2021 Color Trends & Vision (Durkan)
Durkan Hospitality, a division of Mohawk Industries, is one of Innvision’s trusted flooring partners. In this post, two design leaders from Mohawk share their theme for 2021 and how this theme and its design concepts are finding their way into hotels. We’ll discuss how hotel owners can apply their expertise.
Mohawk’s Color Trends and Vision for 2021
Royce Epstein is the A&D Design Director at Mohawk Group. Her roles span design trend research, product storytelling, and big-picture creative visioning to connecting the dots between culture, trends, and the resulting Mohawk products they inspire.
In a recent interview, Royce explains, “This year’s theme is called The Visual Age, and it explores the new era we are in where there is visual literacy and creative democracy for all. In this new era of cultural communication, we look at aesthetic shifts that define how we see. We examine the state of visuals today and what we have learned from visuals of the past.”
People today are highly visual, as evident in the popularity of social media platforms such as Instagram and Pinterest. When it comes to anticipating design and color trends, one can learn much from finding and examining what people are attracted to and where they’re spending their time and attention. In 2021, many of these answers are in plain sight on social media.
On Instagram and other visually-driven social media platforms, color and light filters, gradients, chromo-saturation, and graphic overlays are popular and desirable. In this Visual Age, Royce references the colors on these platforms for inspiration and asks, “How is this affecting the language of design?”
Color & Design Trends in Hospitality
As a hotel owner, it’s essential for you to understand and follow design trends in the hospitality industry. After all, a guest’s stay in your hotel isn’t just to sleep; it’s also to have an experience. By making that experience memorable and “Insta-worthy,” you create a deeper connection with that guest.
Design-wise, the hospitality industry is known to push the envelope when offering unique spaces and experiences. Hoteliers are getting bolder when it comes to lighting and colors. Hospitality interior designers even look to social media influencers, stunning photography optics, and consumer behaviors online for mood board content and inspiration. This truly speaks to Mohawk’s “Visual Age” theme of the year!
“Pushing the edge is expected in the hospitality industry,” explains Arnavaz Barshan, the Director of Hospitality Design at Durkan/Mohawk Industries. Whereas in other industries — like senior living, education, or professional institutions — such design at the cutting edge may not be welcome, hospitality guests have come to expect it. Put simply, when they invest in a hotel stay, they want to be moved.
Color & Design Trends: What They Look Like in Hotels
Although there isn’t a specific color and design trend for all hotels, all hotel owners must keep their guest’s likes, dislikes, and needs in mind and consider what would make a guest’s stay memorable.
Many hotels have adopted a relaxed and laid-back “home away from home” aesthetic. Busy patterns are being replaced by textures, clean lines, and minimalist elements, and the concept of “bringing the outdoors in” is expressed with earth elements and live greenery, especially in public spaces.
Arnavaz shared that, “A good mix of hard and soft flooring solutions is an emerging trend throughout the hotel industry. Designs in public spaces are more fluid with a dash of vibrancy. More statement pieces and hints of celebration of color are highlighted, and artwork pairing for each space is more geared towards that locale.” She finds that designs are getting “warmer.” She attributes this shift to COVID-era guests seeking hotels that feel safe, comfortable, and clean while still visually-appealing, memorable, and “worth the trip.”
The goal? Plenty of guest #selfeets (selfies, but of the feet and the floor they’re standing on) indicating that your flooring has successfully caught the eye of one living in The Visual Age. The opportunity is there for hotels to stand out if they apply Mohawk’s vision and concepts.
Innvision’s strong relationships with partners such as Mohawk/Durkan enable us to implement these new themes in your hotel so you can build meaningful connections with your guests. Innvision’s experience, teams of FF&E design and procurement specialists, technology, and service-oriented approach create a compelling value for hotel owners about to begin work on new construction or renovation. Contact us today to learn more about how Innvision can make your next hotel project a success.
