Last Monday part of the C2W Design and Marketing teams visited the 2014 edition of the Shenzhen International Industrial Design Fair (SZIDF) in Shenzhen, China.
The SZIDF is the Definitive contemporary design-led commercial exhibition in China.
The China (Shenzhen) Industrial Design Fair is a modern design trade exhibition presenting the latest products, technologies, materials, services for industrial designers, branding manufacturers, retailers and specifiers. In the 2014 edition of the SZIDF the theme was “Redesigning New Markets” focusing in innovation as a trend of modern industrial design.
The trip started at 10 am. from the C2W HQ in Zhuhai, after three hours driving in the always hectic and chaotic Chinese highways and several refreshing scales we headed to the Convention and Exhibition Centre, located in the Futian district in Shenzhen house of the most iconic buildings in the city.
So we signed in into the Fair and decided to start a visit walking and discovering the booths full design and innovative and trending products from all over China, displaying a wide range of products and services from wearable technologies and futuristic appliances to product design & development agencies and art/design institutes.
After walking in the alleys and observing cautiously the products and prototypes, the day rapidly passed till the time that we needed to leave the Convention Centre due the exhibition hours. Soon after we headed back towards the beautiful city of Zhuhai.
Here are the impressions from the team members who attended the Show:
Ruary Hewson
The 2014 ShenZhen Industrial Design Fair was an informative and worthwhile trip. Whilst there were some innovative and inspiring design solutions presented, especially in the Universal Design section, there was also evidence of work that was lacking in certain areas and where our input I believe would prove valuable. The fair has broadened my understanding in the current environment of the industrial design landscape, which is very useful from both a networking and competitive stand point. We will most likely be returning next year, and perhaps this time as contributors.
Zain Ali
The trade show was a fantastic experience. I have learnt and experienced things that will help me in my work. It gave me an understanding about the current design trends, what is new to the market and how different companies are introducing their products to the customers.As China being the largest manufacturing country in the word, products are manufactured really fast and there are so many ways different ways to manufacture them.
The trade show taught me how some designs can be really good but not applicable or of use in real life. There were some products which were well designed and highly innovative, but as we questioned and asked about the details, there were more bad qualities than good as opposed to the many products with simple design but great function, through which I learnt that everything that looks good, might not always work as well !
There were several Industrial design companies which were present in the trade show, displaying their products, and they presented it in a great way, I too have learnt how to do so .
I learnt that not only the displayed product designs were helpful but they were well-made and packaged and how it was presented at the end was also an important feature.
I now have better understanding of the current design trends in the Chinese and foreign markets that will be helpful and serve as advantage to my skills in industrial design.
We also discussed and questioned many companies regarding their product and its different ways and manufacturing techniques. This Trade Show gave us the idea and an overall view of the current trend in the market and where we stand according to international standards.
Patrick Evans
The SZIDF show was a great experience. With stalls and exhibitors from across the country, I really felt at home. With the amount of content at my fingers reach, I was immersed with ideas and, in-turn, inspiration.
The show was presented well enough. Every person at the stalls was willing to talk about their idea and back it up with a business card or flyer, or catalogue.
Some catalogues were really quite nice. Some stalls were really quite simple, a few walls and a desk. I think C2W could exhibit next year, given we have enough content to show off as eye candy.
There were products ranging from watches to air coolers, fans, power banks, sunglasses, speakers, wireless everythings and garden tools. The fair really was an enriching experience that I would highly recommend for future designers, engineers and even tech experts.
Onto the feelings part of the trip.. I was really moved with the presence that the people at the show gave off. It felt like stepping into an idea space where everyone else spoke the same designer-speak we do. The fair really put into perspective the value of what we do, how we do it, and why. There were, of course a large selection of products/goods there that were not thought out or weren’t completely resolved, but they were ‘trying’. The fact of the matter is that most of the goods viewed at the fair were given some thought and offered a short lived glimpse into a world without bad design in it. When we were chatting, almost debating with ze Germans it felt great; partly was that they spoke English but mainly because they understood the little problems that we as humans go through in order to try and survive these days. I think as an organization we need time off from our busy scheduled days to just look and walk about. Some products were available to be held and touched, caressed and scrutinized.
Jesus Cano
The visit to the Trade show has broaden my awareness about the current trends in design and marketing across China and the globe, this experience has served to check the current marketing strategies from successful agencies and studios, related to product development and manufacturing solutions.The possibility to assist to this kind of scenarios for networking or just to take a look to the booths and exhibited goods and ideas is always fulfilling as a professional related to the innovating and creating field.
I hope that next year we can assist again to this great show but this time to show our services and broad experience in creating solutions for today’s life.
