Founding Principal Lauren Rottet in the Presidential Suite at The Surrey Hotel.
Houston interior designer diversifies, gets projects ‘we never even dreamed’ of doing
Lauren Rottet has been through down cycles before.
The founder of Houston-based Rottet Studio, an international interior design firm, has worked through her fair share of economic slumps around the nation. Her namesake firm, which she founded in 2008 on a bedrock of corporate interiors experience, has since diversified heavily into hospitality, residential work — and cruise ships. Rottet Studio led the design of nearly 50 ships for Viking Cruises, a luxury and destination-focused cruise line.
“I don’t wake up going, ‘Oh my gosh, what are we going to do in 2017?’” she said.
The Rottet name carries a lot of weight in the interior design community and has cultivated a highly respected reputation around the world. She has worked on notable Houston-area projects such as BMC Software Inc.’s Houston headquarters, and Midway Cos.’s Hotel Alessandra, which is underway in downtown Houston. Globally, Rottet Studio has worked on the Loews Regency Hotel in New York City, residential towers in Hong Kong and Target Corp.’s (NYSE: TGT) marketing and public relations offices in New York City.
Prior to starting her own firm, Rottet co-founded Keating Mann Jernigan Rottet in 1990 in Los Angeles. Four years later, the firm was acquired by Daniel, Mann, Johnson & Mendenhall. Rottet stayed on for 14 years as director of the interior design studio at DMJM Rottet.
You founded your own firm, Rottet Studio, in one of the biggest cities in the nation. How was that first year?
I had done it once before in a bad economy. In Los Angeles, we had grown Keating Mann Jernigan Rottet to a firm of 60 or 70 people. But I knew I needed to strategize. We started expanding in hospitality. Hotels do renovations every five to eight years. We figured it was a good time to get into hospitality because they’d be renovating because their bookings would be down. So, we did a lot of renovations — offices and hotels and private residences of people who wanted to take advantage of low construction costs. It was a good thing. It introduced us to new markets we weren’t in.
Tell me about how you got involved with the Viking Cruise ships.
That also happened when the economy was still down. Viking wanted new talent and was exploring its options. They didn’t want a ship designer. They didn’t care whether they have ship experience. Strangely enough, I had renovated a friend’s huge, private yacht and I put together a ship brochure, kind of for fun. So, when this call came into my Los Angeles office, it all came together. We ended up getting that client, and we’ve done 43 of Viking’s river boats and three of their ocean ships.
You’ve paved the way for so many women in business. What’s one thing you wish people knew about that journey?
It’s more about who you are and what you do. I don’t think it matters whether you’re male, female, black, white, Chinese, old, young — in my industry, it’s about having a design brain. When a design brain meets another creative person, that’s all they see. I had a partnership with four men and my eyes were opened. I didn’t experience discrimination so much as I realized we think differently. Sometimes, I feel like men want to pass the ball around and take their time, while I just want to get to the point.
In the design world, gender dynamics become very tricky when you’re trying to have a family. A lot of women didn’t have children, and that’s really sad, because they couldn’t figure out how to work the hours. Now, I’m seeing that the guys in the office are just as involved in the family as the women are. It’s a much more even distribution of help.
What’s on the horizon for 2017 for Rottet Studio?
Office users, in general, are downsizing. I think most cities probably have a little too much office space right now. But someone has to fill it. I think interiors will still be good for the next few years. As a firm, we’re going to pursue more renovations. That’s always a good plan no matter where the economy is. We’re doing a lot more high-rise residential work. In some ways, 2017 will be more of the same. Fortunately, in other ways and based on the work we’ve done, people are calling us for projects that we never even dreamed we’d be up for doing.
What’s the best business lesson you’ve learned over the course of your career?
I don’t know if there’s one lesson. In any kind of business, there’s a lot of politics and you can be tempted to not stand firm. Stick with your guns — as long as you’re educated on the work and you truly know you’re right. You’ve typically been successful because of your experience and your rationale. Don’t be persuaded by bad politics.
You founded Rottet Studio nearly a decade ago. Looking back, is there anything you would have done differently?
I wouldn’t have done this differently, but in the recession, I hung onto everybody. We didn’t let anyone go. I didn’t pay myself much and I could’ve saved a lot more money. That set us back a little. But now, we have the reputation of treating and keeping our employees like family in good times or bad times.
The only thing I would do a little differently is … I feel like I have finally grown up a little bit and have more reconnaissance in my decision-making. That happened because I have my own firm. Being the total bottom line, you realize there’s a lot of balls in the air and everyone is just as important as the next.
Your son, Kyle Rottet, serves as director of marketing at Rottet Studio. What have you learned about working with family?
I grew up with my father telling me to keep family and business separate. I thought that’s just what you’re supposed to do. But with Kyle, he just rose to the occasion. It’s really been a lot of fun. It’s really interesting how intuitive a family member can be. I don’t have to ever say, “Don’t put that in the proposal,” because he intuitively knows what I like and don’t like.
You’ve had a career that’s sent you traveling all over the world. How does Houston compare on a global scale?
When I left Houston at 17 to go to college, I was never going to come back. Houston was so boring, hot and miserable – why would I ever go back? I went off to San Francisco and Chicago, came back to Houston to get married, went back to Chicago, then Los Angeles and New York City. Family brought me back to Houston. Of course, I moved into the inner Loop, and I thought, "Oh, this isn’t so bad."
I used to hear from people, “Why on earth do you live in Houston?” I haven’t heard that comment in a year and a half. I used to hear it all the time. I know this city has put a lot into PR, but I think the reality is that people moved here and the culture is more diverse and the food is more diverse. The arts have always been amazing, but now you could go to a fun, social or cultural event every night of the week. When you start traveling as much as I do, I come home and I think, “I am really lucky.”
Text by Cara Smith. This interview has been edited for length and clarity and originally appeared on the Back Page of Houston Business Journal's 'Deals of the Year' issue in December 2016.
