What’s New

Dec 13 2017

Business of Design Week 2017 Made a Difference

(Hong Kong, 13 December 2017) The highly successful 2017 edition of Asia’s leading international event on design, brands and innovation, Business of Design Week (BODW), officially came to a close on 9 December. The week-long flagship event of the Hong Kong Design Centre (HKDC) brought to Hong Kong some of the world’s most influential and inspirational design masters, brand leaders and business figures across industry and sector, who inspired an international audience of over 120,000 on the merits of good design, along with other concurrent programmes throughout the week.

A platform for exchange

BODW 2017 welcomed more than 70 creative minds across industry and sector to speak in a broad scope of programmes pertaining to design, innovation and brands – 23 of whom came from Italy, the Partner Country of this year’s event. From the architects behind some of the world’s most iconic modern masterpieces to the innovative leaders behind cutting-edge products, speakers from 16 countries and regions actively participated in a total of 12 sessions covering a wide range of themes.

“BODW has once again served as a world-class platform in Asia for the business communities and creative industries to come together,” says Professor Eric Yim, JP, Chairman, HKDC. “This leading event on design, innovation and brands allows established and emerging professionals and organisations a chance to share knowledge, exchange ideas and explore new collaborative opportunities, confirming Hong Kong’s standing as the region’s premier design hub.”

Italy made a difference

BODW 2017, which was generously supported by a number of Italian government-affiliated bodies, offered a new perspective towards design-driven innovation through meaningful dialogue between Italy and Hong Kong. Guided by the curatorial theme “Italy Makes A Difference”, BODW 2017 brought to Hong Kong some of Italy’s most influential designers and thought leaders, who shared their own insights to embolden the global creative community and inspire the next generation of design talent.

Italy hands the baton of Official Partner for BODW 2018 to the city of Melbourne, the first city in the southern hemisphere to partner with the event. As a fast emerging global capital of creativity and design, Melbourne has become one of the world’s most diverse and progressive centres of design and innovation, globally renowned for its deep respect of design heritage as well as its championing of new ways of approaching design.

“Design is in the DNA of Melbourne. It’s a huge part of our past – and it will play a key role in shaping the city’s identity in the future. We can’t wait to be back here again next year to showcase our city as a design leader that is proud to think, collaborate and create, ” says Mr Martin Foley, MP, Minister for Creative Industries, State Government of Victoria, Australia at the Plenary III: Culture & The City II at BODW 2017.

Complementing BODW 2017 were a series of concurrent programmes around Hong Kong, activating and engaging the wider public with concepts related to design. Under the banner of BODW Satellite Events x deTour, BODW 2017 showcased a world of inspiration and offered insight into design and business success to an international audience. Concurrent event highlights included:

• FASHION ASIA 2017 HONG KONG “Fashion Challenges” Forum, which addressed the challenges facing the business of fashion today with an impressive line-up of local and international fashion industry leaders speaking over two days;
• “10 Asian Designers to Watch” Exhibition, a showcase at PMQ which provided a platform for the region’s most promising emerging designers to exhibit their talent and innovation; and
• deTour, which showcased the most original, bold and stimulating work of emerging designers from Hong Kong and abroad over a 10-day programme at PMQ.

Along with satellite events and partnerships with celebrated local and international brands, the rich programme of BODW 2017 expanded the creative horizons of the general public, ensuring that the creative spirit will continue to be felt citywide.

Photo Captions

Photo 1: BODW 2017 welcomed more than 70 creative minds across industry and sector to inspire audience in a broad scope of programmes pertaining to design, innovation and brands

Photo 2: Mr Martin Foley, MP, Minister for Creative Industries, State Government of Victoria, Australia, delivers his remarks at the Plenary III: Culture & The City II

Photo 3: Professor Eric Yim, JP, Chairman, Hong Kong Design Centre, delivers his remarks at the Plenary III: Culture & The City II

Photo 4: Closing Keynote presented by Mr Sou Fujimoto, Director of Sou Fujimoto Architects Inc., Japan at BODW 2017

Photo 5: Mr Massimiliano Fuksas, Founder and Principal of Studio Fuksas, speaks at Plenary I of BODW 2017

Photo 6: Mr Michele de Lucchi presides over a full house with a private masterclass during BODW 2017

High-resolution images can be downloaded here:
Link: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/5achmacz38acrb1/AAByyJ74ylE0T3zgXjBXEOTqa?dl=0
Password: bodw2017

About Hong Kong Design Centre
Hong Kong Design Centre (HKDC) is a non-profit organisation founded in 2001 as a strategic partner of the HKSAR Government in establishing Hong Kong as a centre of design excellence in Asia. HKDC continues its public mission in using design and innovation to drive value creation of business development and improve the well-being of society, through the provision of diverse innovation-oriented knowledge sharing and exchange platforms, anchored by five major work directions: CONNECT, CELEBRATE, NURTURE, ADVANCE and ENGAGE.

HKDC’s flagship programmes include Business of Design Week (since 2002) – Asia’s leading annual conference and event on Design, Innovation and Brands; DFA Awards (since 2003) – the most recognised design awards from an Asia perspective; Design Incubation Programme (since 2012) and Fashion Incubation Programme (since 2016) – 2-year incubation programmes to nurture future design and fashion entrepreneurs; FASHION ASIA HONG KONG (since 2016) – a new initiative combining conversations, interactions and cultural exchanges to energise the city’s image, and positioning it as an Asian hub for fashion trade and business development; Knowledge of Design Week (since 2006) – an annual thematic design knowledge sharing platform on how design can solve complex challenges of our society.

Media Contacts
For more information or to request interviews, please contact Sinclair at (852) 2915 1234 or Hong Kong Design Centre at (852) 2522 8688:

Sinclair
Jessica Man | jessicam@sinclaircomms.com I (852) 6083 0157
Adrian Lo | adrian@sinclaircomms.com | (852) 9128 5466
Nikki McLucas | nikki@sinclaircomms.com | (852) 6895 0534

Hong Kong Design Centre
Anna Choi | anna.choi@hkdesigncentre.org | (852) 3793 8427
Helen Lai | helen.lai@hkdesigncentre.org | (852) 3793 8413