A 50 sqm flat in Roma Norte: design that competes with hotels

Mariel Lozano Studio has just signed the interiors and furniture of San Luis, a one-bedroom, 50-square-metre flat in the Roma Norte neighbourhood of Mexico City. The project is the debut property of Stays, the accommodation brand from music and design practice Mad Monk Studios, which, according to Dezeen, will keep adding rental residences down the line.

The studio's angle was to optimise a small footprint, organise the space to create "tranquillity" and cut visual clutter. That is the interesting bit: the furniture is bespoke, not a catalogue pick. In flats this size every centimetre is negotiated, and one piece that does not fit wrecks the whole room.

I read it as a signal for the short-term rental and boutique apartment crowd. The standard room with generic furniture no longer competes: a guest in a city like Mexico City chooses between hundreds of options, and bespoke design is the cheapest differentiator to copy. Designing the layout to measure also lowers cleaning and maintenance costs, because there are fewer loose objects to replace.