Microluxe: The New Gold Standard for Vacation Rentals

When was the last time you checked into a hotel and found the décor to be breathtaking? How many instances have you wished you could furnish your home like an inn you where you stayed? Well, you just may be in luck because the Edwards Moore Firm in Australia is trying a new concept for hotels.

Guests who stay at the luxury room, called Microluxe, have the unique opportunity to purchase the décor. You heard correctly. This luxurious “apartment” found in Melbourne has a modern motif with leather and metallic accents. When patrons prepare to leave, they can buy furniture, art, and other accessories. Space also functions as a showroom when unoccupied, doubling the earning potential for this set up.

Space itself is a unique design by the Edwards Moore firm. It has been completely re-done with marble countertops and tile; geometric patterning throughout the room and lighting modernized by neon flourishes. The head of the design team, Ben Edwards, believes that the room’s overall look will change as patrons purchase items that will then be replaced. The effect is that no two stays will be the same.

Edwards views the room as a gallery with the décor being the art pieces. He explains that the “art” will be ever-changing to match the new theme of the chamber. Patrons can buy everything from the bed linens to custom furniture. The room is designed to be transient in nature so that purchases don’t immediately take away from the overall décor.

This luxury room was no small job for the firm. Architects had to start from scratch after the renovation was done. Walls and doors were removed to give the space an open, airy feel. Edwards points out that they have achieved the feeling of a large area in a smaller space. He thinks this apartment defies the ideas of what and where luxury can be found.

Many reviewers have found the Microluxe room to be warm and yet animated. The goal for the design was to wrap valuable items and objects around the rawness of the building. The room is found on the bottom floor of a five-story building. The location of the apartment in Melbourne attracts the modern traveler with a love of history and modern motifs.

The complete remodel of the apartment in the town of Fitzroy was done for the real estate company called Microluxe. Some of the features are a kitchen designed in steel and a bathroom lined with marble. A spacious bath is found in the back of the room, pedestal perched on a pedestal. A gold structure near the front of the room holds a fold out bed. The kitchen door opens out into a serene courtyard, complete with garden. There are modern touches throughout the space as luxury and function come together.

The room is outfitted with leather furniture with a modern twist as an artwork is also notable. Wine glasses marble pedestals finish the look of luxury. Guests are provided robes and other small touches that make their stay memorable. Marble, as well as stone and concrete, help to define the different living areas for the room.

Edwards explains that his firm wanted to market the room as an “experience,” instead of just lodging. The ambiance is purposefully designed to create warmth and animation for the person staying there. He hopes that the customer will want to carry this very specific mood and to feel home with him, which would encourage purchases.

The concept of showcasing household products in a vacation setting may change the face of rentals and rooms shortly. A collaboration between designers, sellers and property owners allows a complete experience for the traveler. Customers will have the advantage of seeing everything up close and even using furnishings to gauge how much they like them.

Intuitive business people will see the benefits of the presentation of goods in this unique way. Property rental rates can be increased because of the unique draw of the apartments. Customers will be willing to pay more for the experience of luxury and modern décor. Home good companies can expand their lines to accommodate this new niche in travel.

As this idea grows, more and more vacation rentals and hotel chains will follow suit and the expensive price tags for the room décor will decrease. This will more than likely affect the quality of items, as well. The practice of purchasing items from where you stay will generalize into a mass production effort. Big corporations such as Walmart and other retailers may get into the business of decorating budget hotel rooms. For now, however, this luxury is reserved for the wealthy travelers.

If you would like to try this concept a little closer to home, The Apartment by the Line company is available. They have townhouses and pop-up apartments in New York City and Los Angeles. Visitors fortunate enough to be able to afford it can buy furnishings from these rooms. This venture has managed to promote the home furnishing line.

Juliet Moore and Ben Edwards founded the Edwards Moore Company in 2009. Moore was born in London, England in 1973. She attained a B.Arch and a Master’s Degree in Architecture in 1998 from RMIT. Ben Edwards was also born in England, 1975. He achieved a BA and then a Master’s Degree from Liverpool. They are known for their original decorative style. Some of their other projects include interiors showing off exposed brick; homes designed from an emergency dispatch center and suspended staircase. Edwards hopes this new trend of purchasing room décor will expand to other parts of the region and even the world.

Edwards Moore’s work has also included projects such as the “raining diamonds” artwork that was set up for Ricki Lee’s music video in 2012. They designed portable steps for Helsinki and Muscles along with other exhibitions. One of their first shows titled Fringes was comprised almost entirely of wood chips and helped them to win their first best interior design awards.