We’re opening the doors to our company virtually by going into the most colourful and imaginative division – Design.
In the Excélsa offices in Turate, in the province of Como, Eleonora and Paolo will show us some important details to help us understand how the design studio works and the added value given by having in-company a team of professionals able to turn ideas into reality.
HOW DOES A NEW RANGE OF PRODUCTS START?
There are various paths leading to the start of a new range of products; normally, it starts with a request from the market or the lack of a certain product or series of functions within the company catalogue. It often happens that, after analysing the trends in present and future lifestyles, we realise the catalogue needs renewing with distinctive new products, products that can ‘make their mark’ and be the driver for new horizons. When the product is selected, inspiration moodboards, also known as style tables, are created to highlight what can already be found on the market. Subsequently, the essential features are defined and these form the basis for the development of the range with a view to offering something unique and innovative.
WHAT ARE THE TRENDS FOR 2022?
In such a difficult time as the present, the lack of fairs, events and the ability to travel has made everything much harder and meant that, in the last two years, trends already existing in our sector – foliage, tropical, jungle and majolica, have been confirmed. However, we’ve decided to continue exploring ‘worlds’ that have brought satisfaction in the recent period, starting from traditional Italian ceramics passing via African and Oriental fabrics to arrive in central American culture.
WHAT’S THE GREATEST SATISFACTION FOR A CREATIVE TALENT WHO DEVELOPS PRODUCTS FOR DAILY USE?
Our perception of satisfaction is directly related to time and happens in this way:
- The thrill of the first sample, i.e. touching the transformation of an idea into a product.
- Seeing your product in a shop window and realising that it can be bought.
- Hearing of positive feedback from customers, also via opinions in the social networks.
- Recognition of your work through the award of a design prize.
- Publication in sector titles.
- Seeing products that you previously designed in friends’ homes without them knowing who actually designed those products.
THINKING ABOUT THE PAST, HOW MUCH HAVE STYLES, COLOURS AND SHAPES CHANGED?
If we think about the Excélsa brand in the last 15 years, there has been considerable evolution. We’ve been able to follow and, in some cases, anticipate, the changes dictated by the market. Our strength has been in realising promptly what was changing in design, especially in the area of the table and kitchen. The change has been from a sober table, dominated by white, to the whole range of colours through to the extreme personalisation of every product using decorations.
OUR DESIGN STUDIO
Today, our studio design consists of Eleonora and Paolo, who studied different but absolutely complementary subjects. The idea is to extend the team in the coming years with equally heterogeneous people so that there will always be increasing contaminations. The synergy of recent years has also been demonstrated by the award of various international design prizes.