Paramount Hotel, New York

"Hotel Paramount, it's around 1988-1989. My friend Ian Schrager calls me and says, "Philippe, come to New York, we'll make a new hotel. I say, "Ian, you know, we did the Royalton. We have already done, I believe, a nice project, which has been a nice success. He said to me, "Yes, you'll come. And you know why ? I'm going to say the magic word, "100 dollars." I say," What does that mean, 100 dollars? He answers, "It's going to be the price of the rooms." I immediately jump on the plane.

We started dreaming of a big hotel with 1000 rooms, what we call a "super YMCA", a kind of super hostel where we will treat with maybe even more respect, love, tenderness the people who have forgotten to make money." Ph.S