| dc.description.abstract | The project attempted to unveil how the conscious use of interior design in hotels environment can make a more effective and successful business. The hotel industry in Kenya and the rest of the world is a dynamic and competitive enterprise which heavily relies on its interior beauty to attract and retain its customers. This is why many hotels strive to make their facilities more appealing, welcoming and comfortable. In order to meet required standards many hotels therefore adopt various interior designs in order to make their premises become places of preference and recognition both locally and internationally. Literature revealed that various factors influence the adoption of interior design in hotels and that some of these factors are peculiar to their localities and cultural backgrounds.
Kisumu is a fast growing town with an equally fast expanding hotel industry. The purpose of this study was to investigate the determinants of interior design in the hotels in this town. The specific objective of the study was: to establish the economic, cultural and environment, personality and psycho-social factors that influence the adoption of interior design in the hotel industry in Kisumu town. This study employed a descriptive research design. The study population consisted of 67 hotels and 67 owners of these hotels. Simple random sampling was used to select 44 hotels and purposive sampling was used to choose 12 hotels that have interior design. The data was collected using questionnaire and observation checklist.
Data collected by questionnaire and observation checklist were analyzed using descriptive statistics that is percentages and frequencies. The study concluded that interior design is a very important component in the hotel industry and to the clients and the success of running it, 85.7% indicated that adoption of interior attracted customers, 92.7% indicated that of I.D. made customers stay longer in hotels, and 78.5% said they led to increase in customers. 82.9% indicated that I.D led to increase in profits. However, the study also revealed that not all that adopted I.D. had increase in profits. The use of interior design in the hotels has influenced the increase of clients to these hotels, the various interior design used was described as relaxing, beautiful, inviting and value for the money invested in the industry.
All respondents stated that they appreciated and acknowledged the diverse and unique types of interior design used. It also emerged that personality characteristics greatly impacted on the adoption of interior design, those run by women 44.6% and men 55.3%.the females had an eye for detail these Hotels had unique characteristics that reflected the personality and preferences of those in charge. The following recommendations were made based in the findings:- The study recommends that hotels use more of local materials in their interior design as they are available and cost effective. It further recommends that they expose most of their staff of all levels to knowledge in interior design to reduce the cost of relying on hired experts.
If possible they can employ a resident interior designer who will advise and attend to design issues on a regular basis. That a central body be established to oversee and ensure certain basic standards are upheld in the adoption of interior designs, hotels of all categories and the managers are held accountable for maintaining the standards. The research has suggested that further research be conducted in the following areas:-The Perceptions of Hotel Users towards Interior Designs in the Hotel Industry or Adopting Interior Designs: Challenges and opportunities for Hotel Proprietors. | en_US |
