Emma Goodwin is the Co-Creator of The Surfrider Hotel, a low-key, chic Californian beach house located on the iconic Pacific Coast Highway.
Together with her husband, California-born architect Matthew Goodwin, the pair transformed a former 1950s surf motel into a coastal haven for creative types. Responsible for the hotel’s hospitality, interior design, and creative direction, we caught up with design-minded Emma Goodwin to talk bi-coastal living and daily rituals, and learn about the ins and outs of creating your very own Malibu dream house. Read on for the interview in full…
How do you start your days?
I wake with sunrise, open the French doors to the garden, and listen to the birds chirping. A very welcomed wakeup call after nearly a decade living in New York City. Plus, two eggs and a flat white.
What’s your go-to uniform?
In Californian – high-waisted vintage jeans with a tucked-in T-shirt.
Describe your workspace/ workplace…
I’m very fortunate in this department. I live in a 1930s Spanish home in California that has an original Hollywood-esque pool house that I’ve converted to my creative studio and office. My other office is a boutique hotel overlooking the Pacific Ocean in Malibu!
The Surfrider Hotel. Photography by Trevor Tondro.
Identify something in your workspace that’s special to you (and why)…
My mood boards. As a visual person they help to keep my design on track and my creative juices flowing.
What are your workplace essentials?
Natural light, fresh flowers, a candle burning, personalised stationery for handwritten notes, and a great playlist. Loving Nina Simone, Alice Coltrane, Françoise Hardy and a good Van singalong.
What’s your go to lunch order?
I am self admittedly terrible when it comes to breaking for lunch. I’ve always dreamed of being Italian where pasta, a Spritz, and a swim is just a normal 1PM. For me though, on a good day, a smoothie. On a really good day, a tasting with The Surfrider’s incredible chef.
What time of day are you at your most creative?
I am extremely sensitive to the energy around me and the weather (an Australian sun-child Pisces) and so this really depends on the day.
What is the most rewarding part of the job?
The people – our team, collaborators, and guests. The notion that my work literally exists to make people happy, and that I get to travel around the world for “research”.
And the most challenging?
Hospitality is like being an architect of an experience. An experience is the sum of its parts and so every single piece counts, no matter how small. In fact, it’s usually the smallest that matter the most! This is as invigorating as it is challenging. It is all-consuming. It doesn’t stop, it doesn’t sleep, and it doesn’t have holidays. It took me years to find discipline and balance in this regard.
The Surfrider Hotel. Photography by Brecht Van’t Hof.
Work takes you most frequently to…
Malibu, California!
Where are you from originally?
Australia.
What was your first job?
I’ve been working odd jobs since I was 14-years old, including full time through uni. My first “real” job out of university was at Condé Nast in New York. I moved on a whim (no money, no plans) and was applying for a short-term apartment. The landlord’s email address was @condenast.com. I took a leap and sent my resume with my signed lease and she called me in for an interview the next day. It was my first real lesson in “if you don’t ask, it’s already a no”.
What sparked your interest in hotels?
My own travel experiences and the idea that travel can literally expand people’s worlds. The simple act of inspiring has such ripple effects. I visited over 50 countries in my twenties and my favourite experiences were personal, boutique, unique, and always the most authentic to a place. I love the notion that designing a hotel is literally designing a world, a world that can inspire.
Your favourite hotels include…
Some of my favourites have been non-descript fincas and shacks in parts of Europe. I can’t even remember the names of them, but the way they made me feel left such lasting impressions. I will always maintain that Europeans do hospitality best. It’s this beautiful old-school notion that serving and hosting is a great honour, like welcoming people into their own home.
Hotel Il Pellicano.
Favourite Hotels Shortlist: Il Pellicano, Italy; La Granja, Ibiza; Raes at Wategos and The Atlantic, Byron Bay, Australia; Coqui Coqui and Costa Careyes in Mexico; Domaine De Murtoli, Corsica, France; Amangiri, Utah. I’m also dying to visit Beldi Country Club in Morocco and Babylonstoren in South Africa. I could go on forever…
Do you have a mentor or inspirational figure that has guided or influenced you?
Many. Some who know that they are my mentors and some who don’t know (that sounds a little stalker-ish!) I think it’s really important to share experiences, lessons, and ideas. Find people who inspire you and who you trust, both in their example and actions, to give it to you straight, create a little “growth tribe”, and always be open-minded. After all, you don’t know what you don’t know.
What were some hurdles you had to overcome in the early days as a hotelier?
I didn’t come from a professional hospitality background. I worked one day in a bar in NYC and they never called me back (I wouldn’t have either!). I had to learn the basics on my feet and convince a team, with more experience in the field than me, that I thought there was another way to do things that aligned more with our vision.
I can’t tell you how many times I received push back or “that’s not how it’s done” or “she’s never been in hospitality”, an eye roll, or just a general desire to take the safe road because “it works” rather than push boundaries. That was hard. Empowering, supporting, and inspiring people (on very little sleep!) to try things out of their comfort zone was hard. People tend toward digging their feet in when uncomfortable (including me in so many past situations). Staying true to a vision, with only the vision to divert back to, was hard. And the extra hours of learning the foundations and the basics, looking at every angle, asking the “why”, and then deciding how I thought it best be done was exhausting, physically and mentally. It meant, quite literally, working triple time, every night and weekend for years. In the end, it was a blessing and taught me SO many lessons about life and business.
Photography by Kristen Kilpatrick.
What’s the most important business lessons you’ve learned?
Trust your gut. Act with integrity. You’ll win some, you’ll lose some. Have fun!
The best advice you’ve ever received…
You write your own story and you choose whether your glass is half-full or half-empty. Strive to be happy!
What are you working on right now?
The redesign of a beachfront house in Malibu, and a new hotel up the coast in California, as well as a personal renovation of our own home – plus a few fun collaborations that I can’t wait to share!
Feature image by Kristen Kilpatrick.
Any Questions or Tips to add?