Mi casa, su casa: MM:NT Berlin Lab reinvents hotel stays

A boutique hotel with a focus on design has recently opened in the heart of Berlin. You might be thinking you've heard this before, or seen similar ones featured a dozen times in the travel and lifestyle sections of your favorite magazines. But MM:NT Berlin Lab stands apart for several reasons—two major ones, in particular.

1/ Conscious Hospitality

That is the concept at the core of MM:NT’s identity, which combines "a carbon net zero mindset" with the ambition to create a pleasurable hotel experience. A seemingly basic approach beneath which lies a deeper CX philosophy based on simplicity and efficiency.

Of course, as a hotel championing eco-responsibility, MM:NT has opted for solutions that minimize resource consumption, from a website and app designed to reduce energy use and running on green power to the choice of regenerative materials and eco-friendly products – you can find the complete list of their partners here.

But what sets the hotel apart is how it has also worked on less evident parameters, including the necessity (or lack thereof) to make certain choices available to guests.

Choosing your room
MM:NT offers just six rooms across three categories: Little, Middle, and Big, all featuring "comfortable beds, adjustable day-to-night lighting, rainfall showers, and plenty of storage. Consciously uncluttered, they are designed to ensure the best night's sleep, with rich textures and sustainable materials—so whatever room you choose, it’s a great choice."
In other words, choice for the sake of choice isn’t the priority here – what matters is that every option is a good one.

Finding what you need, when you need it (and not what you don’t)
The rooms provide essentials, but guests can add extras using the “Upgrade” boxes located in three spots around the hotel. Each box contains items like toothbrushes, kitchen utensils, toasters, coffee machines, or "the fluffiest robes in town"—all available for rent by the hour, per use, or for the duration of your stay. Prices range from €0 to €15 (for instance, a hair straightener costs €2 per hour, while coffee machines and toasters are free)

Using the hotel’s digital concierge app
As a “digitally hosted hotel”, MM:NT stresses how much tech makes processes simpler and more efficient (seamless access, everything in one place), while enabling staff to be present only a few hours a day and work on the opening of the next hotel.  

As the hotel puts it, it's “all about the good stuff without the fuss.” MM:NT’s ambition is to “think beyond sustainability” by creating responsible yet memorable experiences. By keeping the essentials that truly enhance a pleasurable stay—like peace and quiet, or the sensory delight of carefully selected textures and colors—the hotel eliminates unnecessary frills (like that complimentary toiletry kit you never use).

2/ A beta brand

Before its official opening in July, MM :NT invited people to test the rooms and provide feedback on their experience. The brand prides itself on constantly evolving, learning "from our community, and from our mistakes."

This co-creative approach is reminiscent of an initiative launched by Soho House hotels a few years ago, in which members helped co-create skincare products. Guests shared their skincare needs and gave feedback before the formulas were finalized and made available in the group’s rooms and, eventually, to the public.

MM :NT goes a step further, emphasizing that the hotel experience itself is a collaboration with guests. “We set the scene, you make the moment.” This is a relatively rare positioning in the hospitality industry, where hotels typically build their appeal around extravagant amenities—panoramic views, oversized beds, or massive TV screens. Instead, MM :NT invites guests to play an active role in shaping their own stay and crafting their unique moments.

What it means for brands

As priorities get redefined for a growing share of the global population – we have been talking of experiences over products for almost a decade now – and as saving resources has never been more urgent, hospitality brands should “think beyond sustainability” and innovate beyond the usual towel reuse programs.

As shown by MM:NT, which has cleverly done so and capitalized on the growing quest for co-creation and customer contribution – that has also been around for a while now –, this kind of innovative approach is not just good for the planet or even for guests, it is also a great way for brands to stand out from the crowd and open up new perspectives for the future of hospitality. MM:NT has plans to expand in Europe and Australia in the coming months and years. Stay tuned.

PS: In a report I published in 2020, I explored this topic and gave examples of “living companies” creating consumption alternatives by providing services in the right place at the right time (products and spaces designed as living organisms) and by inviting people to play a more active part in their consumption.
The report is still available here 💾