The four winners of the 10th International Design Award were rewarded with a special trip to Germany to receive their awards, tour various facilities and attend a workshop.
Organised by Hettich and Rehau every two years, the International Design Award this year challenged design students from 77 different countries to ‘Take Furniture to the next Level’ and present their designs before a top-class jury. This year's awards also included a special trip for the winners to Germany with visits to the hosting companies and a design workshop with Canadian industry designer Michel Dallaire in Berlin.
The four winners, Marwa Istanbuli (United Arab Emirates), Vishal Sathivada (India), Anita Kokoszczyk (Poland) and Katarzyna Sroka (Poland) had a fantastic tour of Germany awaiting them in September. The trip kicked off with a visit to Rehau in Bavaria, where the four award winners took part in several activities, including a tour of the Möbel Forum and production line for the edgeband guidance systems at the Scandium plant.
This was followed by visits to the Hettich showroom in Kirchlengern as well as the production line of the ArciTech drawer system. Anita Kokoszczyk described the tour of the production facilities as the most invaluable part of her tour as it gave her the chance to understand the importance of paying attention to every last detail.
The highlight of the German tour for the award winners was a workshop with Canadian designer Michel Dallaire in Berlin. Part of the jury of the International Design Award in 2013, Michel Dallaire shared his expertise with the young designers, also preparing them with the necessary skills for designing furniture in the future. The workshop also included the awards ceremony, where each winner of the jury prize received an International Design Award statuette and 2,000 euros in prize money.
Everyone involved in the International Design Award 2015 was delighted by the innovations. The prize winners found the practical experience they gained on their trip around Germany to be extremely valuable. The trip surpassed even the event organisers’ own expectations with Anne Hunecke, Head of Marketing Communications in the Furniture Division at Rehau commenting that the young designers taught them many things that were useful in their daily work, and also helped them get an international perspective in terms of taking on design challenges.
Marc Reichling, Head of Corporate Marketing at Hettich added that this year’s competition once again showed how the International Design Award can impact the career paths of the participants; Vishal Sathivada now works as a designer at the Hettich subsidiary in India.
Image: The award ceremony for the International Design Award 2015 was held as part of a group trip to Germany for the winners. Photo: Hettich/Rehau
