Hotel Trundle co-owner Rita Patel wanted to create a unique mural in the hotel’s lobby where guests would want to take selfies before checking in.
Located on Taylor Street across from the offices of One Columbia, Hotel Trundle has a target opening date of April 15.
Marcus Munse had hoped to open Hotel Trundle in time for the Master’s golf tournament in Augusta. But now the opening is set for April 15.
Lauren Dillon is Columbia’s Master of Plaster and she draws inspiration from the creativity she gets working with plaster.
Hotel Trundle mixes the old and the new, with old style key boxes, but each door’s lock has Bluetooth access so you can lock it from your phone.
Even before the doors open at Hotel Trundle later this month, the Art Deco atmosphere surrounding Columbia’s first boutique hotel suggests guests are in for a unique, local lodging experience.
“We wanted it to be old, but new,” said Marcus Munse, who owns Hotel Trundle with his wife Rita Patel.
The hotel’s eclectic lobby draws guests in with spacious areas for seating and murals from local artists featured on each side. The curated boutique experience is combined with the homey atmosphere of a bed and breakfast, and includes additional spacious suites designed for brides.
Located in the Main Street district of downtown on Taylor and Sumter streets, the 41-room Hotel Trundle spans three buildings which formerly housed Western Auto, Powell furniture store and Rose Talbert paint store.
Munse and Patel spent years planning Hotel Trundle and their passion is reflected in their choice of a unicorn for the main logo.
“A unicorn is a majestic creature and a lot people, I think, wish it was real but it isn’t,” Munse said. “The same thing with our project, we didn’t know if something like this would come true or happen, but here’s our ‘Unicorn’ hotel.”
Munse and Patel employed 50 local manufacturers to work on the hotel, including master craftsmen and artists. Bricker & Beam constructed furniture, coffee is from local roasters Indah and Loveland and the unicorn logo mural in the lobby was done by plaster manufacturer, Lauren Dillon.
Dillon, also known by her company’s name the “Master of Plaster,” said that Patel came to her with a vision for a “selfie wall” in mind.
“She wanted to create a sense of community so I used ferns on the plaster and each fern is from the Columbia area so they are connected,” Dillon said. “She wanted something where people would stop and take a selfie and I think we succeeded.”
As a local business owner, she said she is happy to feature work in a unique and locally owned hotel.
“We are a boutique firm so I think it will be a great way to get out there,” Dillon said. “They’ll see the pieces and the space.”
Hotel Trundle is designed in the style of the 1920s- era Art Deco movement but Munse keeps his “old but new” concept throughout.
“All the doors have Bluetooth enabled door locks so you can use your phone to lock the doors and all the TV’s can use Google chromecast with screen mirroring capabilities,” Munse said. “But all the phones, fridges and microwaves are done in retro style.”
Eric Carnete and his wife Ji-Sun, of Greenville, vacation all over the globe seeking out hotels with distinctive architecture and service. They are both excited about the prospects of Hotel Trundle.
“We love boutiques so much,” said the couple. “The great thing about them is that they can be lovely no matter what city they’re in.”
The impact Hotel Trundle can have stretches beyond just the culture of downtown Columbia. Tourism accounts for one in ten jobs in South Carolina and brings in nearly $1.6 billion in state and local tax revenues.
That intersection of the creativity and economic viability is what drove vendors like Lauren Dillon to contribute to Hotel Trundle.
“At the end of the day we’re a manufacturer,” Dillon said. “But we’re really about creativity and design and I think that’s on display at Hotel Trundle.”
Hotel Trundle plans to open later this month, with April 15 set as the tentative date. For more information visit their website.
