Wink Hotels has arrived in Vietnam, entering the hospitality arena by opening its debut hotel this March. Hotel Designs exclusively catches up with AW2, the Parisian based architecture firm, that designed the brand’s design scheme…
Wink is a new hotel brand and new concept, aimed at a young Vietnamese audience, defined as the Indochine 2.0 generation – a new generation of Vietnamese who are driving the booming economy.
The brand launches with the arrival of a 237-key medium-rise urban hotel, Wink Hotel Saigon Centre. The property is part of the new Wink brand, the vision of Indochina Kajima and operations company Indochina Vanguard, which is rolling out a series of hotels across the country. Located in District 1’s Dakao Ward, a hip and upcoming neighbourhood, the twelve-floor, 10,500 m2 hotel has been designed as an extension of Vietnamese street life, bringing local flavour from the outside in.
Architecture Workshop (AW2) designed every element of this affordable lifestyle hotel, from the architectural concept through to interior design and furniture, as well as collaborating with the company to create the brand identity across its hotels.
The brand focuses on creating a balance between design forwardness, financial return and construction feasibility while being a fashionable urban destination. AW²’s previous work in Vietnam (FV International Hospital, Four Seasons The Nam Hai and Six Senses Con Dao) with Indochina Capital, who created the development team, placed them in a strong position to respond to the client’s brief requirements.
For the Wink brand, AW2 created a specific locally-inspired colour palette deployed throughout the hotel, from the bespoke sunshades on the façade down to the cushion fabrics. The bold and vibrant exterior design attracts attention from the outside, acting as a beacon for the wider neighbourhood.
The Wink Hotel incorporates blended spaces where accommodation, work and leisure co-exist. The interior design is centred around creating a fun and dynamic environment, using furniture styles based on the street food culture such as food carts for the self-service food and beverage facilities and bicycles repurposed as table legs for the breakfast bars.
Collaborative spaces are made to encourage visitors and the public to use the public areas at their leisure. The shared spaces are composed into different flexible zones consisting of an entrance ‘Wink Space’ lobby, a lounge with integrated library and games area and food & beverage facilities. The food & beverage facilities cater to all needs including the Wink Bar, ‘grab and go’ self-service, breakfast bar and dining areas.
For the hotel guests, the bedrooms have been efficiently designed to be compact, with bespoke furniture that maximises space usage and with a strong brand identity throughout. With three different colour spectrum schemes (each made up of three key Wink-branded colours), the external sunshades act as an extension to the hotel interiors and reflect the colour themes found in each hotel bedroom.
“The Wink Hotel Saigon Centre is designed for a fast-growing, fast-changing society that remains connected to local traditions while simultaneously embracing contemporary trends,” added Reda Amalou & Stéphanie Ledoux, Partners, AW².
AW² have more than twenty years of experience within the hospitality industry, with projects in 40 different countries, working with leading hotel and resort operators. They have drawn upon their extensive knowledge to create a new brand that speaks to the next generation of global travellers.
The well-timed arrival of Wink Hotels will no doubt meet (perhaps exceed) new demands from modern travellers, to offer a hospitality setting that can effortlessly allow travellers to see destinations through fresh eyes.
Main image credit: AW2
