Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: design, life, philosophy, starting a business
I’m often asked what we sell on the Vanilla Design Store website. The standard reply is “modern furniture and homewares” but it really goes a bit deeper than that…we have a pretty wide variety of products, so what’s the common theme? That terrible phrase comes to mind of “I can’t tell you what it is but I know it when I see it” but I think we can shed a little more light on the topic…For me a “design store” sells objects that have a bit of extra thought put into them. It’s in their function and/or form, for example the “Hollarocket “water rocket adapter – a clever and unique device that converts any used soft drink bottle into hours of fun for a child, or the Aromarest pillows that use the sense of smell to help you sleep better. Hopefully the product is innovative, and authentic – it should have a story behind it and involve an intuitive leap. It’s a bonus if it delights the customer and brings a smile to their face but it should improve people’s lives and fit the customer’s lifestyle like a glove – I guess that’s where the “extra thought” aspect comes in, thinking through a better way to do things and that applies equally to the wide variety of products (and services) that use the moniker “design”.
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vanilladesign.wordpress.com 
Nice writing style. Looking forward to reading more from you.
Chris Moran
Comment by Chris Moran March 23, 2008 @ 8:45 amWe are working to include more design education in K-12 schools and find that it is hard for people to understand what design means. Your discussion was useful and shows that even professionals are struggling with the same problem.
Check out our effort on my blog at http://MartinRayala.blogspot.com
Comment by Martin Rayala March 23, 2008 @ 3:53 pm