Renovations on Kimpton Hotel Group’s first Savannah property, The Brice, are about halfway done with a grand opening scheduled for early May, complete with a new restaurant, upgraded façade and contemporary rooms.
“We’re taking it to the next level and giving it a four-star facelift,” said General Manager Mitch Linder of the upscale boutique hotel, located on the corners of Bay and Houston streets in what was formerly The Mulberry Inn.
He said the outside is pretty well finished, while on the inside they’re upgrading the bathrooms, installing a new elevator, replacing the HVAC system and putting final touches on a new restaurant and bar.
The San Francisco-based Kimpton bought The Mulberry Inn in December 2012 from Prince-Bush-Smith Hotels and closed it for renovations in August 2013. This is the Kimpton’s first location in Coastal Georgia.
“We’re not adding rooms to the market. We’re just enhancing the rooms that were already here,” said Linder, who also worked for the previous ownership group. “Kimpton has a huge loyal base of customers throughout the United States, and by us opening up a hotel here in town, we’re going to bring some people who probably wouldn’t have come to Savannah before.”
Renovations are expected to total $17 million when complete, according to Linder. The Brice will have 145 rooms as well as 5,700 square feet of meeting space and 2,300 square feet of event space.
Prices for the rooms are expected to average in the high $100s and low $200s depending on the season, said Kate Brown, director of sales and marketing.
Brown came up with the name The Brice, which is Gaelic for “brick,” and said the inspiration came from Savannah’s Irish and architectural history.
“The color scheme for the hotel is gray, which is inspired by the Savannah gray brick,” said Brown. “We kept talking about the brick as our design inspiration, so I started taking Gaelic and applying it to every word I could think of and that we talked about, incorporating the history of the building and the area.”
The building was developed around the 1860s and has been home to a livery stable, cotton warehouse, foundry and machine shop, wholesale grocer and Coca-Cola bottling plant prior to becoming a hotel in 1982.
Linder said the next big project is the installation of a two-story factory window at the main entrance, incorporating remnants of the old Coca-Cola plant in its design.
Brown said what Kimpton hotels do best is provide travelers with fun, unique and whimsical personal touches. She said it is not uncommon for staff to hug patrons or throw a hula-hooping competition in the lobby.
Brown and Linder were mum on details of the restaurant, including the name, but described its cuisine as “farm-to-table” style.
Brown said Kimpton’s demographic varies but in general is a 35-plus upper income earner who enjoys technology, travel and accommodations with a funky vibe. “There is a sense of hospitality to this demographic. It’s someone who says, ‘I want to shake hands and have a whiskey,’” said Brown.
The Brice will employ 65 to 70 people full and part-time and is accepting reservations online for July.
ABOUT KIMPTON
Kimpton Hotel and Restaurant Group operates more than 60 luxury hotels and restaurants in about 30 cities coast to coast. The company, based in San Francisco, was founded in 1981 by Wall Street investment banker Bill Kimpton.
The Kimpton chain is one of three nationally considered as “boutique” brands, along with W Hotels and Joie de Vivre Hotels. Visit kimptonhotels.com for more on Kimpton hotels and restaurants.