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Luxury hotels in Copenhagen are not generally known for their flamboyance or psychedelic art, but the launch of the new Volkswagen Fox 21 town car brought out the wild side of the chic Hotel Fox.

The new arty décor was commissioned for this boutique Copenhagen hotel from a team of international artists, graphic designers and illustrators to reflect their interpretation of the newly launched baby VW. Incidentally the car is anything but funky, its main claim to fame being that it lost in a Top Gear TV football match against a team of Toyota Aygo cars, but I digress.

The hotel is a real winner for those who know their art. Twenty-one artists contributed to designing the hotel’s 61 individually decorated rooms including Hort, Antoine & Manuel, Speto, Freaklüb, E-Types, Neasden Control Center, MASA, and Container (these names all mean more if you’re into street art, graphic design or Japanese manga).

Guests pick a room at check-in by selecting the design of the Do Not Disturb tag which offers a sample of the color and theme of each room. You can choose the Geissenpeter room, modeled on the classic story of Heidi; the Two Swans room which includes life-size photoscapes of trees and llamas, or try the Boxing Room complete with punch bag, trophy case and gold boxing robe.

Hotel Fox rooms have no minibar – they offer a portable cooler, also themed to match your room. When the bubble-gum pink clouds start to make the room feel a little claustrophobic, take refuge on the roof terrace or the Fox Kitchen and Bar where sanity prevails.

by Gillian at Luxique Luxury Hotels

Missoni is the latest designer name to go into the hotel business.

The Italian fashion house signed a deal a couple of years ago with the big hospitality group, Rezidor, which already has around 330 hotels in 51 countries, including the brands Park Inn, Regent and Radisson SAS.

The first two hotels from Rezidor’s partnership with Missoni will open next year – in Kuwait City and Edinburgh. “We believe that hotels are a natural extension for our core brand and that they will work with, and complement, our fashion business,” said Director, Vittorio Missoni.

Since 2000, more than a dozen designers have either set up a partnership with a hospitality company to co-brand a new property or signed on to redesign the interiors of an existing hotel. They include Armani, Versace and Lagerfeld.

Lucian James, founder of the Paris-based brand consultancy, Agenda, said: “In the past five or ten years, fashion designers have begun to understand that the best way they can increase business is by recreating themselves as lifestyle brands. They have to find other ways to build revenue in an increasingly competitive global marketplace.”

Designs for the Kuwait and Edinburgh hotels are being kept secret, but the Missoni team will be heavily involved in creating the look, so expect the signature zig-zag print on curtains and cushions. And the branding is likely to extend to other areas such as tableware and furniture.

by Andy Moreton