Located a scenic three-and-a-half-hour drive north of Detroit, the Dexter Hotel represents the latest creative venture from Caudill’s Kinship Hospitality, a hospitality enterprise he co-founded alongside Kamron Bije-Apple, in close collaboration with Shore North Development. From the substantial wooden furniture anchoring the guest rooms to the soft, warm lighting illuminating the corridors, an overwhelming majority of the getaway’s elements were conceived and brought to life through collaborations between Kinship Hospitality and a tightly knit network of makers, artisans, and craftspeople from the surrounding region.
Caudill’s deep personal connection to the area served as the primary catalyst for the project. Having owned property in northern Michigan for approximately a decade, he developed a profound appreciation for its unique geographic and cultural landscape. For Caudill, the region represents the absolute best of all worlds: it boasts incredible fresh water, stunning local orchards, and flourishing farms that naturally yield amazing culinary ingredients, all paired with a surprisingly vibrant and deep-rooted creative culture. While Detroit has justifiably established itself over the years as a powerhouse of American craft and industrial design, Caudill points out that an equally formidable pool of creative talent has been quietly waiting to be discovered upstate.
This realization shaped the overarching philosophy and operational strategy behind the development of the hotel. When outfitting the 29-room property, Caudill and his team established a strict, localized curation rule. Every single element, fixture, and amenity added to the property was evaluated through a singular, uncompromising lens: whether it could be sourced, crafted, or manufactured right there in Michigan. Drawing on the professional relationships and personal friendships he has cultivated throughout his time working in the state, Caudill leaned heavily into his existing network. By committing to this localized approach—taking extra time during the sourcing phase to deliberate over even the smallest details, such as a custom soap dish—the development team unlocked a series of remarkable, bespoke designs that imbue the property with an unmistakable sense of place.
Positioned magnificently along the waterfront shoreline of Grand Traverse Bay, the Dexter Hotel immediately connects guests to its breathtaking natural surroundings from the moment of arrival. Stepping inside, that organic beauty flows seamlessly into the guest quarters, which are outfitted with a handsome, cohesive lineup of custom white oak furniture. This design choice thoughtfully builds upon Michigan’s rich, century-long legacy as a key national hub for mid-century modern furniture manufacturing and woodworking. The property’s custom couches, lounge chairs, plush beds, and functional nightstands were all meticulously designed by Caudill and manufactured nearby by Grand Rapids-based Wolf Studio.
Explaining the rationale behind this partnership, Caudill highlights Michigan’s storied history in furniture manufacturing and notes that Wolf Studio continues to produce remarkably classic American designs. The furniture is characterized by solid wood construction and substantial builds, completely free of cheap veneers. Caudill worked extensively with the studio’s craftsmen on the precise scale and shape of each individual piece, meticulously refining details like the gentle bend of an armrest or the comfortable slope of a chair back, ensuring that guests encounter furniture they can truly sink into. To balance the heavy woodwork, the design team layered in an abundance of rich textural elements, utilizing premium velvet, supple leather, and heavy cottons and canvases to introduce as much soft tactility as possible into the living spaces.
To further deepen the property’s connection to regional history while cultivating a relaxed, welcoming atmosphere, the interior design incorporates a carefully curated selection of vintage furnishings and decor sourced directly from Pernette’s, an antiques dealer based in the nearby community of Northport, Michigan. Some of these vintage chairs carry a nostalgic charm, resembling pieces pulled straight from a beloved family basement, which helps establish an easygoing hangout vibe. Caudill notes that the highest praise from visitors is when they express a desire to move in or wish the hotel was their actual house, a compliment that validates the team’s goal of creating a space where everyone immediately feels comfortable and truly at home.
Moving into the lobby area, guests are greeted by the striking linear patterning of a handcrafted front reception desk, another standout piece of American woodworking produced by Wolf Studio. The same studio was also commissioned to build the polished bar located inside the hotel’s on-site dining destination, the Noble Lounge. This establishment extends the property’s dedicated regional focus straight to its culinary and beverage offerings, featuring an artisanal menu highlighted by cheeses sourced from nearby northern Michigan towns like Suttons Bay and Northport.
The celebration of Michigan’s manufacturing and artisan community continues throughout every corner of the hotel. The property features custom flush-mount ceiling lights designed by Caudill and manufactured by Traverse City-based Britten Inc., alongside a collection of custom ceramic trays, elegant vases, and other decorative accessories fabricated by ClaySpace, another talented Traverse City enterprise. For Caudill, the close-knit, highly collaborative production process was one of the most rewarding aspects of bringing the hotel to life. Working with local artisans meant he could easily visit a workshop to inspect a glaze firsthand, refining a product through as many iterations as necessary to achieve the exact desired color tone or ideal light temperature, a luxury of proximity that resulted in finished products both sides take immense pride in.
Even the property’s typography and visual communication bear the unmistakable fingerprints of local makers. Traverse City-based Bear Sign Company was enlisted to produce the interior wayfinding markers as well as the main exterior signage, while Detroit’s Motown Hand Painting contributed an array of charming, custom hand-painted signage throughout the building. Meanwhile, the Dexter’s thoughtfully curated art collection features works selected by Detroit’s Library Street Collective, striking original canvases created by Michigan artists Pier Wright and Jesse Hickman, and even an evocative landscape painting that Caudill serendipitously discovered while browsing a local thrift store.
With so much dense Midwestern history, craftsmanship, and local storytelling on display throughout the property, Caudill is realistic about the fact that most casual guests may not immediately pick up on every single nuanced detail. To bridge this gap, the team is currently developing a dedicated zine designed to share the behind-the-scenes stories, origins, and inspirations of these various custom designs. However, Caudill emphasizes that even if visitors are unaware of the full backstory, they will instantly recognize that the custom lighting, handcrafted pottery, and bespoke lamps deviate entirely from the cookie-cutter aesthetic found in standard corporate hotels. These elements are hyper-specific to the Dexter, granting the entire property a singular, grounded identity.
Looking ahead, Caudill is preparing to launch an on-site gift shop that will make a select few of the guest rooms’ most distinctive accessories available for purchase by the public. This retail collection will even include the custom soap dishes, which Caudill cheekily notes have frequently gone missing following more than a few guest stays. Given how masterfully the Dexter Hotel manages to encapsulate and showcase the authentic spirit of its surrounding landscape, it comes as little surprise that visitors frequently check out with a strong desire to take a tangible piece of northern Michigan home with them.
