Global jet-setting and hotel branding help to define office style at the Starwood Hotels Design Center, the creative headquarters for the Luxury Collection, St. Regis, Le Méridien and W Hotels. The SoHo office, located at 75 Varick St., has more than 50 employees.
Style can vary depending on partner or brand, said Sarah Doyle, associate director of global partnership marketing. That might mean an edgy cocktail dress for an evening film premiere at W Hotels in London, or a more classic, "high tea" look for a St. Regis polo event.
Frequent international travel is a factor for some. Paul James, global brand leader of W Hotels, St. Regis and the Luxury Collection, is on the road more than 150 days a year. For him, jackets with pockets are essential. "I've got passports and wallets and currencies, coins, Blackberrys and all of this stuff," he said, "and I don't like clutter."
The Dress Code: It's business casual, although style varies by role and responsibilities. "A lot can happen out of the blue, which means that I always want to have a certain sophistication in my look," said Simon Neggers, PR Director for St. Regis and the Luxury Collection, one of the few people in the office who regularly wears a suit. "I would never go to the office in a big sweater, jeans and sneakers-just because I can be called into a meeting with owners coming into town, or I can end up having drinks at a networking event that evening."
Art director Amalia Ramos takes a more relaxed approach. "I've been told that creative people can get away with a lot, so we'll have some cool sneakers thrown in there."
Collecting Keepsakes: Many employees pick up souvenirs on their business trips. "I like to collect my memories through some purchases," said Meredith Dichter, director of global marketing for the Luxury Collection. "It brings me back to some of the experiences I had when traveling to those locations."
Emily Shattan, global brand manager for Le Méridien, views shopping and traveling with colleagues as a bonding experience. "If we can squeeze in an hour or two to go shopping, it's fun to see each other in the office and remember that we got that scarf, necklace or bracelet together."
Trey Sarten, PR director for W Hotels and Le Méridien, is discriminating about his travel purchases. "I'm not one who goes, ‘I'm in Istanbul so I need to bring home an evil-eye bracelet,'" he said. "It becomes a bragging right in some degree to say, ‘This is different than anything anyone else has in New York City, which is kind of a lofty statement because it's New York City and everything's here."
Source: Wall Street Journal (including interactive photo gallery)
