Jeffrey Beers International Reinvents Rio's Historic Gloria Palace Hotel

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. June 14, 2012

New York, NY - June 14, 2012 - Eike Batista, founder and chairman of leading Brazilian corporation EBX Group, has selected Jeffrey Beers International to do nothing short of reinvent Rio's famed Gloria Palace Hotel. Under Beers' direction, the Landmark facade will be restored . In addition, the entire interior structure of the five-star hotel, originally built in 1922, will be thoughtfully redesigned to preserve the best qualities of the original while bringing the hotel into the 21st century. When it opens in Spring 2014, the property will feature: 346 guestrooms, three restaurants, a 6,000SF convention and meeting center and five retail shops. In a dramatic gesture, Beers enclosed the existing U-shaped building plan to create a 10-story interior atrium capped by a glass-bottomed swimming pool on the hotel roof.

“The Gloria Palace Hotel will be unparalleled in Rio,” says designer Jeffrey Beers. “We have created a destination worthy of Rio's leading position in the global economic, cultural and political landscape.”

Beers' plan relocates the hotel's main lobby from the street level to the second floor. The new lobby will be the heart of the Gloria. Accessed from the ground floor by dedicated elevators, the lobby will include guest reception, multiple seating areas, a bar with adjacent all-day dining restaurant, access to the spa, and luxury retail boutiques. A grand stair will lead guests to meeting rooms on a mezzanine level. The glass-bottomed rooftop pool acts as a giant skylight, filtering dappled light through the entire atrium and lobby.

The interior design references the Moderne style of the era in which the original hotel was built yet expressed with a contemporary sensibility. In support of local artisans and economies, Beers' team will source the majority of the project's materials, including rosewood, marble, nickel, bronze, and smoked mirror, from within Brazil. A series of 'green walls' throughout the hotel, including 4 planted columns in the atrium, will pay homage to the country's lush natural environment.

The Gloria will comprise two structures: a main building and an Executive Tower. Beers designed a sleek new pavilion connecting these two buildings. The pavilion's contemporary architecture offers a dynamic counterpoint to Gloria's neoclassical façade. The Executive Tower incorporates 160 guest rooms, several meeting rooms and a large ballroom. An elegantly landscaped garden separates the Executive Tower and main building and will be one of Gloria's multiple outdoor event spaces.