The hotelier is well known in the industry for innovative ideas like this. Creating places where the experience takes centre stage is Schiff's constant goal. When designing his hotels, trendy bars and fashionable restaurants, this Berlin native goes far beyond the mere idea of accommodation and food. Starting with the construction of his hotels and down to the finest interior designs, his mark is pervasive.
From the minimalist and artistically furnished AMANO East Side in Berlin to the modern, playful interior style of the Hotel MIO in Munich and right through to the comfortable Hotel Düsseldorf Mitte, in which dark contrasts mix with copper light elements, each building has a distinctive look and almost every hotel is furnished by a different interior designer. "There is a definite AMANO DNA, but I want every hotel to have its very own soul," says the hotelier.
For Schiff, every detail of the AMANO hotels should convey an unmitigated lifestyle and be its very own place to be. Take the famous hotel bars of the AMANO Group, for example. "Ten years ago, hotel bars were still considered bourgeois and boring. People went there because they had nothing better to do. I wanted to make the hotel bar a fun place to be." He therefore opened the G&T Bar, Germany’s first gin & tonic bar. "We didn’t invent gin, but we made it something special by being the first bar to offer gin with matching tonics and special gin cocktails," says the entrepreneur.
Today Berlin’s best bartenders serve drinks such as Butter Bean with lime, honey, Beurre Noisette and filtered milk or gin shots infused with tea. In addition, they welcome world-famous DJs who fill the air with trendy beats – such as the New Yorker Stimulus, discovered by music producer Mark Ronson himself. “We believe in fun above all else,” says Schiff.
This fascination Schiff has for revolutionary bar concepts came from visiting the Hudson Hotel in New York City, USA. “I was so inspired by that hotel – New Yorkers would queue around the block and book a hotel room without hesitation just to gain entry to the bar", says Schiff enthusiastically. This is also where he got the inspiration for his rooftop bars, which are the flagship venues of the AMANO Group today: “I figured if this wasn't a perfect fit in young, dynamic Berlin – where else would it be?"; The innovative hotelier was proven right: thousands of hotel guests and residents regularly enjoy delicious drinks here with a view of the city panorama. As a matter of fact, the idea for his own glass cube also came to him in New York City – his inspiration was the glass entrance of an Apple store in Central Park.