Seatmates: Allegra Lorenzotti
On building cinematic worlds for Ash Hotels, finding poetry in design details, and the destinations shaping her creative lens
This interview is part of Seatmates, a Window Seat series where tastemakers and creatives share how they move through the world—what they pack, where they stay, and the travel rituals that shape their lives.
Few people understand the emotional alchemy of space like Allegra Lorenzotti. As Brand Director at Ash, she helps craft cinematic stays that feel equal parts imaginative and intimate, where design and storytelling expertly intertwine. From The Siren in Detroit to Ulysses in Baltimore, her hand is behind some of the most transportive hotels in America.
Like the properties she helps to shape, Allegra’s own approach to travel is deeply sensory and intentional. She obsesses over lighting, sound, scent, and small details most travelers overlook. For her, good hospitality is about more than grandeur—it’s about creating a feeling that lasts.
Read on to learn the philosophy behind Ash’s cinematic, world-building approach to hospitality, the carry-on combo she swears by for every trip, and the genius bottle that lets her make matcha anywhere on earth.
Tell us a little about yourself.
My name is Allegra, I’m a native New Yorker and proud Sagittarius. :P
I’ve worked across experiential, talent, and hospitality, but what I really love doing is shaping how things feel. Whether it’s a hotel, a dinner, a brand world, or my side project, Send Olives, there’s always an intention behind it.
Ash feels more like a cultural brand than just a hotel group. How do you approach your role in crafting a world and not just a place to stay?
Our CEO, Ari Heckman, always says our hotels are like movie sets and our staff are like characters in the film. That’s how we approach it: immersive experiences where the properties themselves are characters. Many are historic buildings with rich pasts, reimagined with new narratives. The North Star is to create something singular that makes people feel transported.
Every Ash hotel has a distinct point of view, but there’s also a thread of irreverent elegance that connects them. What’s your lens for curating consistency across such different properties?
When I joined, it was the start of a new era under our Creative Director, Xavier Donnelly. The properties we had were singular and distinct, but not truly unified under the Ash umbrella. We’ve worked to create a stronger throughline like adding the Ash logo across collateral, launching city guides both online and in-room, Ash Radio, and creating touchpoints that carry across properties. The goal is consistency without losing each property’s unique individual spirit
When you travel, do you find yourself comparing every experience to the Ash standard? Or do you look for something completely different?
I don’t find myself comparing every experience to the Ash standard, but I do find myself noticing the most small and simple details like the size of the trash can in the bathroom or where the outlets are located like I never did before working in hospitality. I obsess over what they’re serving in the mini bar or the light or temperature.