About Us

About.

Hotel Designs is a trusted voice at the heart of the design community – championing talent, sharing insights, and amplifying industry voices. Our audience includes interior designers, architects, hoteliers, developers, specifiers, operators, procurement personnel and hospitality suppliers.

The brand spans a vibrant ecosystem, which includes:

Hotel Designs – the leading international website for the hotel design industry. Read by more than 70,000 designers, architects, hoteliers and industry suppliers monthly, the website content is curated and produced by the award-winning Hotel Designs team and is the go-to destination for all the latest news, features, opinions and reviews.

A constant source of inspiration, Hotel Designs prides itself on its positioning at the heart of the design community as not only a reliable source of relevant information, but as an active promoter of the talented studios and individuals in the industry as well as being an influential platform for our community to be heard from.

Keep up to date with all the news from Hotel Designs via the newsletter, through its YouTube channel, on its podcast, and across its social media platforms: LinkedIn, Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook, X. The talented Hotel Designs team also hosts live panel discussions, Accessible Design Talks, roundtables, and private dinner parties.

SPACE – A premium bi-monthly print publication exploring global hospitality design trends and commercial influences.

Global Design Review – Published annually, this guide offers a retrospective look at key hotel projects opened in the past year. It also includes project showcases, supplier directories, design insights and a who’s who in hotel design and development.

Live events:

Accessible Design Talks – A bold series of open discussions based on the idea of using our platform to help change the hospitality landscape to cater better for the disabled community. Each talk looks at a different area of design or hotel operation to expose shortcomings and discuss ideas that will help improve the overall user experience for everyone.

MEET UP London – Hotel Designs’ annual UK capital networking event for the UK hospitality and design community. This evening event offers a dynamic blend of industry insight and connection through social engagement.

MEET UP NORTH – Hotel Designs‘ premier, northerly networking event for the UK hospitality and design community. This evening event offers a dynamic blend of professional insights and vibrant social interaction, where attendees can look forward to an engaging panel discussion as well as networking opportunities with some of the UK’s best design studios and hospitality brands.

The Brit List Awards – An annual celebration of excellence in British and international hospitality and design. Recognising top interior designers, architects, hoteliers, and suppliers, the event honours innovation, sustainability, and standout talent across 15 award categories.

Hotel Summit – A daytime conference for the hotel industry to connect and network with hospitality peers and suppliers with an exciting seminar programme and full day of exclusive 1-2-1 meetings.

Interior Design and Architecture Summit – A one-day event designed to dynamically bridge the gap between senior designers, architects and key-industry suppliers with pre-arranged face-to-face meetings, networking lunch, and talks programme.

As an advocate for the design industry, Hotel Designs offers unique opportunities to be a part of the industry, providing introductions to widen your network and make those all-important connections or build on existing relationships.

 

2026 Forward Features

Each month Hotel Designs selects relevant topics to position under the spotlight. To contribute to any of the 2026 topics below, please contact the editorial team ahead of the copy date. If you would like to advertise around any of the features below, please contact Katy Phillips.

Hotel Designs and SPACE 2026 Forward Features / Spotlight On

Meet The Team

Want to get to know the people behind the scenes? Together, the Hotel Designs team has an all-encompassing skillset; comprising writers, event planning and implementation, sales and sponsorship, marketing, social media management, design, creative and production, this team has years of experience creating compelling content and experiences around hotel design, and on this page you can find out more about us…

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Katy Phillips

Publisher

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Sophie Harper

Editor

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Pauline de Villiers Brettell

Digital Editor

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Sienna Shipton

Assistant Editor

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Carla Duaso

Creative Designer

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Charles Dragazis

Senior Production Manager

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Lauren Thackeray

Senior Marketing Manager

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Lorraine Rodgers

Administration Manager

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Sofia Martorana

Event Planning and Administration Coordinator

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Charlotte Eve

DIGITAL DESIGN MANAGER

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Fun fact: Katy has spent years perfecting all kinds of accents and loves a good impersonation!

Work highlights: Katy has been with Hotel Designs since the beginning, way back in 2015 when Forum Events & Media Group acquired the brand.

During this time, she has fostered many meaningful relationships with clients from across the hospitality spectrum, as well as playing a pivotal role in the launch of The Brit List Awards, Hotel Designs MEET UPs, client-led roundtables and panel talks, brand and website redesigns, HD Wellness Sets, DESIGN POD podcast, Hotel Designs LIVE panel talk series, Accessible Design Talks and more. Katy is always on the lookout for the next opportunity to help grow the Hotel Designs brand even further.
 
Most recently Katy has stepped in to the role of Publisher at SPACE magazine, the printed bi-monthly publication focused on hotel design, architecture, and development.

