In 2011, the achievements of the GROHE Design Team were recognised with the honorary title “Red Dot: Design Team of the Year”. They felt very honoured to be the first team from the sanitary industry to win this award — joining a prestigious list of previous recipients, including Apple, Porsche and Audi. In 2014, GROHE became part of LIXIL and its house of brands model. In line with the company’s design-centric strategy, the LIXIL Global Design Team was created in 2020: to accelerate the long-term objective of integrating design into the DNA of LIXIL. Committed to attracting and retaining the best design talent in the world, the LIXIL Global Design Team is a celebration of creativity, collaboration and cultural diversity with a global scope. Its goal is to make better homes a reality for everyone, everywhere, by representing the voice of the consumer across all the brands. That’s at the heart of everything the team does.
Red Dot: What does design mean to you?
LIXIL Global Design Team: “Design must be the voice of the consumer in an organisation. It must be the objective barometer, keeping the brand relevant and adding value to society,” says Paul Flowers, leader of LIXIL Global Design. The goal is to make better homes a reality for everyone, everywhere. Each brand in the LIXIL portfolio shares this purpose and brings it to life in its own distinctive way, defined by each brand’s individual values and the cultures and communities it serves. For the Global Design Team, everything begins with consumer-centric thinking. Our aim is to design and develop relevant, purpose-driven products that solve real-life challenges and add tangible value to everyone’s daily lives.
To what extent do you think new technologies are changing design?
Our Global Design Team combines creativity and expertise with the latest technologies, such as advanced 3D modelling and metal 3D printing. The team’s unique skillsets, from trends and insights, colour materials and finishes, usability studies and user experience, enable and empower them to create their best work.
What intention do you pursue with your award-winning work?
In our design showreel – the first official communications piece from the LIXIL Global Design Team – we gain insight into the creativity and processes of our award-winning Global Design Team. Shot in our studios across the globe – from Tokyo to New York, Düsseldorf, London and Singapore – the film showcases LIXIL’s unique approach to design. It all starts with our consumer-centric thinking and our unique approach to research, what we call “pre-search”. By locating our studios in some of the world’s most dynamic and culturally diverse cities – and by thoughtfully designing our working environments to encourage creativity and collaboration — we aim to attract the best global design talent and create solutions that add tangible value to everyone’s lives.
What makes your work unique?
The production of the showreel was somewhat challenging – shot during lockdown with international travel restrictions in place, much of the shooting was managed remotely across multiple time zones. Indeed, the finished showreel is – in itself – a testament to the ingenuity, tenacity and creativity of the team.
Which target group would you like to address with your award-winning work?
We aim to reach people internally and externally of our company, including industry leaders, architects and design professionals, to gain insight into our award-winning Global Design Team’s creativity and processes.
