Hanna Bem
“…know that you need to be adaptable. The first idea may not always be the best and may take a few iterations - the world is changing and you have to change with it!”
#WomenWhoBuild meet Hanna Bem,
Hanna is the co-founder of MoLiving, a luxury nomadic hospitality solution making mobile hospitality a reality with its luxury prefab eco-hotel suites. The company focuses on a concept that merges mobile design, sustainability, accelerated construction times and off-grid capabilities. In her role, Hanna focuses on the hospitality side of the business- making sure the overall branding, design, and messaging is aligned. Prior to starting her own venture, Hanna worked for LVMH and Kering, as well as various hospitality groups including Dorchester and SBE.
ArchNative sat down with Hanna to discuss her journey to becoming an entrepreneur, what sparked the idea for MoLiving, and what she has in mind for the future of the concept.
Tell us a little bit about yourself. Did you always know that you wanted to work in the built environment? What was your first introduction to the field?
I was born and raised in Paris, France and moved to the United States when I was 18 to attend university, where I studied marketing and communications at the University of Southern California. I was always interested in the luxury market, whether it was hospitality or luxury goods, and worked for LVMH and Kering as well as various hospitality groups including Dorchester and SBE. Ultimately my knowledge and passions, both in and out of school, led me to pursue a career in the hospitality industry. Growing up I was involved in real estate because of my family, who has a real estate development company. Beyond that, my first real introduction was when I started working for Spring Place when they first opened in NYC. There, I worked directly with the chairman and the CEO who were looking to develop more Spring Place locations around the world like Los Angeles and Milan. Spring Place taught me a lot, both on the development and hospitality sides of the business, which is what I have ultimately been focusing on more.
Can you tell us a little bit more about Moliving? How did this concept come about?
Moliving is the world’s first luxury nomadic hospitality solution aiming to democratize hotel development in a unique, sophisticated, and sustainable manner. We’ve created proprietary mobile suites that blend sustainability and luxury, something that has not yet been achieved in this capacity.
My brother and I came up with the idea one summer when we were visiting one of the top destinations outside of New York City during its peak season.
We were talking about how expensive it was to book a room and about how various seasonal hotels are not only inaccessible to many during this time, but also not very luxurious, especially for the price point. From there we worked backwards, looking at the reasons why these hotels were charging insanely large premiums, such as seasonality, the sparse inventory, and operational costs. This ultimately led us to the idea of creating a movable hotel that could always be in the right markets at the right times, hence creating the best-case use of real estate.
We initially started Moliving based on the idea that we would create fully-movable hotels, including both the rooms and F&B, and depending on the season, but with COVID we realized that the seasonal market is actually year-round just in various demand levels. With this, we pivoted to create hotels with fluctuating inventory rather than having to move all of the components, which allows us to create a more upscale product to complement all the ultra-luxury sites that we plan to develop. Also, sustainability-wise, it made more sense to just move the suites rather than everything as a whole.
The initial startup must have been pretty tough, there are a lot of different variables and components that went into it. Can you tell me a little bit about the initial startup and the challenges that you experienced?
As with any new company, the initial startup phase can throw many challenges your way, but we knew we always needed to be adapting and modifying the idea. In 2020, COVID hit, and we quickly realized that we quickly had to pivot. What originally started as an entire hotel that could move was eventually adapted into movable hotel suites.
What do you see for the future of the company within the next 5 to 10 years? Especially with the changing markets?
We have plans to open the brand’s flagship hotel in New York’s Hudson Valley in 2023. Beyond this, we have plans to grow the Moliving brand in several East and West Coast locations next year, and eventually internationally.
One of the most important things for us is to create a great foundation for the brand. The goal of Moliving is to give people the opportunity to travel to unexplored places that might not necessarily have any lodging options aside from camping (which I know is not everyone’s cup of tea!) and now they can still have these experiences within the comfort of a 5-star hotel.
Can tell us a little bit more about the sustainability integration into the design and the overall mission?
Sustainability is very important to us at Moliving, and we’ve made it our mission to help protect our environment by implementing sustainable alternatives to often harmful practices. This can be seen in everything we do from the construction and design to the operations and even the partnerships we have. The suites themselves are built with many recycled, eco-friendly materials. We produce renewable energy for our sites with solar panels. We recirculate greywater, which saves water and is beneficial for plants and trees. We turn to local farms for most of our food and beverage needs and construct our cabins locally when possible, minimizing the waste and pollution associated with shipping. Due to the nature of our suites, we also have minimal site disruption and the ability to operate off-grid. We have taken it one step further and partnered with One Tree Planted, a nonprofit dedicated to global reforestation, and have vowed to plant one tree for every reservation. We aim to create our path without leaving a footprint and are here to embrace what the world has given us, allowing everyone to see it without disrupting it.
What does your day to day look like in this role?
Because we are a startup, our day-to-day tasks can vary a lot. Sometimes it’s all hands-on deck for a lot of initiatives, which is great because it allows me to see different aspects of the business and how they function. Generally, I am more focused on the hospitality side of the business and making sure the overall branding, design, and messaging is aligned.
Tell me a little bit about the design process and the integration of all of the sustainability components and just the overall look and feel? Did you guys work with a design team?
We worked with our in-house architect, Steven Chen, to design the suites, which are built out of recycled green steel and various recycled materials. In an effort to localize each suite and reduce the carbon footprint, they are crafted in regional facilities near the expected delivery location. The suites are also built on a custom chassis, which allows them to be easily transported by simply attaching them to a truck. Most importantly, they can be operated in a fully self-sufficient manner and removed without leaving a trace due to our self-leveling system. Our goal is to run any of our Moliving Hotels sustainably and fully off the grid. Every suite is already self-sufficient, due to our solar array, and we’ve integrated a recycling system so the water that comes out of the shower is purified and recycled up to seven times.
Being part of a startup, that tends to be a pretty tough spot to be in since you are bootstrapping everything and wearing many hats. Did you always know you wanted to have your own company?
In the back of my mind, it is something that I’ve always wanted to do. I took many business classes and have always been passionate about gaining as much knowledge as possible in various fields with the goal of bringing it all together to ultimately start my own company. I’m also very fortunate to have had my parents as great examples of entrepreneurs.
What is one piece of advice you have for women who are thinking of starting their own company?
Know your strengths and weaknesses and surround yourself with people you are comfortable asking for help. Throughout my career, I’ve kept in touch with colleagues and former supervisors who now actually sit on our advisory board. Also, know that you need to be adaptable. The first idea may not always be the best and may take a few iterations - the world is changing and you have to change with it!
Photo Credit: David Mitchell
Rendering: Moliving
Interview Conducted by:
Diana Fedorkova