The Phoenicia was built by the Lebanese businessman Najib Salha, who founded La Société des Grands Hotels du Liban (SGHL) in 1953. It was designed by the noted American architect Edward Durell Stone, working with American architect Joseph Salerno[3] and local architects Ferdinand Dagher and Rodolphe Elias. The design showed Levantine influences in its high ceilings, sweeping staircases and palatial pillars.[4] The hotel's interiors and furniture were contracted to the New York firm of William M. Ballard[5] and were designed by Neal Prince, who was responsible for the interior decoration of most Intercontinental Hotels at the time.[3]