Together these platforms offer a comprehensive 360-degree service encompassing digital media, print publishing, and live events – providing unparalleled value to advertisers, partners, and readers alike.

Fun fact: Sophie spends her spare time running marathons and roller skating (not at the same time)! 

Work highlights: Sophie Harper is an established travel and design journalist and has worked on some of the UK’s most reputable publications and award-winning media campaigns in the last 15 years.

As both a writer and editor, Sophie has specialised in hospitality design over the last decade and has interviewed and hosted events internationally with some of the most influential personalities in the industry.

She joined the Forum Events team in February 2024 as Editor of Hotel Designs.

Fun fact: Pauline works remotely from her desk in Morocco

Work highlights: Pauline is an experienced design and lifestyle writer who started working on print publication in her hometown of Cape Town South Africa and since has written about design, interiors and travel for a wide range of publications both online and on the shelf.

Fun fact: People tell Sienna she gives off Bridget Jones vibes, and she loves to bake, always making sure there are shortbreads floating around the office

Work highlights: Sienna joined Forum Events & Media Group while studying Communications and Media, starting in the sales team where she managed and helped launch the first the PA Life Leading Venues of London SHOWCASE, where she built relationships with luxury venues across the capital. Drawn to the stories behind these spaces, she naturally transitioned into the editorial team, creating social media and editorial content. Upon graduating in June 2026, she is excited to be joining as Assistant Editor for Hotel Designs and SPACE.

Fun fact: Carla speaks three languages and is learning her fourth.

Work highlights: Spanish-born graphic designer Carla studied in Barcelona before moving to London in 2018, finishing her degree at London Metropolitan University.

After working for various companies, she joined Forum Events & Media Group as  a freelancer in 2021 on maternity cover. Once this temporary role ended, she was promoted to Creative Designer, a job she really enjoys.

Fun fact: I’m a keen cyclist and will happily bore people with copious amounts of cycling chat. My top cycling experience (so far) would have to be riding in the spectacular mountains of Crete.

Work highlights: Charles joined Forum Events in 2022. With a background in publishing, editorial media and events, Charles brings a wealth of experience to his role as Senior Production Manager. Having being involved with SPACE from the outset, he is excited to see the brand grow and develop.

Fun fact: Lauren embarked on a solo journey to Hong Kong for a two-month work placement at an events company. During her time there, she assisted with client meetings, event briefs, proposal creation, and social media posting, while also attending various events. Alongside her professional duties, she embraced the local culture, attempting to use chopsticks and learning basic phrases in the local language – though not always with complete success!

Work highlights: Lauren began her journey at Forum Events & Media Group as a Marketing Executive. Over the past five years, she has advanced to the role of Senior Marketing Manager, where she now oversees the entire marketing team. Lauren’s keen attention to detail and passion for crafting marketing campaigns have been instrumental in successfully promoting over 30 events, a challenge she thoroughly enjoys.

Work highlights: Lorraine has just celebrated 25 years with Forum Events & Media Group. Starting as a delegate co-ordinator in 1999 and working her way up to managing the whole delegate team.

She now enjoys a slightly less stressful part-time role as Administration Manager, supporting the sales team and Hotel Designs.

Fun fact: I’m usually the person friends rely on to organise trips, schedules, and group plans.

Workhighlights: Successfully coordinating events from planning through to delivery and seeing everything come together on the day.

Fun fact: Charlotte can sing and is a natural performer, having been in various shows in her school days. 

Work highlights: Charlotte has been with the business for three years as a graphic designer, helping the marketing team with all aspects of the company’s events as well as rebranding The Brit List event guide.

After her maternity leave in 2023 Charlotte progressed to Digital Design Manager, which includes managing and designing all new Forum Events websites in addition to producing the PA Life magazine.

Fun fact: When not working, Jess can usually be found tending to her kitchen garden in the Sussex countryside or foraging for herbs in the nearby woods. A keen grower, she recently studied a RHS Level 2 Diploma in the Principles of Horticulture during her spare time.

Work highlights: Jess joined SPACE magazine in 2022 and has since progressed from Assistant Editor to Editor. During this time, she has worked across many aspects of the publication – from shaping editorial strategy and overseeing operations to contributing to art direction and representing the brand on stage at industry events including Surface Design Show and WOW!house.

Alongside her role at SPACE, Jess has built a creative career spanning the arts, culture, design and travel sectors. Prior to joining the magazine, she spent more than a decade in the commercial art industry, in artist liaison, gallery management, and curating collections for the hospitality sector across hotels and cruise ships. During this time, she also worked on freelance projects as a writer, photographer, and creative content producer.
 
Jess studied photojournalism at London College of Communication and the Danish School of Media and Journalism and holds a first-class BA (Hons) in Culture, Criticism and Curation from Central Saint Martins.