Born in Madrid in 1960. Obtained the title of Architect in 1989 at ETSAM (Higher Technical School of Architecture of Madrid), graduating with honors in 1989.

Projects Professor between 1986 and 2016, at ETSAM in Madrid (1986/2016). Professor of the Master of Collective Housing at ETSAM (2008/2012). Professor at CEU Arquitectura, Madrid (1990/1995).

During the course of his academic and professional career, participates in various architecture seminars, summer courses, conferences and expositions.

The scope of his work covers from the macro, urban planning scale, all the way to the Architecture Project scale, interior design and furniture design.

In 2005, he’s distinguished for his work with the Colegio Oficial de Arquitectos (COAM) Prize, and in 2014 with the Prémio Valmor Honorable Mention.

Distinguished with the Urban Rehabilitation National Prize (Prémio Nacional de Rehabilitação Urbana) in 2020, 2021 and 2022. Obtained the Prize for Best Rehabilitation and Touristic Project for the Hotel Memmo Alfama (2015) and the Prize for Best Touristic Development for the Hotel Memmo Príncipe Real (2017).

Participates in both national and international Architecture contests, highlighting:

1st prize in the contest for the COAM headquarters building project in Madrid – Spain (1991)

1st prize in the contest for the University of Alicante’s Library – Spain (1995)

Europan IV, Spain (1999)

Europan V, Portugal (2000)

Europan VI – Portugal (2002)

1st prize contest for the Madan Parque headquarters in Almada – Portugal (2006)

1st prize contest for the Multipurpose Pavilion in Móstoles – Spain (2007)

1st prize contest for Loures’ City Council building – Portugal (2009)

1st prize contest for Ivens Arte residential building in Lisbon (2014)

1st prize contest for the Hotel in São Paulo Square, Lisbon (2017)

1st prize contest for the residential building in D. Luis Square, Lisbon (2017)

1st prize contest for student residence building in Porto Brandão (2021)

1st prize contest for residential building in Porto Brandão (2021)

1st prize contest for residential building in Vilamoura – Portugal (2023)

Serdar is Chief Executive Officer of Slowness, an experimental hospitality collective that reframes the ways we live, work and interact through the holistic development and programming of destinations around the world. An expert in innovation and brand positioning, he drives all business development efforts of Slowness and its independent holding company, Slow Capital, and spearheads the creation of a global community program.

Before joining Slowness in April of 2020, Serdar was Chief Operating Officer at Design Hotels, where he played a vital role over his 12 years at the company in shaping its fine collection of 350 independent member hotels and driving creative and strategic development of the brand. As a key player in business development efforts, he was responsible for the successful launch of Starwood’s SPG program at Design Hotels and, later, its collaboration with major shareholder Marriott International.

Over the years, Serdar has established a worldwide network of influential players in the industry, creating new concepts and innovative collaborations. This journey culminates in the creation of Slowness, where he and the founders have built a team that’s uniquely suited to tackle current challenges in the industry and push toward a slower, more sustainable future.

Devoted to the creation of hospitality destinations that resonate with their local culture and people, José is the 8th generation of the same family to have lived at São Lourenço do Barrocal, a new award-winning destination set within a 780-hectare estate of the Alentejo inland. He is also the lead developer of this vision for a modern country living in Portugal.  Partner in Na Praia, a new coastal development with 2 km of beach on the Tróia peninsula, José is presently committed to bring this special project to life, respecting and valuing the incredible place where it’s being created. He has three children with his wife, Ana, with whom he shares ownership of Estúdio Lisboa.

Benjamin Habbel is the Founder and CEO of Aethos, the next-generation lifestyle brand creating experience-led boutique hotels and member clubs in Europe’s most exciting destinations.

Since founding the company, he grew Aethos into one of Europe’s fastest-growing hospitality brands and developed ten hotels and clubs located in Milan, Lisbon, and Sardinia, among others. In addition to his role at Aethos, Benjamin is Managing Partner of Limestone Capital, a leading private equity firm dedicated to investing and creating value in the experience economy. At Limestone, he oversees investments into brands like Emerald Stay, Europe’s leading luxury home rental platform, and serves on its board of directors.

Benjamin’s professional journey began as a portfolio manager for a venture capitalist firm in Copenhagen. He later joined Google’s product management team in Silicon Valley, where he focused on strategic product launches for Google Search and Android. Benjamin then served as Chief of Staff to Marissa Mayer and played a crucial role in managing the global Google Maps organization.

In 2012, he founded Voyat, a hospitality technology startup that specialized in E-Commerce optimization software for the industry. Voyat collaborated with renowned brands such as Four Seasons, Sydell Group, and Highgate Hotels before being successfully acquired by Intent Media Inc. in 2016. Benjamin also served as a Non-Executive Board Member at Mövenpick Hotels until its acquisition by Accor Group. Apart from his board commitments, he provides advisory services to multiple startups in both Europe and the USA, demonstrating his commitment to fostering innovation and growth in the business landscape.

Nini Andrade Silva, a trailblazing interior designer of global acclaim, was born in the city of Funchal, Madeira Island. Renowned for her exceptional work, Nini’s designs have garnered international recognition, elevating Portugal’s design legacy to new heights and positioning her alongside the industry’s finest talents. Her ingenious touch has graced numerous iconic hotels worldwide, solidifying her status as one of the most prestigious interior designers on the planet. 

Nini Andrade Silva stands synonymous with innovation, creativity, and cultural preservation. With an awe-inspiring portfolio and an unwavering commitment to excellence, Nini shapes the future of interior design while leaves an indelible mark on the world. 

