SUNNY ISLES BEACH, FL— When Acqualina, A Rosewood Resort, opens here in February, the staff will be elegantly attired to tie in with their surroundings. But designing the apparel for the employees has been a challenge, according to David Kurland, managing director of the 97-room property, which will also have 188 residences.
“We wanted to stay with the feeling of the property, which goes from a very formal porte cochere into a more relaxed interior,” Kurland explained.
The Old World architectural features of the entrance include stately iron gates, sculpted archways and the porte cochere with a domed cupola, he noted. “The guest is really going from Old World to a New World interior that is casually elegant,” he said.
Top Hat Imagewear was selected to create the staff uniforms for Acqualina “because they are small enough to work with us on custom designing the apparel,” Kurland said. He added that 80% of the 310 employees at Acqualina will wear uniforms.
The doormen, bellmen and concierge will wear formal attire in keeping with their surroundings. The doormen will be outfitted in white, full-length jackets with Nehru collars, matching caps and dark brown slacks. There is a gold and red embroidered logo on the sleeve of each jacket.
“The bellmen will have a similar look but with a shorter jacket,” Kurland added.
The doormen and bellmen’s uniforms will be made of a wool blend while the concierge’s uniform will be wool. “The concierge will have very traditional attire consisting of a morning suit with a frock coat in black, black and gray striped pants, a gray vest and a white shirt with tie,” he said.
The front desk is a more casual area, he noted. “The uniforms for the staff at the front desk will be suits in an off-gray worn with shirts and ties. Their uniforms will blend with the décor which includes walls and ceilings of light green or celadon,” he said.
The front office management will wear black suits, he added. Their suits will be made of wool while front-desk employees will wear wool blend suits.
Housekeepers will be outfitted in one-piece black dresses with tan trim and white aprons. The dresses will be a cotton blend.
The uniforms for the food and beverage staff will be made of imported polyester and change according to the time of day. In the morning, men and women will wear black pants with short white jackets and black bow ties. In the evening, the uniforms for women who serve as cocktail waitresses will be slacks or short black skirts with black and gold blouses.
The staff in the pool and beach area will wear linen shorts and shirts in off-white with red and white logos on the sleeves.
The cost per uniform will range from $150 for each housekeeper to $400 for the concierge, according to Kurland. Each employee will be issued three uniforms which will be cleaned and maintained by the hotel, he noted.
The elegant uniforms will be in keeping with the clientele at Acqualina, Kurland added. “We will cater to the affluent who are looking for a beachfront haven.”
Acqualina will be Rosewood’s first continental U.S. resort.
