The #resistance has gone corporate—and Katherine Lo’s vision for her new hotel chain is a lot to take in. In fact, it doesn’t sound much like a hotel brand at all. More like a hyper-millennial-focused, buzz-wordy, lifestyle one. In press materials for the concept, Lo, the 36-year-old daughter of Hong Kong real-estate billionaire Ka Shui Lo, says Eaton Workshop is “the manifestation of me ‘following my bliss,’ so others can follow theirs.”
“Bliss” isn’t really the first thing that springs to mind when you think about the old Sheraton Four Points at 12th and K Streets, Northwest, where Eaton Workshop’s first location will open early next year. But Lo promises to transform the place into “a hub for journalists, pioneers and changemakers” that “[takes] cues from countercultural movements that have changed the world for the better, from the Beatniks and East Village Radio to the Vietnam War protests and this year’s Women’s March.”
What does all that mean, exactly? To start, Eaton will have 209 rooms, “modeled after European pied-à-terres,” Lo tells Washingtonian. They’ll be large enough for long-term guests, such as “artists and activists in residency” that Lo says the company will sponsor. There will also be a radio station on premises—just as there will be at the forthcoming Line hotel in Adams Morgan—as well as artist studios, recording studios, and a 50-person movie theater. Lo says the hotel will host public art, music, and film festivals “exploring topics of social change.”
But wait, there’s more! A separate co-working space, called Eaton House, will accommodate up to 370 members. And a wellness center will offer yoga, meditation, and “alternative treatments.” Eaton will have a coffee shop and juice bar, a restaurant, rooftop bar, and a speakeasy. Tim Ma, the chef/owner of Shaw’s Kyirisan, and Columbia Room’s Derek Brown will oversee the food and beverage offerings.
After DC, Lo says she’ll open an Eaton Workshop in her native Hong Kong, followed by locations in San Francisco and Seattle. Here are some renderings of the DC hotel’s interiors.