The HFDA’s design START mentoring program strenghtened business skill development

The Hungarian Fashion & Design Agency’s (HFDA) fourth design START mentoring program offered professional support in business thinking to emerging design brands that aim to reach further success in the domestic market and stabilise their enterprise. The participating product designers could widen their professional knowledge in workshops, a professional internship, and a study tour abroad in the three-step mentoring program.

The Hungarian Fashion & Design Agency developed a mentoring program in 2019 that gives talented Hungarian designers professional support based on horizontal agreements, professional dialogues and domestic and international best practices they gathered. The design START mentoring program especially targets emerging product designers who need help in forming domestic stability while an international perspective is also among their long-term goals.

Six brands – Anett Safran, Balázs Botos Design, Kata Font Home, Norna, itthon. and Vivoid – participated in design START  that was organised for the fourth time this year. Each brand is original and has development potential that they could make the most of during the program. Anett Sáfrán creates porcelain objects of use and decoration elements that put tactility, i.e. the sense of touch and experience in the focus. Balázs Botos Design’s main profile is also the design and manufacturing of porcelain jewellery and home accessories. Norna’s designers make outdoor furniture that can not only be an integral part of nature thanks to its forms and colours but can also become a determining piece in any home. The brand Kata Font Home was born from an artistic rethinking of everyday objects and small furniture, following minimalist aesthetic design principles while functional details remain hidden behind clear geometric forms, aiding the abstract appearance of the objects. The designers of itthon. create small-scale home accessories made of natural materials based on traditional Vojdovina craftmanship. The brand Vivoid offers acoustic wall covers, tapestries, wall panels and design elements made using textile structures created with modular techniques.

“We helped emerging furniture and product designers in building domestically, primarily by passing on business knowledge and business development directions that can be learnt through practice. Design START has become a mature mentoring programme, which is affirmed by the positive feedback of the mentees. All of this shows that our professional support, the combination of theoretical and practical experience, and the unique creativity of Hungarian designers can be exchanged for measurable results in the market” – summarised the results of the fourth design START mentoring programme Anita Forintos-Szűcs, Deputy General Managing Director of the Hungarian Fashion & Design Agency.

As the first step of the mentoring programme, the chosen brands participated in professional workshops and personal one-to-one discussions. They could expand their knowledge in topics indispensable for business development such as business planning, marketing, brand building, PR and other communication tools, digital technologies and financing. In the second phase of the design START, mentees spent their two-week internships at a prominent domestic manufacturer or designer of their choice, where they were supported by the host manufacturers/designers in the transfer of practical hands-on knowledge and manufacturing skills in various areas of business management, tailored to their development goals and the characteristics of their business.

As a finishing step of the design START program, the mentees participated in a study tour to Eindhoven, visiting one of Northern Europe’s largest design events, the Dutch Design Week. During the trip between the 24^th and the 27^th of October, mentees visited various internationally acclaimed studios: they got to know the creations of one of the outstanding names of Dutch design, the designer duo, Kiki and Joost; and in Amsterdam, they discovered studio Moooi, known for its eclectic, rebellious, and sophisticated style.

Based on the feedback from the designers participating in the fourth design START mentoring programme, the theoretical knowledge gained from the professional workshops and the practical tasks helped them see their own brands and enterprises from a new perspective. The two-week professional internship spent at Hungarian manufacturers and designers provided a peek into the daily lives of the host companies and supported mentorees to ask targeted questions about developing their enterprises. The colourful and hectic study trip to the Netherlands was truly inspiring for the emerging Hungarian talents in terms of getting to know the perspectives and workflow of studios representing different directions and fields of activity, and building personal relationships.

About the Hungarian Fashion & Design Agency

The Hungarian Fashion & Design Agency was founded in 2018 to support every actor in the fashion and design industry in an efficient and structured way, following predetermined strategic pillars: professional coordination, enhancing Hungarian brands’ availability and trade opportunities, educational development and manufacturing development. To realise its goals, the HFDA organises domestic events each year, such as the region’s major fashion event, the Budapest Central European Fashion Week, or the 360 Design Budapest exhibition, which has received international awards. Besides, they provide Hungarian creators opportunities for participation and debuting at international professional events such as the Milano Fashion Week. Strategic cooperation with professional organisations, increasing export, and supporting Hungarian brands’ professional development with mentoring programmes are among their accentuated goals.