It’s a lifestyle brand known for its minimal stationery, clothing and homeware, but now Japanese store Muji is taking a step into hospitality – with the opening of two hotels in China.
Designed to reflect the aesthetic that underpins its products, the Muji Hotels aim to “provide a space supporting both body and mind while away from home”.
In a statement it said it “seeks to provide a physical experience of the Muji philosophy through the sensation of towels, the placement of outlets and light switches, restaurants and menus, space, and more”.
The first hotel will open in the city of Shenzhen, in south-east China, on 18 January and will have 79 rooms with a Muji diner and, of course, Muji stores on the second and third floors. On 20 March, a second hotel will be open in Beijing’s old city, with 42 rooms a cafe and bookshop, as well as a Muji store. Doubles in the hotels will start at £108 a night B&B.
Muji isn’t the first consumer brand to make a foray into the hotel sector. Swedish homeware titan Ikea opened a hotel in Älmhult, southern Sweden, in 2016, while the Yo! Sushi chain launched a number of pod hotels, known as Yotels, starting in 2007.
