Sheet A — Studio
A studio built for the places people go out to.
71 Collective exists because hospitality deserves its own kind of designer: one who cares as much about the sixth month of service as the opening night, and who treats a room's atmosphere and its operations as the same problem.
We are a two-partner practice. Gaines Solomon and Felipe Tejeda started the studio to work directly with owners, chefs and operators on restaurants, bars, nightlife and drinking-and-dining destinations, from the first conversation to the first guest. There is no account layer between you and the people designing your space.
A.1 — Point of view
Atmosphere is a business decision.
Concept first, always
Every project starts with a clear idea of what the place is: the guest it is for, the mood it holds, the story it tells without a word of copy. That concept then permeates every decision, from the plan to the door handle. It is why a 71 Collective room is never a set of finishes on a generic layout, and why no two projects look alike.
Operations are design
A bar that serves fast, a kitchen line that can see the pass, a host stand that controls the door, storage that exists: these decide whether the atmosphere survives a Saturday. We plan them with the operator, not after the operator.
Buildable is the point
Ideas are only worth what gets built. We document precisely, coordinate the consultants, work the budget alongside you, and stay on site through construction so the room that opens is the room we agreed on.
A.2 — Partners
Two partners, complementary instincts.
Partner
Gaines Solomon
Gaines holds a degree in Architecture with a focus on design-build interiors. He cut his teeth designing some of the best-ranked boutique hotels in New York City and has worked in hospitality since 2009.
His priority is for a concept to permeate every aspect of a space. With more than a decade of experience, he makes sure no detail is overlooked and no project is ever the same.
Partner
Felipe Tejeda
A former resident of New York City, Berlin, London, Miami, Boston, São Paulo, Mexico City and San Francisco, Felipe was exposed to hospitality at a young age and carried that into his career. He holds a degree in Architecture.
He works across design, hospitality and real estate, and makes sure projects are executed efficiently and, above all, completely.
How we work together
Both partners are in every project. Gaines's priority is that the concept permeates every detail of a space; Felipe's is that the project is executed efficiently and, above all, completely. The roles overlap constantly, which is the point: the person defending the idea and the person defending the schedule sit in the same meeting.
Because the studio is small by design, you get founder judgement on the questions that matter: which idea to protect, which cost to cut, when to push a contractor and when to redesign.
A.3 — Collaboration and construction
We are easy to build with.
A hospitality project is a crowd: owner, chef, operations lead, landlord, expeditor, MEP engineers, structural engineer, kitchen consultant, AV and lighting vendors, general contractor, millworker, upholsterer, signmaker, artist. We know the cast and we run the conversation, so decisions get made once and drawings stay in sync.
Some of that is temperament. Some is that we have opened enough places to know where the schedule breaks: long-lead fixtures, health-department reviews, the gap between a shop drawing and the thing that arrives. We plan for it, and we are on site when it matters.
Exact services and professional responsibilities depend on the project's location, scope and the consultants it requires. We will be clear about what we carry and what needs a licensed local consultant before any agreement is signed.
A.4 — Who we work with
Full client listOwners, chefs, operators, developers.
- Independent restaurant and bar owners
- Chefs and operators opening their next place
- Hospitality groups and multi-unit operators
- Developers creating food-and-beverage destinations
- Boutique hotel owners
- Nightlife, music and entertainment operators
- Breweries and distilleries opening to the public
- Founders opening their first serious concept
Selected clients
Marc Forgione · One Fifth · Clover Hill · Turk's Inn · Paradise Lost · Pig & Khao · Petite Trois · St Urban · Peasant · Xanadu · The Sultan Room · No Kisses · Elsewhere · Eckhart Beer Co · Senza Maeso · New York Distilling Company · Other Half Brewing
Markets
New York · Washington, DC · Minneapolis · Atlanta · Ottawa
