Processed Video Transcription

See video version of this page, working with a hospitality designer.

This serves as a how-to guide when working with a designer for a hospitality custom wine cellar project.

When accepting or building a hospitality custom wine cellar project, who do you talk to or work with first?

It’s usually an architect or design firm that has multiple people with multiple aspects to it. Sometimes, there’s been very few or one individual that’s made for a smaller restaurant.

But when you’re looking at some of the major hotels which Iron Wine Cellars has done which are Four Seasons, Ritz-Carlton, Montage, A Voce in the Time Warner Building, those are mostly because of very large design architect firms with very large building firms.

Not to say that the smaller ones that we work on or individual restaurant – those would have some smaller designers and architects that are more individuals than it would be for these larger hotels.

How does the designing process work?

There are two aspects – one is that they have an idea and their idea is just everything that they want or think that they could do in a wine cellar and then Iron Wine Cellars comes in and we consult them to give them the reality.

Here’s the reality, here’s what we have to consider when building a wine room in – the Four Seasons or in that space whether the limitations and what we can actually do. So either expand the scope or we decrease the scope depending on the reality of that space.

There are times where they ask us “do you think we could be there?” and we give the initial design and then we work together on creating that final look.

What’s the required design format of a wine cellar?

It’s more of 3D drawing (CAD Render) to start but then we tie in colors when things get a little bit detailed and then we let them know the color schemes because we noticed that they do red roses with red chairs and these are the dimensions that we have to work with and this is what I’m looking for – wood and maybe some metals, glass.

As a wine cellar designer, do you charge for consultancy?

Usually, we give the first/initial conversation and such – I really like to do a “discovery call“. It’s really getting to understand their budget, understanding time frame, understanding of its union and non-union, understanding if it’s a wood concept, understanding the intent to spend, understanding when they want to complete it.

So, understanding all of those different aspects to finalize those things but once I put together a design (and they provide me with the design), I give them a budgetary number – expect to spend about “x“.

Then I’ll say  “should we continue?” and if we do continue I do request 10 percent or usually like a 5,000 dollars or 10,000 dollars depending on how large the project is, kinda of a fee to do the rest of the designs and consultation.

What’s the typical budget like?

We did the Deer Valley St. Regis and it was a couple hundred thousand dollars to do that project. The range is anywhere from probably about 50,000 up to 300, 400, 500-thousand dollars depending on what you wanna get accomplished.

Check out: Hospitality Wine Storage Cellars – Displays for Restaurants & Hotels

Category: wine cellar builders Read More