Sandals Resorts International (SRI) is one of the most well-known and award-winning hospitality companies in the world. With 24 properties in seven countries including Antigua, The Bahamas, Grenada, Barbados, Jamaica, Saint Lucia and Turks and Caicos, Sandals Resorts International is the leader of Caribbean vacation experiences.

Having worked with Sandals for over ten years, in 2013 they approached us to assist them in creating unique brands for each of their food and beverage areas resort wide. With 24 resorts servicing different demographics and income brackets, their aim was to create flexible brands that could be tailored to complement each resort and their guests.

Since this was such a large and diverse project, we had multiple meetings in Sandal’s Miami head office as well as within each of the Caribbean resorts. This was key as it enabled us to gain an in depth understanding and knowledge not only from the Sandal’s Directors leading this change but from the Resort General Managers. From these discussions, we were able to combine the vision of the future brands with the practicality of implementing them. Five brands were created in total, each with their own unique design and service offering. They were:

Butch’s Chophouse – a steakhouse
Named after the Chairman and Founder of Sandals Resorts, Gordon “Butch” Stewart, they wanted to ensure that the design lived up to his namesake and achieved an elite dining standards. Its décor is timeless and classis, being adorned with plush furnishings, exposed roof trusses, wood finishes, and intimate pendant and tea lighting, reminiscent of a cozy lodge.

Cucina Romana – an Italian restaurant
The aim was to create a warm, welcoming Italian atmosphere that emphasised comfort and la gioia di vivere, the joy of life. It was decided that this would be best achieved with a woody decor, simple chairs and an open kitchen at the centre.

Kimono’s Oriental Cuisine – a Teppanyaki restaurant
With dim lighting, red accents, and Asian-inspired mahogany-framed windows modelled after the fascinating Shoji sliding screens of East Asia, the décor of Kimonos is exotic, mysterious, and comforting, all at the same time. The uncluttered space and undressed walls maintain an open, flowing sensibility to achieve a Zen quality throughout.

Soy Sushi Bar
To achieve an authentic Oriental décor, stone statues, pendant lighting, and mahogany furniture are key features of this design. This is an open plan space where customers can interact with their chefs while they create their meals. More intimate sections were created through the creation of handcrafted screens and private booths.

The Cricketers – an English themed pub
Based on a Traditional Victorian pub style, the saloon-like décor was achieved through the incorporation of polished hardwood bar tops, gaslights and hand crafted, leather chairs.

Designs for each of these brands were drawn up in our Dublin office, where every element of the design was sourced and created in our manufacturing facilities. Through the use of sustainable lighting and materials, where possible, we continuously create highly eco-efficient builds. Once each design is created, we ship them to the Caribbean, where our team of expert fitters turn the vision into a reality.

To date, we have rolled out these brands across two resorts with the plan to extend further in the coming years.