BUNNYFiSH: A Lesson in Collaboration

Architect Craig Sean Palacios, co-founder of BUNNYFiSH studio in Las Vegas, told a compelling story about professional relationships during HD Expo 2024.

Palacios and his business partner Tina Wichmann worked closely with former Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh for a decade. Titled “Meaningful Collaboration: A Decade with Tony Hsieh,” the presentation was an interesting look into a unique client relationship.

When BUNNYFiSH studio first started, Palacios and Wichmann were working out of The Beat Coffeehouse. Interestingly, this space, located in Downtown Las Vegas, was an example of adaptive reuse architecture. The space was transformed from a quick-care medical center into a coffeehouse, with small exam rooms converted into small offices.

As Palacios recalls, he was wrapping up for the day about 14 years ago when someone popped their head into the BUNNYFiSH office. This person asked what Palacios was doing, and he answered that he was leaving for the day. Clarifying their question, the person inquired about BUNNYFiSH.

After explaining the studio’s overview and sharing some project details, Palacios was told the person would be back. Well, that person did return, and he had a few more people in tow. One of these people, as I’m sure you’ve guessed, was Hsieh.

Eventually, the group traveled from The Beat to the streets of Downtown Las Vegas, and through the doors of Hsieh’s apartment. Along with people milling about was a wall loaded with Post-It Notes. Written on these notes were words like “speakeasy” and “restaurant.” As an architect, Palacios instinctively began arranging the notes to create logical, cohesive concepts.

From there, Hsieh led Palacios to an empty lot, and asked what the architect would put there. Palacios saw a grocery store. Hsieh, a butterfly farm.

It was in that moment, said Palacios, that he began to understand Hsieh. After what was essentially an entire day with Hsieh, BUNNYFiSH studio, the Zappos CEO, and his team would go on to discuss architecture for several months.

Speaking the Same Language

During at least one conversation, Hsieh made the statement that he didn’t “speak architect.” And to this day, Palacios isn’t quite sure if that was a completely truthful claim.

However, he was told that no architect had ever really been able to make Hsieh happy up to that point. So, it appears that the two had found an effective method of communication, and Hsieh appeared happy to work with BUNNYFiSH studio.

That method did take time to develop, of course. Take, for instance, the transformation of a building in Downtown Las Vegas that Hsieh had acquired. When Palacios asked what Hsieh wanted, the latter told the former to “go to the W in Austin.”

That was the whole of the instruction.

So, with that as the entire brief, BUNNYFiSH went to the W in Austin. And, as Palacios explained, they did basically everything one could have done at the hotel at that time. Upon their return to Las Vegas, Palacios made the call to simply let Hsieh find him at The Beat when he was ready.

Sure enough, that’s what happened a few days later. Basically, Hsieh wanted BUNNYFiSH to transform his building into the W in Austin, in a way. When Inspire first opened, I visited the speakeasy—which required biometric access, I believe via a retinal scan—and I would later watch Hey, Bartender in the space’s theater/TED Talk area, hosted by Dushan Zaric, co-founder of Employees Only.

Making Things Happen

Hsieh would go on to work with BUNNYFiSH on more projects, large and small. In doing so, they would all transform the Downtown Las Vegas landscape and culture.

To provide one large-scale example, BUNNYFiSH took on the Gold Spike’s metamorphosis from old-school, outdated casino to nightlife, social, and event space. This is another concept with which I’m familiar, having hosted an event there with the Bar & Restaurant Expo team when the event was still known as Nightclub & Bar.

There was also a small downtown motel conversion. Since “nobody needs parking in Las Vegas,” the parking lot was ripped out and a six-hole putt-putt course was installed. Of course, it wasn’t that simple; each hole was a version of a world-famous counterpart.

Anyone who has spent time in Downtown Las Vegas will be familiar with another BUNNYFiSH-Hsieh collaboration: Container Park. However, it’s a dog park project that really encapsulates the real message within Palacios’ story.

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