My conversation with William Thorogood, Head of Design, New Business at the Lego Group, is perhaps one of the most interesting chats I’ve had in recent years. Perhaps because of the passion I share with many for Lego (for those who don’t know, a portmanteau of the Danish Leg Godt, meaning ‘play well’); perhaps because it’s a company from the country where I live, and one of its most iconic. Or perhaps because it was a chat between two people who share a passion for Lego and cars. A symbiosis that he embodies, and which also looks towards a continuous synergy between design, marketing, engineering and, indeed, the ability to inspire a vast audience.

Lego Speed Champions
Among the most fruitful is the partnership with BMW, recently enhanced by a tribute to the BMW M3 E30 to mark the 40th anniversary of this model. Part of the Lego Speed Champions series, this new collaboration features an exclusive livery co-created by the design teams of both companies, inspired by BMW M Motorsport. The 358-piece kit faithfully reproduces the kidney grille, rear spoiler and four round headlights characteristic of the original. Furthermore, the two design studios have worked on a full-scale show car featuring the same livery, which will be unveiled and remain on display in Berlin on 1 August 2026.

Reinventing processes
The fundamental difference between Lego and many competitors lies in the very structure of the team. “We have a model where design is fully integrated into the marketing, project management, operations and engineering teams,” says Thorogood. “It’s a single group of people that brings the project to life. We don’t design first and then figure out how to sell and produce it.”

Emotional products
This approach rejects the traditional design-marketing-production cycle. Instead, all stakeholders work simultaneously, feeding each phase with insights from different disciplines. The result is a process that avoids the typical conflicts between creative vision and production feasibility, and allows Lego products to be, first and foremost, emotional.

The issue of sustainability
Recently, however, the issue of sustainability has also come to the fore, a challenge for those working primarily with plastic. Yet, explains Thorogood, green objectives are part of the company’s strategy to reduce its emissions. However, there is the challenge of not sacrificing what defines the brand’s DNA: the ‘Lego building experience’.

Recycling the know-how
One aspect that is often overlooked in the debate on sustainability and innovation is the ownership structure, which, in Lego’s case, gives it an advantage over other companies. “As designers, one of the great privileges is knowing that we can take long-term gambles,” reveals Thorogood, who has 21 years’ experience at the company. Furthermore, “If an innovation doesn’t work, we learn from it and recycle that know-how into the next project”.

(Full article in A&D no. 279)

When you first arrive in Frankfurt, you usually don’t like it. Partly because of the reputation it’s carried since the post-war period (and the nickname Mainhattan, due to its skyscrapers, doesn’t help), and partly because it really does have modern, boxy buildings, but without Berlin’s atmosphere. Yet this year it is the World Design Capital: Mazda, the event’s mobility partner, has given us the chance to see it through different eyes, showing us some design gems, from furniture to communication.

Creativity behind rationality
Frankfurt perhaps embodies the stereotype of German rationality more than any other city. But, like Milan, behind this apparent rationality lies a vibrant creativity. The e15 studio, which produces high-quality furniture, is a case in point: it is housed in old industrial warehouses and was founded just over thirty years ago by Philipp Mainzer, who brought what he had learnt in London to Frankfurt, creating a continuum between formal research and the tradition of furniture-making.

e15’s trademark, they explain, is its ability to engage with the imperfections of natural wood. Cracks, fissures and variations in colour are not flaws to be concealed, but become the brand’s signature and a stylistic element.
The studio’s first table came about in this way: Mainzer observed the remaining beams in a modest house and saw not waste, but the potential of a design element, in contrast to the trend of the time. In the 1990s, design favoured cold minimalism and smooth materials; e15 chose the opposite path, showcasing wood in its most authentic state. This is evident in all their products, particularly in the Backenzahn, the chair that has become an icon, shown to us in a new metal version unveiled during the 3Days of Design in Copenhagen.

Colours in the background
The same desire to explore and revolutionise can be found in Es ist Freitag, an example of communication design. The agency is right in the city centre, not far from the revitalised Römerberg, and was set up to help those who live here discover the city. “When we opened” – they explain – “we did so because Frankfurt never celebrates itself: its residents see it as a place where you simply go to work. We needed a platform to showcase all the interesting things happening in the city every day”.

Es ist Freitag has opted for vibrant colours and furnishings, so much so that from the outside it doesn’t look like an office at all. It organises events and DJ sets and, as well as looking after clients, produces a magazine and publications that link projects together, shaping a new identity for Frankfurt. From festival graphics to communications for museums and institutions, from design publishing to hospitality, the team of around ten people works across the entire creative chain, from the conceptual phase right through to social media posts.

Design plays a key role in promoting the uptake of new ideas, and several recent examples from the worlds of product and furniture design confirm an intriguing trend – one that, to some extent, synthesises and extends years of ongoing reflection and experiment.

The “comfort tech” category
The dominant trend – as far as both household and personal design are concerned – is a holistic concept of well-being flowing between individuals and their living space. The vision is a radical one, with designers even exploring how to improve the quality of our rest through devices that are neither furniture nor clothing, but rather sophisticated tech-integrated objects designed for us to interact with. This emerging niche category, known as “comfort tech”, has grown steadily in recent years and reflects a broader rethinking of the home – one that increasingly incorporates fitness and leisure.

Chillin our areas are evolving
Within this context, modular, space-saving solutions – including for outdoor use – make more sense: wall-mounted units for storing bikes in urban settings or organising everyday items are all part of this evolving vision. Balancing aesthetics, functionality, and well-being, the body engages with meaningful, new spaces – and even chilling out areas are evolving to embrace sensory comfort and adaptable modularity. This is reflected in Sabine Marcelis’s work on seamless padded items, designed for both residential and commercial use, where soft, rounded forms are front and centre.

New sustainable technologies, new forms
A renewed sense of organic design is also emerging in the bathroom, exemplified by the sculpted washbasin designed by Yves Behar. Reimagining the motion of water, its vortex-shaped, self-cleaning interior optimises flow while encouraging a more mindful relationship with water and the environment. The design takes its inspiration from the world’s first electric tunnel kiln for sanitary ceramics—proof that certain objects now need to be fundamentally rethought, as the evolution of sustainable manufacturing technologies drives the creation of new forms.

Storage units host flowers
In recent years, the growing conversation around biophilic design – straddling the line between scientific insight and broader public engagement – has taken tangible form in the offerings of many brands, particularly in the outdoor sector. New, hybrid typologies are emerging, such as storage units that incorporate planters, or terrace sofas conceived as compact shelters, adaptable to both sunny and rainy conditions.

Eco-conscious and user-friendly design
The most intriguing materials and finishes are increasingly bio-based, reflecting a shift toward eco-conscious and user-friendly design. New pieces, like side tables, embody this approach through thoughtful details – such as cardboard legs paired with metal tops, enabling compact packaging and tool-free, screw-free, glue-free assembly by the user. Others feature patented materials like NOAI® – a blend of raw earth, hemp fibres, quartz, and natural mineral oxides – used in sustainable construction and capable of shielding against harmful phone radiation.

(Full article in A&D no. 273)