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By Louise Witt
A double bed under the open sky on a mountainside in the Swiss Alps.
This is how the so-called Null Stern Hotel began, initially an art project created by Frank and Patrik Riklin, that ended up as a huge tourist attraction.
This uncommon hotel was one of the topics when the hotel industry’s international networking event in Denmark, The Lobby, took place for the first time in Herning in 2018.
Since then, The Lobby has shed light on several other ideas that challenge conventional thinking within the hotel industry. And every year, approximately 250 industry professionals from Europe have chosen to participate in the event
“Since the beginning the Lobby has had a clear focus: The hotel industry should be rethought and innovated with a focus on authenticity, humanity and a durable, sustainable future,” states founder Dorte Bagge.
“The courage to do something different is a good starting point for motivating and inspiring people to think in a new way,” she says to explain the choice of speakers.
Most recently, it has been the Greek hotelier, Nikos Karaflos, who has transformed an old vineyard into a place, where he offers networking events and talks for the benefit of both visitors and locals. Additionally, there have been examples like the Tunisian architect Sana Frini, founder of the Locus design studio in Mexico, and Karin Visth, manager of the Michelin-awarded restaurant KOKS in the Faroe Islands. The two women have shared their vision of basing their projects on site-specific history, culture, traditions, materials and raw materials that characterize their areas, respectively Mexico and the Faroe Islands.
”I have always been interested in pushing the industry," says Dorte Bagge.
All through her career she has focused on solutions for the hotel industry. To begin with she started working at the Danish radio and TV manufacturer B&O, then at the Danish textile company Kvadrat.
“Over the years, I have seen and experienced an industry with shortcomings and challenges. It could be a lack of authenticity and relationship-building activities. It could be generic and bland hotel experiences that could just as well take place in Tokyo as in Paris. It made me want to create a networking event where you not only listen to the challenges but create the right framework with the right people to solve them,” explains Dorte Bagge.
Today, in parallel with her work in The Lobby, Dorte Bagge also works as a consultant for some of Denmark's leading design manufacturers, including Fritz Hansen, HAY, Louis Poulsen and Made-Specific.
If you ask Dorte Bagge and the rest of the team behind The Lobby, what their vision is for the future of the hotel industry, she says:
“A lot of hotels do well, but it is important to learn from each other. I would like to encourage people to ask themselves: what is the purpose of creating this hotel experience, and how could authenticity, service, location and culture be a part of the concept? I think it is important to take a stand regarding the use and inclusion of local raw materials. To take on social responsibility, for example when it comes to vulnerable citizens. Or to create meeting places that help people to get to know one another and network, for example via communal dinners, cooking classes or workshops on ceramics. And no two areas or no two populations are the same. There is no right or wrong answer, no right or wrong solution. It depends entirely on the place and the people. But if the hotels are curious about what is happening in the local area, and what their reason is for being in this spot, and how they can contribute to a better local area, then we have come a long way,” says Dorte Bagge.
The planning of The Lobby 2026 is in full swing, and the theme has been chosen: “Celebrating Failures”.
“We would like to redefine the concept of “making mistakes”. It’s not just a negative thing but can be of great value in the form of learning. It can be difficult to talk about mistakes, and we would rather talk about what went well. But if we look inward, I think we can learn a lot from the things that are not generally considered a success,” concludes Dorte Bagge.
