92: chapter VIII
with their close friends, Jane and David Conlan. Their trips became learning experiences that took them throughout Europe and to the Far East, where Bangkok, Hong Kong, Bali and Singapore would portend several lessons in service and extravagance. The voyages would manifest themselves in big ideas, not to mention countless wares from shopping excursions, the booty from which would come to outfit Ballantyne Resort Hotel. The foursome’s travels yielded unique pieces, like a stately breakfront from the Prince Charles Trust and The Four Seasons paintings which hang in the resort’s Grill Room. The group also harvested accent pieces they purchased in bulk, like original art for the hallways of each hotel floor. However, the team brought home even more ideas than wares. A luggage holder for the rooms was designed from one Conlan saw in Europe and simply could not locate in the U.S. They eschewed traditional wide-countertop bath vanities in favor of mar-
ble-topped two-tier vanities that Sara found to have more storage. Comments David Conlan on these “Best Practices” endeavors, “We took hundreds of pictures, printed them in duplicate, and later in the evening discussed the idea and put them into scrapbooks. The pictures were always sorted by subject — whether it was maid service, bellmen, restrooms, a golf hole, or a towel holder, everything had its place and there was absolutely nothing too small to be considered for improvement.” Conlan says that since he came on board with Bissell, “Best Practices” have been a large part of his responsibilities. Bissell attributes this to Conlan’s keen eye for detail and his astute analytical mindset. For his part, Conlan says, “The attention to detail in any Bissell project is excruciating — and that is the defining and differentiating factor in what he does. What I do is actually quite simple by comparison — find out what works and what doesn’t. It’s a combination