DESIGN & DEVELOPMENT
065 | Going Against the Grain with Hotel Impossible Designer Blanche Garcia
DESIGN & DEVELOPMENT
Blanche is a certified Interior Designer with over 18 years of experience in residential and commercial design and is the owner of B. Garcia Designs based in Montclair, New Jersey. She is also a principal designer featured in the popular Travel Channel reality series, Hotel Impossible.
Blanche is a member of the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) as well as a “Green Design” LEED Accredited Professional through the United States Green Building Commission.
In This Episode, Blanche Talks About …
- How she found her love of construction while volunteering at the age of 12 for nonprofit building projects around the country with her mother.
- Setting goals, then taking deliberate action to achieve them. And she shares one of her early career goals – to be on TV – and how that ultimately manifested in her life.
- Her first television appearance back in 2011 as a contestant in season 6 of the interior design reality competition series Design Star on HGTV.
- Being approached to do an episode of a new hotel design show … now known as Travel Channel’s Hotel Impossible … and how that single show morphed into a role as principal designer where she helps tackle the job of revamping hotels along with host, Anthony Melchiorri.
- The differences between a decorator and a designer, and she shares several simple things hotels can do to improve the design of the properties, that don’t cost a lot of money.
- Some of the mistakes that hoteliers make, and what you can do to avoid them.
If you’ve seen Blanche on Hotel Impossible or visited her website, then you know she’s extremely talented. However, what I didn’t realize until we connected is how authentic she is. Whether you read her blog or social media posts, or watch her “how to” videos or on TV, you get the same, real person, and she’s a riot.
Resources & Links
Blanche Garcia
B. Garcia Designs
B. Garcia Designs
551 Valley Rd. #170
Upper Montclair, NJ 07043
DESIGN & DEVELOPMENT
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311 | Shelters From the Norm: Hotels used for hospitals and housing face unexpected problems
A year ago, Darshan Patel, CEO of Hotel Investment Group in San Diego, California, was one of the first hoteliers in the U.S. to step up and offer properties to overwhelmed hospitals seeking places to care for COVID and non-COVID patients as well as vulnerable populations. As the crisis eases and Hotel Investment Group works to return the hotels to business, Patel is negotiating with local governments to pay for the wear and tear on the properties. Patel is not alone as many hoteliers are unexpectedly dealing with problems that state and local governments’ urgent decisions have created, including property damage, increased costs and eviction bans. This report is the second in a two-part series examining the pros and cons of opening hotels to alternative uses during the pandemic. It is part of Long Live Lodging’s special coverage of the coronavirus crisis and its impact on the hospitality industry.
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310 | Hotels Convert to Housing: Federal COVID-19-relief funds fuel transactions
Dhruv Patel, president of Ridgemont Hospitality, in October shared a bittersweet moment with his parents, Pravin and Sima Patel, when the family business sold the first motel that Pravin had built from the ground up more than 30 years ago. But they rest assured knowing it was the right decision because the 22-room property is being converted into affordable housing for military veterans at risk of homelessness. The transaction is among hundreds taking place across the U.S. as state and local governments work with non-profit agencies to create affordable housing solutions for vulnerable populations amid the COVID-19 pandemic. In Episode 310 Long Live Lodging reports on the financial and legal aspects of what it takes to convert a hotel into long-term housing. This report is part of Long Live Lodging’s special coverage of the coronavirus crisis and its impact on the hospitality industry.