Sylvia Vitale Rotta

Sylvia Vitale Rotta, born in Tanzania, studied at the London School of Arts. Together with Nick Craig she founded Team Creatif in 1986. Today, it is a group of four agencies, which include branding & packaging, retail, market services, and a production & digital platform. Team Creatif has become a reference for branding and packaging identity on the international market, working in 52 countries worldwide with 250 employees. In 2008, Sylvia Vitale Rotta was appointed president of the first design jury at Eurobest and, in 2009, acted as president of the design category at Cannes Lions. In 2013, she was part of the jury at Dubai Lynx. She has given classes at Parisian schools such as Istec and Estacom, École intuit.lab and has also participated in the TEDxParis conference. In 2017, she was awarded the Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur, granted by the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Development which is bestowed in recognition of an exceptional design career spanning more than 30 years.

Red Dot: What are the most important trends in packaging design?
Sylvia Vitale Rotta: Firstly, naturalness. All brands are chasing after the natural look; they use fewer colours, more white and simpler packaging. Sometimes, the product deserves a more natural design, sometimes it is a bit played up. However, the consumers’ quest for an accessible, non-industrial design is key to successful sales. What is great is when the packaging itself is sustainable.

What advice would you pass on to young designers?
Design is a fantastic profession. Believe you can make a difference to people, brands and products. Never forget to work really hard and it will pay off.