Entrants from around the world answered the call by industry leaders: develop a never-before-seen concept for hospitality that can revolutionize the industry. Design professionals and students alike put their proposals forward, and just four ideas have been shortlisted.
On Wednesday, May 15th at 10:00 a.m. in the South Pacific Ballroom E, your vote will help determine who will receive the $10,000 seventh annual Radical Innovation in Hospitality Awards Competition grand prize, the brainchild of Hospitality Design and the John Hardy Group, as the finalists battle it out Shark Tank-style in front of the judges. Immediately after voting, share cocktails with the winners in the Global Allies booth (#4402), the competition’s sponsor.
“The spirit of Radical Innovation is to be a catalyst for change in the hospitality industry, and this competition is the platform for these creative individuals to get their ideas recognized,” says John Hardy, founder and CEO of the John Hardy Group. “Now in its seventh cycle, we continue to be impressed by new concepts and we received more than ever, as we doubled our entries this year, from twenty-five different countries.”
And the finalists are…
Nomad

Design: Jihyoon Yoon and Saeyoung Yoon
Concept: Guests are able to bring the hotel with them from city to city. Their movable suites are docked in local train stations, which serve as hubs for shopping, dining, and local activities. When moving to the next city, the suite is carried by the rail circulation system.
Convergence

Design: Caroline Fraser, Luca Valentini, and Flora Olivieri 
Concept: Convergence is an urban hotel designed to maximize interactions between guests and locals by merging their leisure, social, and business needs and removing the barriers of usual functional spaces.
Pop-Up Hotel NY

Design: Eric Tan, Fabian Busse, Leon Lai, and Nico Schlapps
Concept: The design focuses on the transformation of empty Class A office spaces (for example, in midtown Manhattan) into hospitality spaces meant to be a means of urban revitalization, an economic catalyst, as well as an active community partner.
Student Finalist: The Studio-Pod

Design: Michael Burch, University of Kansas 
Concept: This concept is a solution for students and professionals who spend most of their time in the studio. The Studio-Pod is designed with simplicity, efficiency, and comfort in mind-creating the ideal working environment to maximize productivity and build community.
