Designer Tony Chi’s spectacular work on the interiors of Rosewood Hong Kong might have shone a new spotlight on him of late, but he’s had a transformational role on hospitality design in Hong Kong and further afield for decades. His designs, in particular for a dazzling line-up of top tier hotels around the world, have earned him a reputation for balancing understated luxury with the ultimate in comfort, and for reflecting a powerful sense of the place in which they’re located.

Born in Taiwan, Chi moved to New York as a child, and started his career running a Hunan-Sichuan restaurant in the US. In 1984, he co-founded Big Apple-based design firm Tonychi Studio with business partner Tammy Chou. He then travelled around Asia in the late 1980s, with a view to opening F&B outlets. After meeting Hong Kong nightlife entrepreneur Allan Zeman, he parlayed his experience of the restaurant industry into agenda-setting designs as he worked on the creation of the Law Kwai Fong entertainment district.

Since then, his renown has spread around the world. In addition to designing restaurants for world renowned chefs including Wolfgang Puck and Alain Ducasse, he has been the creative force behind numerous hotels, including the Rosewood London, Grand Hyatts in Chengdu and Bangkok, Park Hyatts in Shanghai, Kyoto and Washington, Andaz properties in Tokyo, Shenzhen and New York, the Mandarin Oriental Guangzhou and New York’s The Carlyle, as well as the East Wing of Ritz-Carlton Millenia Singapore.