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:::2006::: Chamber of Commerce Nevada  Charlie Palmer Group  |
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Charles Gruwell, Design Director Nearly twenty years ago, Charles' Career was launched with several years of service with the nationally recognized firm of Falls, Grant and Lucas in Los Altos, California. Building upon his success at an early age, he returned to the Monterey Peninsula in 1981 and successfully built his own interior design practice which achieved national recognition for its outstanding level of design integrity and innovation. To expand his international reach and broaden his creative portfolio, Charles went on to serve as the Design Director for Studio Encanto, a division of Hirsch Bedner Associates International, specializing in luxury five-star hotels and exclusive residences. Following his tenure with Hirsch Bedner, Charles became Director of Design for Los Angeles based DESIGN 1 Interiors prior to its closure. Most recently, Charles was the Director of Design for the Beverly Hills office at Bent Severin & Associates International Design Group before ABA in Las Vegas in 1996 as its Design Director, spearheading the company's growth into large-scale hotel and resort designs. Specializing in one-of-a-kind boutique hotels and resorts, exclusive residential properties, restaurants and country clubs. Charles' hallmark has long been his vivid design imagination and highly personalized approach to client service. His creative strength and notoriety has led to eight prestigious national awards for hotel and resort design. In 1986, Charles was awarded two of the three "First Place" Gold Key Awards for Excellence in Hospitality Design sponsored by the American Hotel/Motel Association. His design work at the Spindrift Inn, Monterey, California, was chosen from among 150 international entries for "Best Lobby" and "Best Guest Room" design, thereby distinguishing him as the first designer in the history of the annual competition to receive more than one award in a single year. The following year, Charles was again selected as one of the five finalists for the Gold Key Award for Excellence in Hospitality Design for the guest rooms and suites at the famed Lodge at Pebble Beach. Charles has gained national recognition as the recipient of the "Designer Circle Award" sponsored by Lodging and Hospitality Magazine for two consecutive years. In 1986 he received the " Second Place" award for "Best Guest Room Design" (Luxury category) for the Spindrift Inn on Cannery Row, Monterey, California, and in 1987 his work on the Hotel Pacific in historic Monterey earned him the "First Place" award for "Best Guest Room Design" (Luxury Category). In February 1986, Charles' residential design work was featured on the cover of the Metropolitan Home as "Grand Winner" of the magazine's Annual Design Competition. Charles' work has been featured in every leading design and hotel management publication. Additionally, his work was featured and given extensive coverage in the 1990 publication CALIFORNIA DESIGN. In 1989, Charles and his associates received the Gold Key Award and the Designer Circle Award for "Best Luxury Suite," acknowledging their work at the classic Sorrento Hotel in Seattle, Washington. Yet another "Gold Key Award" was bestowed upon Charles in 1991 for Best Luxury Suite for his work at the landmark Huntington Hotel in San Francisco atop Nob Hill. Charles is a native of Monterey Peninsula and Carmel Valley, California. He received his Bachelor of Arts in Art and Psychology from Fresno State University in Fresno, California. Before launching his career as a designer, Charles was a High School Fine Arts and Spanish teacher in Monterey, California. He has traveled extensively throughout the world and now lives in Las Vegas.
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