Hotels, Festivals and Identity - New York Times Interviews Chip Conley | nytimes.com

In 1987, at the tender age of 26, Chip Conley decided to get into the hotel business, so he checked out a motel in the gritty Tenderloin neighborhood of San Francisco everyone called the “no tell” motel. It was a throwback to midcentury motor lodges, and Mr. Conley fell in love instantly. He inquired about it with the owner, who informed him the motel was, in fact, doing quite well: its occupancy rate was 142 percent. Sensing Mr.