At just 35, Franco-Mexican designer Hugo Toro has emerged as one of the most compelling voices in contemporary hospitality and interior design. His projects—ranging from Provençal hotels to Roman palazzos—carry a singular blend of narrative, texture, and cultural depth. For Toro, interiors are not backdrops; they are stories waiting to be told.
A Designer Between Worlds
Born to a French father and a Mexican mother, Toro grew up between cultures, an influence that continues to shape his work. His studies at Penninghen in Paris, the University of Applied Arts in Vienna, and UCLA in Los Angeles equipped him with a cosmopolitan foundation. This breadth of experience allows him to create interiors that are at once rooted in local context and infused with international sophistication.
A Distinctive Signature
Several qualities define Toro’s aesthetic:
- Narrative depth – Spaces are designed as stories, drawing on history, place, and memory.
- Material warmth – Rich woods, tactile fabrics, and layered textures create comfort without sacrificing elegance.
- Balance of scale – Toro moves fluidly between grand gestures—vaulted ceilings, sweeping perspectives—and the intimacy of hand-painted wallpapers or bespoke upholstery.
- Dialogue with nature – His projects often blur indoor and outdoor living, attuned to climate and light.
- Bespoke craftsmanship – Custom furniture, fabrics, and lighting ensure each space is unique and resistant to the homogeny of “global luxury.”
Hotels and Hospitality Highlights
Le Mas Candille, Mougins, Côte d’Azur
Toro’s redesign of this Provençal retreat reawakens its heritage with luminous colour palettes, bespoke oak furniture, and hand-painted textiles. The result is both timeless and contemporary—a French country house reframed for long stays and slow living.
https://www.mascandille.com/
Orient Express La Minerva, Rome
Set within a 17th-century palazzo, this forthcoming Orient Express flagship demonstrates Toro’s gift for balancing history with modernity. Layers of Roman grandeur meet his bespoke interventions, creating a dialogue between past and present.
https://laminerva.orient-express.com/en/hotel/europe/italy/rome/la-minerva
Marlow, Monaco
Conceived as an all-day dining venue, Marlow channels the spirit of Victorian clubs with warm woods, sculptural lamps, and a commanding bar at its centre. The design shows Toro’s skill at evoking atmosphere—spaces with personality rather than just polish.
https://www.montecarlosbm.com/en/restaurant-monaco/marlow
Villa Albertine, New York
Commissioned by the French Ministry of Culture, this project highlights Toro’s institutional sensibility. The interiors remain cultured and refined, but never sterile—proof that even public spaces can feel human and inviting.
https://villa-albertine.org/
TL:DR
Hugo Toro is not simply a decorator of luxury hotels; he is a storyteller through space. His interiors revive heritage without pastiche, draw upon context without cliché, and deliver comfort without sacrificing daring design. In an age when too many hospitality projects lean toward the interchangeable, Toro insists on identity, on narrative, and on craft.
For readers of My World of Interiors, Toro’s work offers a vision of hotel design that feels richly personal—luxury not as a formula, but as an experience.
My World of Interiors 