About Yvonne Lembi-Detert

Yvonne Lembi-Detert, president and CEO of Personality Hotels, is a true pioneer of San Francisco boutique chic, having made her mark with the opening of the city’s first boutique hotel more than 20 years ago. Fresh out of the Rudolph Shaffer School of Design, her talents were enlisted to remodel and convert a prewar hotel building into the Hotel Union Square in 1982.

Since then, Yvonne’s hotel group has grown to encompass five properties including Hotel Metropolis, Hotel Union Square, Kensington Park Hotel, the Steinhart Hotel and the flagship property, Hotel Diva.

A Bay Area native, Yvonne has a strong eye for trends and innovative designs. With a focus on aesthetics and function, her ongoing mission is to offer guests an oasis of escape with the pleasure of feeling at home. “My home is filled with eclectic designs and many unique objects,” says Yvonne. “In a sense I try to bring a collection of personalities into the properties as well.”

Yvonne’s sense of home and family strongly influence her design conceptualizations. A mother of two daughters, she realized after frequently traveling with them that hotels were not catering to their needs and the familiarization of home. This realization was the impetus to the development of the innovative Kids’ Suite at Hotel Metropolis.

Fashion is also a great inspiration for Yvonne who admits that guests buy image as much as a good sleep. “Fashion is a great indicator for whimsical touches as well as pragmatic necessities,” says Yvonne. “It puts me in better touch with guest expectations. With fashion I find a kaleidoscope of ideas.”

Yvonne credits her father and San Francisco real estate mogul, Frank Lembi, for her knowledge, drive and energy. Lembi is the founder of San Francisco’s Skyline Realty/CitiApartments, the second-largest owner of rental units in city. In addition to owning more than 150 buildings including three office buildings, five boutique hotels and over140 large apartment houses throughout San Francisco, the Lembi family also owns the computer training center Learn iT! and runs a brokerage firm, a property-management company and a mortgage brokerage firm.

In addition to attending the Rudolph Shaffer School of Design, Yvonne is a graduate of San Francisco State University where she earned a Bachelors of Arts in Interior Design and is honored on their Alumni Hot Shots List. She lives in San Mateo with her husband and two children, two dogs, a cat and four chickens. She is a passionate supporter of San Francisco’s Tenderloin Learning Center and an avid gardener.