Point Loma’s IGroup Design just completed work on one of the company’s highest-profile projects: the $300 million Willows Hotel & Spa expansion of Viejas Casino & Resort.
At Viejas, IGroup Design principal Roger Storer and his team did interior and exterior architecture and interior design, including custom-designed furniture. The firm’s contribution to the casino’s expansion showcases a sumptuously appointed, adults-only boutique hotel, a full-service spa and three new restaurants, including the signature Locale Kitchen & Lounge.
Storer, who grew up in Point Loma, is head of the architecture, interior design and procurement firm, now located in Liberty Station at 2468 Historic Decatur Road, Suite 200. 
The interior designer comes from humble beginnings. Twenty years ago, he started his own home business in 1998 with the aid and tutelage of his mother.
“I was brought up in this industry as my mother was a commercial interior designer in Los Angeles when I was growing up,” said Storer. “I started the company in the backyard of my house. My mother was helping do our layout boards (design planning).”
Storer had high praise for Liberty Station which he cited for its nice atmosphere, great shops and artistic communities.
“We’ve found there are a lot of quads, almost breakout areas, with companies we can collaborate with and go through our creative process,” he said.
IGroup Design’s work includes design for hotels, restaurants, retail, gaming, senior living and multi-family spaces. 
The company’s portfolio includes a multi-family project in the Peninsula, Blue Point Townhomes at 3725 Talbot St.
When IGroup Design was asked to help lease the 12-unit Blue Point multistory townhome development by furnishing one of their model units, they complied capturing the neighborhood’s lifestyle with open floor plans creating attractive live-work spaces.
Storer said the best thing about working out of Liberty Station is that he’s “back in Point Loma.”
“I’m very involved in the community,” he said, noting he’s been a longtime member of the Point Loma Optimist Club, perhaps best known for planting flags on Rosecrans Street on Sundays.
Discussing his business philosophy, Storer said his objective is always to “make that incremental change between good and great. We really try to collaborate with the client and our construction partners to bring out the best in every detail. We really want to feel we did the best job we could do, exceeding their expectations.”
In IGroup Design’s method, function trumps form.
“With restaurants, everyone wants everything clean,” Storer said noting it’s always important to “not do anything that’s going to take away from the chefs. You don’t want your design to be a distraction, or detract from the client’s dining experience. You want to enhance – not overpower. It’s an art to be able to achieve that. We call it ‘creating extraordinary spaces for extraordinary people.’ ”
IGroup Design with its 15 employees has seven projects in the works with three more in the pipeline, everything from casinos to restaurants to multi-family developments and hotels. IGroup Design
Where: 2468 Historic Decatur Road, Suite 200
Hours: 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily, closed weekends.
Info: igroupdesign.com, 619-702-4119.