A cross-brand role spanning three luxury labels
The recent appointment of Tom Chalmers has strengthened the leadership team of a group that Barry Sternlicht has refocused on luxury and lifestyle. A graduate of Nottingham Trent University, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in interior architecture (1999-2003), Tom Chalmers is also LEED AP BD+C accredited and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. He brings more than twenty years of international experience in hospitality design, development and brand strategy. His remit is to evolve the group’s overall vision for architecture and interior architecture.
At Starwood, his scope covers both new developments and the existing portfolio. He therefore works closely with owners, developers, architects and creative teams. His aim is to carry the distinctive identity of each of the group’s brands around the world: 1 Hotels, Baccarat Hotels and Treehouse Hotels.
A career spanning London, New York and Lisbon
From 2018 to 2020, Tom Chalmers was Director of Design and Experience at Edyn. There he oversaw the entire process across sixteen Locke, Moorgate and white-label sites in the UK and Europe, from pre-acquisition studies and site audits through to construction. As a member of the executive committee, he took part in the repositioning of Locke, carried out over eighteen months.
He went on to advise Edyn on design and brand until 2023, notably on Locke de Santa Joana in Lisbon. This flagship property comprises 375 units, four food and beverage outlets and a private members’ club. He was also part of the founding team of Birch, responsible for its initial design and brand direction.
Between 2016 and 2018, he headed AvroKO’s London office, leading the London and New York teams on Mortimer House, the restoration of the Trafalgar Hotel, Puro Warsaw, the redesign of the W Hotel Paris and the food and beverage spaces at the Four Seasons hotels in Madrid and Cairo.
His career also includes a spell at Gensler in San Francisco, as Design Director on the renovation of Timber Cove Inn and on Cipriani Ibiza. He then became Director, Property Development at The Standard in New York, where he steered projects from initial audits through to the completion of the renovations of The Standard East Village and The Standard Miami Beach.
Tom Chalmers began his career in architecture in New York at Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM), where he worked notably on the new retail space at Penn Station. He then joined Grimshaw as an Associate from 2008 to 2014, working on some of the practice’s most high-profile hotel projects and visitor attractions. Since January 2026, he has sat on Grimshaw’s board, with responsibility for interior architecture.
From Mohari Hospitality to AvroKO
Most recently, Tom Chalmers was Head of Design at Mohari Hospitality, where he led the design of a global portfolio of luxury properties from concept through to delivery, working alongside operators, developers and creative teams.
Before that, he spent several years at AvroKO, serving as Managing Director EMEA, then Global Head of Strategy and Principal, at the helm of the firm’s international studios. His work there included The Whiteley in London, home to the first Six Senses hotel in the UK as well as branded residences. He also worked on The Ritz-Carlton Reserve Nujuma, on the Red Sea, and on the restaurants at the Four Seasons at The Pearl, in Qatar.
His AvroKO projects also include a hotel with a private members’ club in Athens, in the former Hilton, and the conversion of a convent in Lisbon. Finally, he worked on 1 Hotel Copenhagen, giving him first-hand knowledge of the 1 Hotels brand and its nature-led approach.
Supporting growth in the Middle East
The group is strengthening its presence in several key international markets, including the Middle East. Upcoming projects include Baccarat Hotel & Residences Dubai as well as 1 Hotels, Baccarat Hotels and Treehouse Hotels projects in Riyadh, a market rapidly gaining momentum.
Tom Chalmers will therefore need to ensure that the design of each new property remains true to the brand’s requirements while responding to its destination and context.
At a glance by The Hospitality Tribune
Starwood Hotels appoints Tom Chalmers as SVP Design & Architecture
London-based; in role since June 2026, announced September 30, 2026
Oversees design for 1 Hotels, Baccarat Hotels and Treehouse Hotels, across new builds and existing properties
Previously Head of Design at Mohari Hospitality and Principal at AvroKO
Portfolio includes The Whiteley London (Six Senses), The Ritz-Carlton Reserve Nujuma, Four Seasons at The Pearl-Qatar and 1 Hotel Copenhagen
Pipeline: Baccarat Hotel & Residences Dubai; 1 Hotels, Baccarat and Treehouse projects in Riyadh
