Located on 20 floors of an 80-storey tower in the $1 billion West Side Place complex, The Ritz-Carlton, Melbourne is a brand-new urban retreat that opened its doors in early 2023. Designed by Australian architectural firm Cottee Parker with developer Far East Consortium and interior design by BAR Studio, the hotel has a distinctively Melbourne feel, while staying true to the Ritz Carlton tradition of quality and luxury.

The Ritz-Carlton Melbourne’s interiors are lavish in every way, with 257 stylish suites, a restaurant, ballroom, executive office spaces and a day spa. The project’s goal was to incorporate elements of Melbourne’s cultural identity into the interior design, from Indigenous culture to the Victorian-era gold rush, with a nod to local history as well as its European influence.

“Melbourne’s laneways build a real, diverse and intimate connection with the city. It is this ‘feeling’ that is uniquely Melbourne to me. And it is this interplay, this sense of discovery, of unexpected, special moments and experiences that is central to the design of The Ritz-Carlton, Melbourne,” says Stewart Robertson, co-founder and creative director of BAR Studio.

Designing for hospitality

When it comes to pubs, clubs and restaurants to hotels and guestrooms, authenticity and locality are essential in creating a memorable experience for guests, who are seeking a more personalised touch in their surroundings. To be authentic, the interior has to not only look good, but it must be unique and designed for that particular space.

As leaders in commercial flooring solutions, GH Commercial understand the intricacies of designing for hospitality projects. With their expert inhouse design and local manufacturing capabilities, GH Commercial’s knowledgeable team can guide clients through the design process.

Creating a unique sense of place and luxury

To seamlessly blend together Melbourne’s cultural identity and Ritz-Carlton’s expression of timeless luxury, BAR Studio turned to GH Commercial for custom floor covering solutions. Drawing on over 150 years of local manufacturing experience in Australia and New Zealand, GH Commercial’s in-house design team were able to create truly bespoke carpet and hand-crafted rug designs that brought BAR Studio’s meticulously-planned and detail-oriented vision to life.

The Ritz-Carlton Melbourne serves as a perfect example of how GH Commercial’s broad range of custom carpet options can be applied throughout an entire project. From hand-crafted rugs in the foyer and entryways that create a grand entrance to bold woven carpets in the ballroom and more subdued, softer carpets in suites, each carpet or rug is carefully selected to bring cohesion to the design interior, and comfort and warmth to guests.

These custom carpet designs use a variety of high-end textile patterns in an inspiring neutral colour palette that combines rust, chartreuse, olive, silver, rich and pale gold, and navy as accent colours with neutral bases of charcoal and grey to match the interior decor. Herringbone-patterned carpets recall the tailors of Collins Street, while a subtle chevron pattern is integrated in the range of designs to achieve continuity between the spaces, with a contemporary tartan overlay providing colour highlights.

Showcasing GH Commercial’s unique custom capabilities, the monumental ballroom features a made-to-measure design that reflects the unique ceiling features of the space.

Traditional weaving meets cutting-edge technology

The Ritz-Carlton features Woven Axminster carpets and hand-crafted rugs in a range of bespoke designs, all of which help define its unique kind of glitz and glamour.

Made under their Feltex brand, GH Commercial’s woven carpets are manufactured from a rich, premium, wool blend fibre. For luxe hospitality settings, woven carpet is a popular choice as it is naturally durable, and the dense pile gives a lush underfoot feel. These woven carpets are available in different weighted versions so they can accommodate the various foot traffic requirements of every commercial and residential space.

Hotel lobbies and foyers are often part of guests’ first experience, which make them the perfect place to feature GH Commercial’s hand-crafted rugs that create a sense of luxury as you first step into a venue. With a wide range of construction types, finishes, and fibres to choose from, such as silk, viscose, wool, or cotton, clients have all the tools to create a premium, standout design that is literally created by hand.

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Photography: Simon Milder Photography

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