In the 1990s, when SoHo became a glamour capital replete with luxury New York shopping, restaurants, spas and art galleries, Leonard and Emanuel Stern of Hartz Mountain Industries saw what was missing: a Grand hotel. On West Broadway where a church once stood, Helpern Architects constructed the hotel’s intentionally nondescript exterior – a reflection of the evolution of SoHo’s architectural heritage over the past 125 years. Celebrated interior designer Bill Sofield, of Studio Sofield, has collaborated with the hotel from its inception, and the interior mirrors the stylistic trends visible in the neighborhood today.

Soho Grand officially opened its doors on August 4, 1996 and established itself as Manhattan’s first luxury Downtown boutique hotel. A glittering trail of revelers and talent followed: the property hosted the press launch for Radiohead’s OK Computer and Kid A, it was one of the first hotels to put a DJ in the lobby, many fashion designers have held runway shows here and numerous Cinema Society screenings have brought the A-list of the acting world to the hotel. And of course, there’s the annual Black and White Ball on New Year’s Eve – a la Truman Capote, no less. With the recent introduction of Club Room, and new custom suites on the 16th floor, Soho Grand continues to reinvent its offerings in a way that stays true to the hotel’s core aesthetic, yet forever draws a glamorous persuasion.