Monday Vision: Designing Value

Monday, October 11, 2010

The economic uncertainty has created a bombardment of ‘value’ from all directions and we’ve noticed a lot of brands looking cheap and similar. Not pleasing to the eye. We’re also seeing a lot of luxury brands diminishing themselves in a desperate attempt to be everything to everyone.

Brands can offer both value and style, but who’s leading the way?

Herman Miller, the high end furniture brand, is launching a new chair to tap into a new ‘affordable’ market. It retails at approx. $399, which is around the same price as an office chair from a mainstream retailer such as Staples.

The Sayl chair was designed by Yves Behar to have all the style and ergonomic advantages of more expensive models, while using minimal materials within its construction to lower the price. Behar calls this ‘eco-dematerialization’.

What’s also interesting to us is that the design was inspired by architecture and the iconic Golden Gate bridge with its suspension system. The back has no large supports but uses a single urethane sheet that conforms to your shape. We like this!

Getting out and about to gather insight and inspiration is a vital part of our culture, searching in unexpected places can lead to great design ideas. This example of stylish value highlights a new challenge for designers to create smart design solutions that meet the needs of today’s price conscious, yet style driven, consumer.

We’re on the move to find more!…