Founders
We’re Mon, Phil and Seb: a family who decided that building a luxury desert hotel in Exmouth was either genius or a midlife crisis - we’re still figuring it out. Mon dreams in notebooks, Phil treats spreadsheets like thrillers, and Seb, our pint-sized CEO, hands out facepalms as quality control for our ideas.
Hotel Sebatikel is our love letter to Palyadi Manu (the North West Cape), and a type of hospitality that makes you pause, lounge, play - and maybe question your life choices. We care about design, sustainability and martinis strong enough to make you question ours. #drinkresponsibly
We’re not a big hotel chain. We’re just a family with a dream, ambition, and a very specific taste in tequila. Somehow, that’s enough to make a hotel worth visiting.
“Mon and I began this journey knowing we were stepping into uncharted territory - designing and building something that hadn’t been done in this way before. With fresh eyes and a willingness to admit we didn’t have all the answers, we brought together an incredible team. Every consultant we’ve engaged has been carefully chosen - not just for their expertise, but for their ability to truly understand and connect with the vision and passion behind our project. That shared alignment is evident in the DA, and we couldn’t be prouder of what we’ve created.”
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Co-Founder & Managing Director
Phil’s been running into burning buildings for 21 years, which is probably why building a resort in the middle of the WA outback doesn’t scare him. He’s also a WAFL premiership player, once drafted to Hawthorn, and has qualified and competed in multiple Ironman World Championships because apparently “rest days” aren’t a thing.
At Hotel Sebatikel, Phil runs the big picture - the operations, partnerships, and all the “making it actually happen” parts. Also once co-created a luxury outdoor shower and sold over a million dollars’ worth worldwide. Yes, showers. Yes, that’s a flex.
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Co-Founder & Creative Director
Mon’s been designing things for 17 years – gardens, homes, big shiny mixed-use developments, interiors you want to move into immediately – and getting featured in national media and selling out her first self-published book, Slightly Garden Obsessed III, while she’s at it.
She started in landscape design, went on to interiors and architecture, then circled back to plants. In between, she lived in London, worked in travel and figured out how to make everything look effortless.
At Hotel Sebatikel, Mon is in charge of how everything feels – the spaces, the details, the brand, the guest experience and making sure the place feels connected to the land it sits on. Also co-creator of that luxury outdoor shower. Still proud of it.
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CEO (Child Executive Officer)
Seb runs a tight ship between school drop-off and bedtime. When Seb isn’t masterminding Lego empires, he’s keeping the Sebatikel team honest.
Official duties: quality control on “mum & dad” ideas and making sure they stay relevant.
Also answers to Boss Baby.
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Phil handles the grit, Mon handles the polish. He gets the resort built. She makes it worth visiting. Both have a knack for turning ideas into things people actually want – from million-dollar showers to a climate-conscious luxury resort in one of the most remote, beautiful corners of the world.
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PHIL SMITH
Phil Smith brings over two decades of frontline leadership and operational expertise to Hotel Sebatikel. A career Senior Firefighter with the Department of Fire and Emergency Services for 21 years, and trainer and assessor for on-site emergency services at major mining companies in the Pilbara and Goldfields regions, Phil is no stranger to high-pressure environments and complex project coordination. Beyond his service career and sports marketing studies, he is a decorated athlete - drafted in the 1996 national draft to Hawthorn Football Club, 1999 WAFL premiership player for West Perth and multiple-qualifier for the Ironman World Championships as an age-group competitor.
Phil’s ability to lead diverse teams, navigate logistical challenges and foster high-performance culture underpins his role in delivering Hotel Sebatikel. He oversees all aspects of project execution, from stakeholder engagement and commercial partnerships to operational readiness and the resort’s long-term strategic direction. His entrepreneurial drive is also proven - alongside Mon, he co-founded a luxury outdoor shower product and e-commerce business with a commercial plumber (and their long-time friend), selling over AUD $1 million worth of units worldwide before its acquisition.
MON PALMER
With 17 years as the founder and principal designer of her own design studio, Mon Palmer shapes Hotel Sebatikel’s creative identity, ensuring every guest experience is grounded in the resort’s low-impact ethos and connection to place. Beginning her career in landscape design before expanding into interiors, residential architecture and award-winning multi-use developments around Australia, Mon’s work has been featured in national print and media outlets for its refined yet grounded approach.
In 2017, she self-published her first design book, Slightly Garden Obsessed III, selling out the 1,500 print run online internationally and in lifestyle stores nationwide.
Mon’s professional path has been as dynamic as her design portfolio. Prior to horticulture and landscape design studies, she lived and worked in London, and studied travel and tourism to become a travel consultant, cultivating a deep understanding of hospitality, destinations and the art of crafting memorable experiences. Her role at Hotel Sebatikel spans architectural and interior direction, brand development, guest journey mapping and curating conservation and community partnerships.