Indigo Road Hospitality Group has steadily constructed its portfolio lately; amongst different properties, the corporate has added Bridge Creek Inn in Clayton, Georgia, and Snowbird Mountain Lodge in Robbinsville, North Carolina. Nonetheless, till just lately, the Charleston, South Carolina-based firm’s assortment was lacking a lodge in its hometown. Indigo Street Hospitality Group marked this milestone with the addition of Lodge Richemont, and Founder and Chief Imaginative and prescient Officer Steve Palmer just lately instructed LODGING that it was “big” as a result of Charleston is their residence.
Palmer defined that having the ability to welcome company to the property has been “heartwarming,” particularly given the best way that the adaptive reuse undertaking was crammed with ties to Charleston. The in depth renovation of the 25-room property was complemented by a refresh of two adjoining historic buildings, and collaborating with Charleston-based corporations was a strategic alternative, Palmer famous. “Charleston has such a powerful sense of id, a way of self, particularly relating to hospitality,” he mentioned. “It solely made sense for us to work with native builders and native designers.” For instance, the corporate labored with developer King & Society Improvement and Betsy Berry, a designer based mostly within the metropolis.
In working with native corporations, Indigo Street Hospitality Group sought to protect the genuine sense of place that many vacationers search once they keep at boutique inns. Likewise, Palmer said that this strategy drove their resolution to open the Richemont reasonably than a branded lodge. “When folks come to a metropolis with a wealthy historical past like Charleston, I feel they need to see and keep and eat in locations that really feel of that place. I don’t assume they’re seeking to keep at a Marriott and eat at a sequence restaurant, which is very true of all of the inns and eating places we function in several markets,” he defined. “The explanation that we’re unbiased and the explanation we’re boutique is that we would like these to really feel of the place. With Charleston being residence, it wouldn’t have made sense for us to open a branded lodge. So, working with native builders and designers, it simply continues our model storytelling.”
Lodge Richemont’s distinctive choices embody its Vietnamese-inspired restaurant, Two Bit Membership, together with its historic allure and preserved architectural particulars. Palmer famous that the historical past of the constructing and that of downtown Charleston aligned with Indigo Street Hospitality Group’s model. The corporate was excited in regards to the undertaking, even because it handled the inherent challenges that include creating outdated buildings. Palmer referred to as such tasks “a labor of affection,” highlighting how their richness and authenticity can’t be duplicated in newly constructed inns. Palmer additionally mentioned that the completed product was value it, as preserving the small print of the constructing—like its uncovered brick and historic financial institution vault—was “doing the suitable factor” from the corporate’s perspective.
Palmer expressed his confidence that nobody concerned with the undertaking would have completed something otherwise. He pointed to the distinctive options of the suites, together with vaulted ceilings and uncovered brick kitchens, and he mentioned that this sense of discovery makes the property particularly interesting for company. Palmer reiterated that company “crave authenticity,” which is why they search boutique inns to start with, and Lodge Richemont is a microcosm of that.
“I feel vacationers come to Charleston as a result of it’s a one-of-a-kind place,” he mentioned. “So, I feel that the chance is to remain in a uniquely unbiased lodge, which is why you’ve seen such an explosion within the unbiased sector. Folks don’t need to keep on the Marriott Courtyard that they’ve stayed at in 5 different cities. Staying at a lodge just like the Richemont creates an expertise that you just can’t get wherever else.”
