Digital-first aparthotel, MM:NT Berlin Lab, invites guests to test and give feedback on its design, space and overall experience. Rose Dykins reports
Adina Apartment Hotels, owned by TFE Hotels, has launched MM:NT Berlin Lab to research guests stays and develop its future brands and experiences.
Located in Berlin’s central Mitte district, MM:NT Berlin Lab is a ‘hotel laboratory’ that continually gathers guests’ feedback during their stay, enabling TFE Hotels to shape its future hospitality products.
Guests are invited to stay for free at MM:NT Berlin Lab and provide real-time qualitative feedback on the accommodation’s design, public spaces and overall experience.
Throughout the temporary trial period, guests have been testing out the property’s six “low-key, high-style” rooms, each with its own distinct design, storage solution, room flow and style of bathroom. Adina Apartment Hotels partnered with furniture and hardware company Hafele to create the lab, along with design companies ACME and BWM.
The overall aesthetic is minimalist and “consciously uncluttered”, with eco-friendly design materials incorporated where possible – such as kitchenette worktops and bathroom tiles made from recycled materials – as well as day-to-night lighting, rainfall showers and potted plants.
MM:NT has a self-service model. There is no reception desk, room service, restaurant, or on-site staff. Instead, guests use a concierge app to check in, check out, access shared amenities, communicate with staff and make use of in-room features (there are also no in-room TVs). Guests are welcome to order food or groceries to be delivered, or bring in their own meals.
Asli Kutlucan, CEO at Adina Europe, says: “MM:NT Berlin Lab exists to test market reactions to new ideas and innovations. Our theory is there’s a cohort of Gen Z and Millennial travellers in particular that are open to new ways of interacting with hotel services.
“We’re therefore using MM:NT Berlin Lab to explore various hotel interfaces to see how we can adapt to changing behaviours and demands. Berlin is the ideal location for our beta hotel as it attracts the culturally curious and is a mecca for change-makers and creative minds.”
Matthias Niemeyer, senior director of development Adina Europe adds: “The MM:NT Berlin Lab is all about focusing on the small ‘moments’ in time and was developed in direct response to the changing travel, living, and working habits of post-pandemic travellers.”
MM:NT Berlin Lan has three hotel room types to choose from – Little, Middle and Big – ranging from 12 sqm to 28 sqm in size, and varying in the facilities they offer – be it kitchenettes, open plan space, dining tables or windows.
Whichever room they stay in, all guests have access to The Little Lounge, a shared communal space with a fridge, a kettle, a dining table and plates and cutlery to borrow, and there is also a co-working space for all guests.
Thomas Leib, head of Hafele’s hospitality solutions, strategy and business development, says: “Our important collaboration at the MM:NT Berlin Lab with Adina and TFE aims to establish new benchmarks in designing and optimising spaces within the hospitality sector.
“We will now incorporate feedback from both parties directly into our development processes, ensuring the continued relevance of our services and products. We eagerly anticipate the market’s response to our efforts and remain committed to advancing the hospitality industry.”
According to Wallpaper magazine, there are plans to expand MM:NT Berlin Lab into more European cities as well as Australia.