Mary Wilson, founder & president of California-based real estate development and design firm Wilson Pacific Development, is set to attend Hotec Design, an annual conference presented by Questex, the parent company of Hotel Management. At the conference—scheduled this year for June 16-18 at the Fairmont Scottsdale (Ariz.) Princess—buyers meet one-on-one with hospitality-focused suppliers to learn about new products and services and to keep up-to-date on emerging trends.
Ahead of the conference, Wilson talked about wellness-focused design, sustainability and other trends that are gaining ground.
1. What are you most excited about for your company in 2025 (and beyond)?
2025 is an exciting time to be in the hotel development and design business. Customer preferences are rapidly changing, which brings a lot of opportunities for newer companies like ours to create innovative hotel designs that excite guests.
2. What are some of the biggest design-related changes you’ve seen in the hotel industry over the past year?
Health-conscious design materials have become a lot more prevalent in the past year. It used to be rare to find low-VOC, red-list free, formaldehyde free, etc. design materials, but it is good to see more suppliers offering these products.
3. How has your business adjusted to these changes?
We have tried to incorporate as many health-conscious design materials as possible in our projects.
4. What steps are you taking to improve sustainability in the industry?
I am a big fan of sample recycling programs, they are a win-win because they are sustainable programs and they help to prevent my studio from getting too cluttered with excess samples.
5. What are some trends you think will have staying power beyond 2025?
Moody lighting design, warm color palettes and natural stone.
6. What is the biggest challenge you have overcome over the past year? How did you overcome it?
I started my company in 2024, and my biggest challenge was getting established and developing a project pipeline. Networking and connecting with the industry has helped me overcome that challenge.
7. What is the value of meeting hospitality suppliers one-on-one?
Meeting with suppliers helps build trust and leads to successful projects for me. If I meet with a supplier who really connects with me, I feel much more comfortable placing a large design materials order with them knowing that they will be there to help.
8. What do you hope to accomplish at Hotec this year?
I am looking forward to learning about the latest product innovations in hotel design at Hotec. I would also like to connect with suppliers and attendees at the event.
Hotec Design will take place June 16-18 at the Fairmont Scottsdale (Ariz.) Princess. Applications are open for buyers and suppliers.