Behind one couple's dream to open a boutique hotel in Columbia.

PositionRita Patel and Marcus Munse

When Rita Patel and husband Marcus Munse moved to Columbia in 2010, they did so out of economic necessity.

The couple's dreams of moving to New York City and becoming architects were dashed by the Great Recession. Patel's parents owned a motel in West Columbia and the couple both took jobs there, plus worked others to make ends meet.

During those challenging times, they never believed they would eventually decide to make Columbia home, and eight years later end up opening their own boutique hotel in the heart of the city's downtown.

"When we came to Columbia, opening a hotel was not on our radar at all," owner Rita Patel told SC Biz News in a recent interview. "But we absolutely fell in love with this city and things started to bloom for us. The timing was perfect when we decided to open Hotel Trundle."

Five years after opening in space that used to be three historic downtown buildings, the 41-room Hotel Trundle has won dozens of national and regional awards and the couple are planning two expansions to offer guests even more unique ways to experience what Trundle and Columbia has to offer.

Turning stress into opportunity

Hotel Trundle, like other accommodations nationwide, went through a stressful time during the pandemic in 2020, when it was forced to close for about six weeks. Patel and Munse, however, say some good things came out of that era. They learned how much support they had from the local community and what a strong team of employees they have, and they also got some important new perspectives on travelers' changing wants and needs.

They learned many guests were seeking out different levels of privacy, ranging from the traditional full-service hotel experience to more private accommodations for both short- and long-term stays.

As a result, they decided in 2022 to expand Trundle's offerings into two new options called Flutter Wing and The Dens. Flutter Wing, slated to open later this year, offers guests a semi-private stay, while The Dens, less than a mile away over in Columbia's historic Cottontown district, offers a completely private stay.

The Flutter Wing takes its name from a butterfly-themed mural at the main hotel, and also is designed to play off the whimsical nature of the Trundle's mascot, the unicorn.

It is located around the corner from the main hotel in former retail space at 1544 Main St., adjacent to and above Drake's Duck-In, a long-time Columbia restaurant. The wing is going into a historic building that served a...

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