Bell & Swift appointed to redesign the iconic Hilton Glasgow

22 October 2020

The landmark Hilton Glasgow hotel is set to undergo a large-scale refurbishment having appointed Scottish commercial interior design company Bell & Swift to help transform the hotel.

The hotel refurb is set to include all 319 existing guestrooms, an additional three guestrooms harvested from a redundant executive lounge on the 18th floor, and function and leisure spaces across the hotel. Bell & Swift have been working onsite, to create three model rooms for feasibility testing of the designs of the standard, deluxe and executive level suites. The function and pre-function areas are due for completion in December 2020 with the rest of the project to continue to be rolled out the following year.

Bell & Swift, headed up by Dawn Campbell and Craig McKie, are a leading commercial interior design agency, with over 20 years of experience in hotel design. The team, based in Glasgow, specialise in interior design for global hotel chains, boutique spaces and renovation projects which they’ve carried out across the globe. Dawn and Craig have worked with the Hilton team on a number of projects throughout their career including projects for their Doubletree and Hampton by Hilton brands. They are enjoying the opportunity to work on a project closer to home.

The design concept is centred around Glasgow heritage, taking inspiration from the “Glasgow Style” made famous by world renowned designer and architect Charles Rennie Mackintosh.

The newly designed hotel rooms will feature bespoke furniture elements, designed in a linear style as a nod to the iconic designer. Carpets and soft furnishing selections are inspired by the work of sisters Margaret MacDonald Mackintosh and Frances MacDonald MacNair. The Ballroom and Pre-function Bar required a complete redesign and will continue the Glasgow Style but on a grander scale, to allow suitability for functions and gatherings and help re-establish the hotel as Scotland’s premier function destination. The Ballroom is the largest of the hotels function spaces at 944 sq. m.

Luke Townsend, Senior Manager – Commercial/Project Management at Hilton Glasgow said: “This will be the largest renovation the hotel has undergone since its opening in 1992. Our vision for the project is to enhance our offering with a modern take on elegance and luxury, restoring the hotel to its position as market lead and premier function destination in Glasgow. We’re delighted to be working with Bell & Swift on the renovation, their local knowledge combined with their experience of large-scale hotel refurbishment projects have made them the perfect partner for this project."

Dawn Campbell, Co-Founder and Managing Director of Bell & Swift added: “We used our experience in large scale refurbishments combined with our local knowledge of the city to take the client on a journey through Glasgow’s design heritage. Through our desire to bring this to life and reinvent the hotel we created a unique design, which paid homage to the culture and heritage of the city and elevate the aesthetics of the hotel and its position within the market place.”

The project will also include a full refurbishment and extension to the executive lounge and enhancements to restrooms across the hotel. In addition, the Leisure club will be updated to bring in line with the wider design. The hotel’s health club includes an indoor pool, sauna, and steam room, for guests to enjoy. Bell & Swift are working with the team at the Glasgow Hilton on an ongoing basis to define the scope of the redevelopment for this part of the hotel.