Hillary Kent
Founder & CEOMercantil DesignHillary Kent is Founder and Creative Director of Mercantil and Hillary Kent Studio. Mercantil is a design, sourcing, and custom manufacturing company delivering interiors for luxury hospitality and branded residential projects across the United States, Mexico, and Latin America.
A graduate of FIT, Hillary began her career with AD100 designers and went on to hold leadership roles at top manufacturing firms, spending more than two decades sourcing for hospitality brands including Four Seasons, Ritz-Carlton, and Auberge. She founded Mercantil in 2021 after relocating to Mexico, to connect international hospitality projects directly with the region’s makers.
Today the company works with more than 450 vetted artisans and producers, with offices in Los Cabos, Mexico City, and Miami. Hillary has completed more than 50 projects in Mexico, including work at Zadún, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve, and Cabo del Sol. Her work focuses on giving hospitality spaces an identity rooted in place.
The End of the “Cool Hotel”: Has Hospitality Mistaken Taste for Culture?
As the same aesthetics, references, and design language circulate across hotels, restaurants, fashion, retail, and social media, the idea of “cool” is
…As the same aesthetics, references, and design language circulate across hotels, restaurants, fashion, retail, and social media, the idea of “cool” is becoming increasingly universal, and increasingly difficult to own. This session explores what happ
…As the same aesthetics, references, and design language circulate across hotels, restaurants, fashion, retail, and social media, the idea of “cool” is becoming increasingly universal, and increasingly difficult to own. This session explores what happens when beautiful spaces start to look and feel the same. Where does cultural distinction come from now? And how can hospitality move beyond a curated aesthetic to create places with genuine identity
…As the same aesthetics, references, and design language circulate across hotels, restaurants, fashion, retail, and social media, the idea of “cool” is becoming increasingly universal, and increasingly difficult to own. This session explores what happens when beautiful spaces start to look and feel the same. Where does cultural distinction come from now? And how can hospitality move beyond a curated aesthetic to create places with genuine identity, relevance, and a point of view?
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