ASIA IS DESIGN CENTRAL

MANY YEARS AGO I LAUGHED WHEN I SAW A JAPANESE CAR. IT WAS A DISASTROUS PRODUCT; WHEN THE CAR DOOR OPENED, WIRES FELL OUT. AND IT JUST LOOKED, WELL, CLUNKY. NOT SO TODAY. JAPANESE CARS ARE VERY WELL DESIGNED.

AND JAPAN IS SIMPLY ONE OF SEVERAL HOTBEDS OF DESIGN. THE EPICENTER IS PROBABLY SOMEWHERE BETWEEN KOREA AND CHINA. ON THE ONE HAND, CHINESE MANUFACTURERS ARE TRYING TO MOVE BEYOND MANUFACTURING INTO MORE-SOPHISTICATED DESIGN. THEY ARE HIRING IN-HOUSE DESIGNERS FROM EUROPE SO THAT THEY CAN PROVIDE DESIGN EXPERTISE. MORE THAN A DOZEN GRADUATES FROM NOTTINGHAM TRENT UNIVERSITY’S DESIGN SCHOOL IN ENGLAND HAVE TAKEN JOBS IN CHINA, FOR INSTANCE. AT THE SAME TIME, CHINA IS DEVELOPING ITS OWN DESIGNERS.

IN KOREA, SAMSUNG IS IN GREAT SHAPE AS A DESIGNER OF CHIC, WELL-DESIGNED PRODUCTS. IN 1998, SAMSUNG HELD LESS THAN 3% OF THE GLOBAL MARKET FOR CELLPHONES AND SOLD LESS THAN 5 MILLION PHONES, MOST OF THEM IN KOREA. NO ONE, AND CERTAINLY NOT THEN-LEADER NOKIA, PREDICTED SAMSUNG WOULD RISE TO CHALLENGE MOTOROLA FOR THE NO. 2 SPOT IN THE WORLD AMONG MOBILE PHONE MAKERS BY 2006.

SAMSUNG'S REAL SURGE STARTED IN 2002. WHILE OTHER MANUFACTURERS DISMISSED THE NEW CAPABILITY OF PUTTING SMALL BUT LOW-QUALITY CAMERAS IN PHONES, SAMSUNG PUT INTO ACTION THE OLD SAYING: "A PICTURE IS WORTH A THOUSAND WORDS." SAMSUNG EXECUTIVES GRASPED THAT PEOPLE DIDN’T WANT PHONES TO REPLACE CAMERAS BUT SIMPLY WANTED AN ADDITIONAL, MORE INFORMATION-RICH MEANS OF MOBILE COMMUNICATION WITH FRIENDS AND FAMILY. IN SIX YEARS, SAMSUNG RACED FROM SELLING A MERE 21 MILLION PHONES IN 2000 TO 104 MILLION IN 2005, AND ITS GLOBAL MARKET SHARE NEARLY TRIPLED FROM 5% TO 13%! OVER THE LAST SEVEN YEARS, SAMSUNG HAS RECEIVED 19 COMMENDATIONS IN THE INDUSTRIAL DESIGN EXCELLENCE AWARDS (IDEA). IN 2005, SAMSUNG BECAME THE FIRST ASIAN COMPANY TO TOP THE IDEA AWARDS LIST.

JUST A COUPLE OF EXAMPLES. DURING THE 2008 SUMMER OLYMPICS IN BEIJING MANY OF US SAW THE BIRD’S NEST, THE STRUCTURE HOUSING TRACK AND FIELD. THIS WAS DESIGNED BY CHINESE DESIGNER AI WEIWEI. THE CHINESE DESIGN FIRM LKK WON THREE RED DOT AWARDS IN 2008 FOR A REMOTE CONTROLLER, A BLOOD PRESSURE METER, AND A TOOTHPICK HOLDER.PUTTING THIS TOGETHER, THE HOTBED OF NEW, WELL-DESIGNED, CHIC PRODUCTS IS ASIAN.