IT is Monday afternoon, and it’s Jean-Michel Gathy’s day off. But the most sought-after designer for luxury hotels and resorts is instead talking about work.

“No, no, it is a pleasure,” says the Belgian, calling us from his home in Kuala Lumpur. He later reveals that he had spent the previous day and most of Monday working.

Gathy, founder of design firm Denniston, has been in the luxury hospitality sector for 40 years and is the first person that luxury hoteliers turn to when they have a new project.