Lighten Up – It’s Time for Playful Luxury!

13.08.2024

In an era marked by unprecedented global angst and a growing sense of isolation, a collective longing for shared joy and guilt-free pleasures has emerged to significantly transform the contemporary luxury hospitality brandscape.

 

Yesteryear’s drive for (superficial) authenticity and (gimmicky) personalisation has evolved into a profound desire for more meaningful and joyful connections with our surroundings – the guests and the locals, the community and the neighbourhood. This is where the concept of Playful Luxury comes in. This concept focuses on leaving behind the traditional, often unapproachable image of luxury, in favour of a lighter, more engaging approach that prioritises human connection and memorable experiences.

Enter Cardo

A first-of-its kind Autograph MICE-forward brand that promises ‘hospitality with a sense of self’.

Cardo takes its name from Ancient Rome’s idea of ‘the heart of the city’ and aims to build a portfolio committed to community and togetherness, mindfulness and introspection alongside a deep connection to local culture and context. A brand all about transforming traditional business trips into purposeful journeys that cater to the evolving needs of the modern global bleisure traveller by optimising corporate culture and nurturing personal wellbeing to create spaces and experiences that serve as platforms for collective knowledge and emotional intelligence. Designed to compete internationally, but connect locally, each property features unique identities and cultivates their own storytelling and experiences. First in Brussels, Rome and Paris, but with much more to come.

When everyone else Zigs and Zags, Zwanze

 

Cardo Brussels embodies this new philosophy by redefining the traditional hotel experience around Europe’s de facto capital sense of humour: zwanze.

 

Something so deeply rooted in Belgian everyday life that we’d be foolish not to hero. We’re talking about a sort of spirited and satirical outlook that permeates every aspect of Brussels’ social and cultural life, from its famous comic strips, to its creative bureaucracy and back to its warm beer – ouch! This now also permeates the spaces and experiences that story the hotel. Always indulgent and inclusive, but seriously ‘not so serious’.

Lulz as an universal language

The brand identity, brand experience and interior design approaches was to inject the guest journey with playfulness and surprise.

From the energetic use of colour and texture to the interactivity of art installations, we harnessed this satirical verve to create an atmosphere that finds space between the irreverence and self-expression of ‘shouldn’t have said that’, and the individuality and introspection of ‘say it out loud to see how it feels’.

The ‘Satirique’, a portraiture slash caricature experience is Cardo Brussel’s (The) Mark and does just that.

 

The hotel’s very own in-house cartoonist studio where guests can get personalised caricatures or have their events (MICE or private parties) captured as memorable comic strips. Inside jokes or work shenanigans are now pen to paper and an one-of-a-kind travel souvenir, that has guests embrace their playful side and see themselves from a different perspective, fostering self-reflection and connection with others.

Photo Credit: Cardo Brussels, Cardo Hotels
Photography: Sander Baks
Interior Design: Saar Zafrir

Blacksheep Design Collectives Ltd ©
Unlocking guest experiences.

Get in touch
contact@blacksheep.uk.com
+44 (0)20 7713 7413

 

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Workspace – The Leather Market
11-13 Weston St
SE1 3ER

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