Hospitality doesn’t happen by accident. It requires care and warmth, and, if you ask Alfonso Albaisa—no small amount of good design.

Albaisa is the Cuban-American designer ultimately responsible for the look and feel of every INFINITI. He’s also quite a character—disarming, funny, generous, and charismatic—which makes him stand out among his automotive industry peers who tend to wear dark suits and never crack a joke. Albaisa, on the other hand, greets even acquaintances with the warmth of an old friend and a knowing smile.

It should come as no surprise then that his cars are the same way. The all-new INFINITI QX80, the brand’s palatial flagship SUV, is as crisp and imposing as a private jet, but it greets occupants—or “honoured guests,” to use INFINITI’s preferred term—with a rare warmth and a calm, welcoming ambience. Every time you step into the new QX80, it’s almost a relief, a respite. That’s no accident; it’s by design. 

“INFINITI’s hospitality starts before you even step inside the vehicle,” Albaisa explains, as he walks through the QX80 experience. “As you approach, the lights awaken, first with the badge and the grille, and then extending across a beautiful headlamp signature,” he says. The new QX80 then projects a light-path alongside the vehicle—as if it’s rolling out the red carpet—illuminating the curb so guests can avoid stepping in puddles or scuffing their shoes. The flush door handles, which help to maintain the exterior’s clean lines, pop out on cue, offering themselves up to guests. As Albaisa says, the new QX80, “delivers a sense of thoughtful and artful hospitality.”

This is a new dawn for INFINITI, and for the brand’s design language. “The all-new QX80 is a sizable canvas for us, as designers, to express INFINITI’s artistry,” Albaisa explains. He points to the nearly horizontal hood, which he calls a powerful and audacious gesture, as well as the unbroken “beltline” that runs in a luxurious arc from the front edge of the hood around the side of the vehicle and through the rear light bar. Albaisa describes the style as dominant, yet sophisticated. 

Since INFINITI hails from Japan, and its main design studio is nestled in the hills south of Tokyo, the design team naturally drew upon several Japanese elements of design. For example, kabuku—the sense of something extraordinary—is revealed in the way the vehicle lights up as you approach.

The QX80 was also heavily influenced by the concept of sho, which means to glide or to soar. Seen in the metal, it’s really giving private jet: note the two-tone paint, flush-fitting curved lights front and rear, subtle black chrome trim, and turbine-like 22-inch aluminum wheels. The entire design was carefully sculpted so as to be smooth and aerodynamic, ensuring not just efficiency, but also a quiet cabin.

Utsuroi—the formation of harmonious transitions—can be felt as guests step into the vehicle. Open the door and you’ll find an opulent world of sophisticated materials. The exterior lighting design flows into the cabin, with customizable ambient lighting along the doors, “bringing a sense of harmony to all elements,” Albaisa says. There’s a black ultra-suede headliner, a panoramic glass roof, and leather available across the doors, dashboard and centre console. The open-pore ash wood interior trim has laser-etched metal inlays, positioned on precise angles, inspired—as Albaisa explains—by the design of traditional Japanese kimonos. We’ve never seen anything else quite like this in a car before.

The hospitality extends into the third row of seats, too. “In some large SUVs, first-row seats feel like you’re in first class, but those in the third row often feel like you’re in coach, but not in here,” says Albaisa.

“Our goal was to create the feeling where all rows enjoy the same sense of hospitality.” 

To that end, available semi-aniline leather extends across every seat. Not only that, but the intricate dot-quilting pattern on the leather flows through all three rows, too. It’s a deeply luxurious place to be, no matter where you’re sitting.

The all-new INFINITI QX80 exhibits a level of hospitality that can only be created through good design, great care, and, if you ask us, by Alfonso Albaisa and his team.