Emma leads the Premium, Luxury & Lifestyle Design team at InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) in Europe, where she bears responsibility for the design, development, and product quality across all new openings and refurbishments. Her role includes the integration of IHG’s innovation program, focusing on repositioning strategies and executing the implementation of new generation Holiday Inn Express, Holiday Inn, Crowne Plaza, as well as the establishment of new brands like voco and Vignette Collection. She has been pivotal in establishing the Hotel Indigo brand with a design narrative centred around the local neighbourhood for each property. Additionally, she has overseen the redesign of IHG’s long-stay offering, Staybridge Suites, with a focus on maximizing investment potential.

More recently, Emma has concentrated on collaborating with IHG’s Development team to secure new hotel signings for the IHG Luxury & Lifestyle portfolio, encompassing brands such as Kimpton, InterContinental, and Regent. She concurrently manages the interior design projects for the Vignette Collection and Regent brands. Since joining IHG in 2014, Emma has assembled a team of seven professionals, comprising five Interior Designers, and two luxury architects dedicated to projects, the existing portfolio, and new ventures.

In her leisure time, Emma pursues personal development projects, notably including the design of a 300-square-metre newly constructed home, which she and her husband designed and built, featured in Grand Designs magazine. Additionally, she is embarking on the renovation and extension of another property, alongside the restoration of an iconic apartment situated in the prime location of Weymouth Harbour.

Patrick Keane is an award-winning Architect, rebuilding the world with natural rattan and modern-day technologies. Having lived across 5 continents, he uses his experience and knowledge to introduce forward-thinking approaches in design, fusing new technology with local skill sets and regional arts & crafts.

Patrick achieved his Bachelor degree in Environmental Design at the University of Western Australia before setting his sights on the University of Princeton in the US, graduating with a Masters in Architecture. He had his baptism of fire in New York’s competitive architecture realm before establishing Enter Projects in 2005.

Latterly renamed Enter Projects Asia, Patrick has led the team to create noteworthy projects, consistently garnering attention from the public and the design community, both locally and globally.  These projects are now receiving global acclaim for their grassroots sustainability, embracing digital design technology and dovetailing it with local craftsmanship, using locally sourced and crafted 100% biodegradable rattan. The firm has been published in 39 industry titles across 25 countries since arriving in South East Asia in 2018.

Patrick explains his approach: “Architecture is not for the faint-hearted. Our aesthetic has to be contemporary, as our work seeks to have continued relevance. A designer needs be part of the spirit of the age, and part of modern culture, in order to represent trends in thought, reference the past and be optimistic for the future.”

Maria is an established thought-leader within the hospitality design world, admired for her exceptional and award-winning projects, sought out by discerning property owners and respected for the value she brings to all her work. Whether designing boldly contemporary interiors or working within the classical genre, she draws on location, cultural heritage and her understanding of luxury to create something unique. An architect by training and an interior designer by choice, she combines visionary use of space with design that reaches out beyond trend, that is commercially astute, innovative and delightfully surprising.
Maria established MKV Design in London in 2000 after an early career which had taken her from Athens to Milan and onto the UK. Since then, she has cultivated a business which has worked across Europe, in the Middle East and in Africa. Current/recent projects include: Matild Palace, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Budapest; Mykonos Grand Hotel & Resort; Bürgenstock Resort in Switzerland; Costa Navarino, Greece; the Sheraton Grand London Park Lane; Grand Hyatt Athens; Athens Capital Centre Hotel – MGallery Collection; and Grand Hyatt Hotel & Residences, Abu Dhabi. Maria has also designed a number of acclaimed spas and luxury golf clubhouses including Alpine Spa, Althea Spa and The Bay Clubhouse.
She is a regular contributor at industry events and judge of international design awards. Last year, she published Design Alchemist, a retrospective on her work and her reflections on the value of design in the hospitality experience.
www.mkvdesign.com

Born and raised in Sweden, of Greek- Finnish descent, Katja travelled and worked in various countries around the world during her early career in the fashion industry as a professional fashion model. Passionate and curious about different cultures, but also with a great love for the Mediterranean spirit and lifestyle, she found herself a few years later in Athens, where she moved permanently and studied interior design. Through her new profession as an interior designer, she was fascinated by merging a wide range of cultures, drawing energy from hidden treasures of traditional and modern Greece, while being inspired of new experiences, people, places, and nature.

As co-founder of Block722 architects for over a decade now, she has consistently instilled a sense of timelessness, refinement, and quality into the studio’s design. She has managed to establish all over the world, as in Europe, Australia, Middle East, close and long-lasting collaborations with architects, designers, and craftsmen with the warm and comfort that comes out of her cross-cultural and nomadic state of mind.

Ria Vogiatzi was born in Athens, Greece and completed her studies in the Architecture school of the National Technical University of Athens.

The sculptural approach of her design, deconstruction of fluid forms, was the inspiration for the name of the architectural studio, ELASTIC Architects, founded in 2005 together with Architect Alexandros Xenos, which is now an international architectural brand with a global portfolio that includes mainly hotel and mixed-use resort projects, with a clientele of Aman Resorts, Janu by Aman, One & Only Resorts, Marriott, Accor, Nammos Restaurants & Hotels, Nobu, Hyatt, The Edition, Brown Hotels, Banyan Tree Resorts etc.

Fortune magazine recognized her as a Trailblazer for her avant-garde design, she was awarded the World Woman Leader of Advanced Architecture by the Who is Who International Awards and has been announced as Ambassador of Advanced Architecture.

Her projects have received multiple awards in America, Europe and England, and she has given important speeches on architecture in Greece and abroad.