How to brief a designer: a guide for first-time hospitality operators

A folder of images can begin the conversation. Add what each image means to you: the light, the scale, the way people gather. “I’ll know it when I see it” can stay in the room, but give the designer something more specific to work with.

Who is your first guest?

Describe a person in a particular moment. Tuesday, 3 PM: who is in your room, and why did they choose it?

Tell the designer what that guest came for and how you want them to feel. A demographic label can sit in the brief; the person gives you something to design around.

What should the room promise them?

Write one sentence about what the room offers that guest. It can be rough.

If you cannot write it yet, name the uncertainty. Make that part of the conversation rather than substituting another reference image.

What is the real project budget?

Share the budget available to your project and where there is flexibility. Distinguish what is fixed from what is still being worked out.

This is a design conversation about priorities. Name what you want to protect, what you are prepared to reconsider, and what remains unknown.

What must work every day?

Bring your service model, equipment needs, and the workflow you know from your side of the pass. Include the requirements you are still testing.

Your operational knowledge belongs in the brief: where prep happens, how service moves, and what the team needs at the handoff. Put those observations beside the guest experience.

What does the concept refuse to be?

Name three things you want to leave out. “Not rustic. Not precious. Not a version of the place down the street.”

Then explain each one. Is it a material, an atmosphere, or a way of treating the guest? Give the designer the reason as well as the no.

What should you expect back?

Expect a conversation about the brief. Ask the designer which parts are clear, which need testing, and what is missing.

For KPHD, the brief is already a design decision: an early account of what matters, made visible enough to discuss.

Draft the five parts, even roughly. Bring what you know and mark what you do not. That is a useful place to begin the design conversation.