Concept & Positioning
A clear point of view for the food, beverage and guest experience - rooted in the property, the place and the people it is designed to welcome.
Pre-Opening Hospitality Advisory
Hospitality
built to open
strong.
Pre-opening food and beverage advisory for boutique hotels, developers and lifestyle brands.
Discuss your project ↗
Pre-opening strategy · meaningful experiences · strong openings
Hospitality that belongs
We create hospitality that belongs.
Sense of Place is a pre-opening hospitality advisory for boutique hotels, restaurants and lifestyle brands.
Founded and led by Michael Neuner in San Francisco, the practice helps developers and operators craft concepts with clarity, build experiences with soul and open with confidence.
From vision to arrival
The opening is not a moment.
It is a sequence.
Concept, commercial logic, service and space should move as one. The work is to make every decision feel inevitable by the time the doors open.
01 · Define 02 · Prepare 03 · PerformPre-opening hospitality advisory
Built for projects where the detail matters.
Pre-Opening Readiness
The operating model, partners, staffing plan, standards and launch rhythm required to open with confidence.
Performance from Day One
Practical commercial levers and a 90-day plan that turns a considered concept into a resilient, repeatable operation.
Flagship engagement
Pre-Opening
Advisory Blueprint.
A focused engagement for boutique hotels, developers and lifestyle brands preparing to open within the next 6 to 18 months.
Professional feesFrom $18,000Typical engagement: four to six weeksFees are quoted against the agreed scope, complexity and deliverables - not a day rate. Final terms are confirmed in a written statement of work. Fees exclude applicable taxes. Reasonable, documented and pre-approved travel and out-of-pocket expenses are reimbursed at actual cost without markup. No per diem applies.
Concept & Commercial Direction
Positioning brief, guest-journey framework, food and beverage concept direction and prioritized revenue-opportunity map.
Readiness & Operating Design
Opening-readiness assessment, operating model, staffing architecture, partner strategy and SOP and training roadmap.
90-Day Opening Plan
Critical path, risk register, responsibility matrix, opening KPIs and a prioritized first-90-day performance plan.
Selected outcomes
Experience translated
into measurable results.
Three examples of the operating discipline, commercial thinking and guest-experience leadership Sense of Place brings to an opening.
Luxury hotel pre-opening · San Francisco
From construction handoff to profitable opening.
Built the operating infrastructure from the ground up - aligning ownership, design, construction, engineering, technology and operating partners around a guest-ready launch.
- 10.5% operating profit within the first three months
- $18K+ in incremental monthly revenue
- Complete opening-readiness systems for food and beverage
Global hospitality expansion · Eight international markets
Scale without losing the standard.
Developed repeatable playbooks, service standards, training frameworks and cross-functional launch processes spanning culinary, operations, procurement, marketing, finance and supply chain.
- 67% faster venue-launch timelines
- $600K in incremental quarterly revenue
- Premium at-home dining concept launched across the UK in four weeks
Portfolio-wide service excellence · Global luxury hotels
A consistent culture across a celebrated portfolio.
Led change-management programs, global operating standards and initiatives across CRM, loyalty, training, technology and operational readiness.
- Transformation affecting 3,000+ employees globally
- Portfolio-wide service and operating standards
- Operational development for UHNW membership and residence offerings
“A hospitality experience should be remembered for its feeling - and trusted for its performance.”
Selected experience
Global perspective.
Grounded execution.
Across luxury hotels, global restaurant groups and ultra-high-net-worth membership propositions, Principal Michael Neuner has led concept development, operating readiness and guest-experience transformation at scale.
8international markets launched
67%faster venue-launch timelines
$600Kincremental quarterly revenue created
10.5%operating profit in the first three months
Selected brand experience
A career shaped by
distinctive hospitality.
Experience across celebrated hotels, restaurants and global standards organizations informs a point of view that is both exacting and commercially grounded.
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Begin a conversation
Planning an opening
with ambition?
Share a few details about the project. Qualified inquiries receive a personal response with consultation scheduling options within one business day.
- 01Project inquiry
Share the opening, timing, location and desired outcome.
- 02Fit review
Michael Neuner, Founder & Principal, reviews the opportunity and confirms whether the engagement is aligned.
- 03Introductory consultation
A focused 30-minute conversation to clarify priorities, scope and next steps.
- 04Proposal & statement of work
Qualified projects receive a tailored scope, deliverables, timeline and professional fees.
Prefer email? maneuner@outlook.com ↗
Founded in San Francisco
A personal practice.
A global perspective.
Sense of Place is founded and led by Michael Neuner, bringing international luxury-hospitality experience to the decisions that shape a distinctive, disciplined opening.
Michael Neuner · Founder & Principal