In Ningbo, Vermilion Zhou Design Group has completed the latest Hi Inn Self-Service, a project that redefines the economy hotel through systemic reconstruction. A continuation of the budget hospitality model, the design reframes the guest experience by aligning spatial logic, operational systems, and material strategies into a cohesive, design-driven approach.
HOTELS
The concept reflects a brand evolution. What began with the principles of lightness and simplicity has advanced into a model that is fully self-service, eco-conscious, and reliably affordable. With a focus on price-sensitive travellers, the brand guarantees safety and comfort while ensuring efficiency and choice.
At the heart of the design is the language of self-service. Rather than limiting it to an operational framework, Vermilion Zhou translates self-service into spatial form. The lobby becomes a compact, functional public zone where modular elements orchestrate colour, material, and lighting into a restrained yet welcoming atmosphere. Guests interact directly with the environment, navigating check-in, dining, or laundry without staff intervention.
The modular system lies at the project’s core. Spaces are deconstructed into functional units, wash walls, wardrobe walls, dining zones, and laundry areas, assembled with precision and adaptability. Guestrooms follow the same principle, built from prefabricated modules such as wash walls, wardrobe walls, and media walls. This unitised construction method accelerates deployment, reduces costs, and integrates systems for lighting and services, ensuring operational efficiency.
Sustainability also informs the project. More than 80 percent of construction materials, including steel panels, angle frames, and standardized hardware, are recyclable. This modular approach allows for future dismantling and reuse, embedding long-term ecological responsibility into the structure of the hotel itself.
Positioned as “full self-service, eco-friendly, reliable, and affordable,” Hi Inn Self-Service represents a response to the changing expectations of travellers. By reconstructing the guest journey, Vermilion Zhou Design Group delivers a hospitality model that balances efficiency with reassurance, shaping a fresh vision for the future of economy hotels.
