Pay for good design

September and October are generally considered a boom period for business in China. In the upcoming ‘golden autumn’, a range of well-chosen goods will be introduced to Beijing consumers, showcasing what good design can do for business and for quality of life.

Beijing Design Week, which will take place in late September, will launch a campaign to promote design in Beijing’s major business zones. The organizer believes good design makes for good business, and for the first time the event is going to introduce the concept of “design consumption” during the campaign.

“Consumption is an important factor for the design industry because design helps to enhance value,” said Zeng Hui, vice director of BJDW Organizing Committee, “We are working hard to explain to the market what good design looks like and how to ‘consume’ design. We expect to see our efforts eventually result in a trend of paying for good design, and in return the industry will transfer more good ideas into real products.”

Designers and industrial leaders will also gather in Beijing to recommend good design in real estate, automobiles, and furniture to consumers, based on the consideration that these three sectors feature significant market and design spending and a group of consumers who have a strong readiness to spend on design.

In addition to its consumer demographic, Beijing’s strength in design and creativity is a positive factor which buoys the organizer’s ambitions.

Beijing is home to more than 20,000 design companies, which between them employ around 250,000 people. Together with Shanghai and Shenzhen, the city has become one of three top design and creativity hubs in China. In 2012, Beijing was recognized as an established international platform for design by UNESCO and joined UNESCO’s creative city network.

More than 30 real estate programs, 100 home design brands, 10 automobiles’ 40 4S” stores, and several high-end business areas are expected to join the campaign. Exhibitions, industry-based discussions, and reports are also on the agenda.

BJDW held hundreds of activities to promote good design and facilitated the agreement of deals worth 5.6 billion yuan in 2012. The organizer estimates the number of visitors will exceed six million this year.