo-op9vaQVg" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Youtube page</a> to watch the video interview!

#25: Therese Virserius, Founder of Virserius Studio

Therese Virserius: A Worldly Hospitality DesignerOn this episode of The Lounge, Therese Virserius joins Nick at Porcelanosa in New York to talk about her design business. She may have started out in law but today she is a multinational interior design business owner, there's nothing unlawful about that. From Paris, Montreal, Berlin, to Brussels, Tunisia and New York Therese designs for hospitality all over the world.Getting to Know ThereseTherese's favorite fashion accessory is bracelets. She doesn't have a favorite restaurant though because it honestly just depends on her mood and the weather. Home is Sweden, even though her offices are in New York and Paris, and truly she just loves all things Italy. Her friends might agree that wine is her drink of choice, whether it's a light red or a Sauvignon Blanc. Therese travels 50% out of the month so its safe to say she's a busy woman, but one place she's never designed in is the Maldives, and she would love the opportunity (hint, hint).How Mandarin Started it AllTherese never thought she would be doing interior design or end up in New York because her background is in law. When she was young, Therese was very interested in Asia so she left Sweden for China to get a BA in Mandarin. In China, she strictly did management and logistics for IKEA but soon began oil painting and having her own exhibits in Shanghai. Therese wanted an outlet to express herself, even more, so she opened up a store for product design. Her drawings were brought to life and made into products. She created anything from silverware to glassware, candles, fabrics, and napkins.After 3 years of chaos in Shanghai, Therese moved to New York and went back to school at New York School of Interior Design to get some formal training. She worked and interned for Jeffrey Beers where she was tossed directly into the hospitality fire. Her first project was to renovate The Westin Fort Lauderdale.The Business TodayThe clients who come to Virserius Studio are ready for a change. When sourcing she looks for slim, delicate lines, but must remember hospitality pieces have to be durable. She wants products that could stand alone in an empty room and still 'wow' you. Her style is eclectic, and she enjoys mixing colors and patterns.Therese's New York office houses 13 people, from architects to designers, and her Paris office is more quaint with only 4. Therese often finds herself wishing she could be in both offices at once as meetings can sometimes overlap. Time is her biggest challenge - since she's always traveling back and forth. Therese doesn't micromanage her team as she believes they should be able to run without her. They need the freedom to be creative and let their minds flow on their own, but she also doesn't want them to feel alone, so she checks in multiple times a day. Her role is to make sure the ship doesn't go off course, make life easier for her designers, and make sure her people are happy (both clientele and her team).There's no slow period in Therese's life. On top of it all she also still designs products, does custom furniture for every project, and owns an art company in Paris. She does everything from art printed on floors and walls, to sculpture, mixed media, prints and even an outdoor furniture line. See more at www.walterswicker.comDealing with bookkeeping and accounting are her least favorite task but she knows it is a necessity to be involved. Therese doesn't have a favorite space to create because the experience of staying in a hotel is a journey. It begins when you enter and ends when you leave, so you must tell a cohesive story.Current ProjectsHer firm has been working on a year-long competition and was awarded The Cosmopolitan in Las Vegas, a 3,000 room renovation. It's got "just the right amount of bad" Therese says, and the target completion is in 2018They're also repositioning a hotel in Tunisia to change the way it operates and facilitates. For example,

140 – Therese Virserius: A Worldly Hospitality Designer