Unconventional products are born from the collaborations of manufacturer-designer duos

The Hungarian Fashion & Design Agency (HFDA) launched the design LAB incubation program for the third time this year, and as a result, six manufacturer-designer pairs got an opportunity to jointly develop a product or product line fit for series production. Beyond creativity and innovativeness, sustainability was also an important aspect of the collaboration.

During the Hungarian Fashion & Design Agency’s third design LAB incubation program, six collaborations were formed, creating products that comply with the principles of a circular economy. Based on what the participants said, the cooperation will probably continue even after completing the current projects, which can result in the creation of new products in the future.

When inventing the product’s concept, Art Innova Kft. and Dr. Norbert Vasváry-Nádor designer primarily aimed to create a piece of furniture for the modern generation that appears on the market as an innovation. During the design process, meeting the demand for contactless solutions was also important. By developing the device-sharing piece of furniture, they create a product that is suitable for storing and sharing office tools (objects, official documents, even packages) in a contactless manner.

Concrazy Kft. and Sára Kele designer teamed up to design sustainable furniture in contemporary spaces; they offer an interior concrete object collection in catering establishments, from the entrance to the restroom, indoors and outdoors. When creating the Repeta product line, thanks to the program, they could put a great emphasis on experimenting with the main material, concrete. The product’s name refers to circularity; sustainability aspirations appear both materially and ideologically in the pieces of furniture.

Faktum Bútor Kft. and Máté Horváth are bringing the Shape project to life. During the design of the furniture line which functions as a baby room, they paid attention to working with playful shapes; for instance, they made teddy bear-shaped handles and used coloured MDF boards for future owners. The manufacturer-designer duo’s collaboration has a three-year history thanks to the design LAB program’s Speed Dating element.

The essence of the joint project of Gránit és Márvány Kft. and Espiritu Consulting Kft. (Bessenyei Bettina designer) is to create a mobile, indoor and outdoor induction kitchen island that is not available in the market right now. Consequently, the pair sees great potential in the marketability of the product. Their most important goal is to optimise the manufacturing processes of their now luxurious furniture, reducing the costs and turning it into a mass product.

The joint project of Kárpitos Partner Group Bt. and IO Line And Round Kft. (Annabella Hevesi designer) is an upholstered chair, the PEACH Easy Chair is designed for domestic and public use.  Their most important motivation was the creation of an extreme product that would satisfy both aesthetic and ergonomic needs, by distorting their main material, the sponge. The duo invented a more economical and sustainable implementation by using innovative construction technologies instead of otherwise environmentally harmful upholstery solutions.

Multifelt Factory Kft. and Co & Co Designcommunication Kft. won support for the KILIM touch lamp line. Only water, steam, and heat are needed for manufacturing the material of the product line. The basic concept puts natural felt in the centre and presents the lampshade from a different aspect with shading possibilities that change with the touch of the material. Therefore, the user has a unique experience with the object; the product becomes an imprint of people, design, and function at the same time.

The incubation program created by the HFDA supports the visibility of Hungarian product designers and strengthens the manufacturing background; its main goal is to enhance competitiveness and create a basis for collaborations between manufacturers and designers and strengthen them.

If you want to learn more about how the manufacturer-designer duos work together, watch the videos of them on the HFDA's Yotube channel!