Is the UK really a design hub?
LG, Sony and Nokia have all invested heavily – and recently – in British design. But design leaders and experts say the industry cannot rely on its traditional strengths if it is to prosper over the next decade
Article by Titus Chalk
“It’s no good just saying ‘design is important to us.’ Companies have to prove it in the way they set up their organisation, their processes and the way they invest in it,” says Gerry McGovern, Land Rover’s director of design, as he leads the way through Jaguar Land Rover’s £2m Virtual Reality Centre in Gaydon, Warwickshire, which opened in June. With eight ultra-high resolution projectors, run by a roomful of humming computers, this is expensive evidence of a commitment to design that, McGovern believes, was key to the company’s takeover by the ambitious Indian group Tata: “They bought us because we were experts in designing and developing luxury vehicles.”
We have a distinctive personality as a nation, a clear sense of identity and a means to make that work for us… there is something special in that Luke Miles, LG Electronics
This summer, LG Electronics set up a British design studio. Luke Miles, head of design Europe at LG, says: “Over the past five years, we’ve seen enough development for the UK to be justifiably considered a design hub. The UK has proved it has something to offer as an environment for creative industries to flourish and a European base for multinationals.”
The global economy has been transformed by the collapse of barriers that once impeded the flow of goods, services, capital and labour, giant leaps in science and technology and shifting distribution costs. These changes have triggered a seismic shift in manufacturing to low-cost economies in eastern Europe and Asia. In contrast, LG, Nissan, Nokia and Sony have all chosen to invest in UK design. Why is this? And what does the industry need to do to remain competitive?
Vision
The ability to position yourself in the global marketplace
As recession bit deep in the early 1980s, many British businesses stopped investing in design, forcing designers to pitch for business abroad. Companies like Seymour Powell established an international reputation while potential rivals in the US and elsewhere firmly focused on their domestic market. John Morris, managing director of the London branch of Design Bridge, an international branding agency with business in more than 40 countries, says British design still benefits from industry’s short-sightedness: “Are we drivers of the standards of design globally? Yes. Do we value design? We do. Do companies from outside the UK come to us for our design skills? Yes. Clients come to us for our brand understanding, and our ability to translate that into design and creativity.”
Politically the UK’s relationship with mainland Europe has been uneasy, but commercially it has, since the 1970s, proved very fruitful indeed: “The reason UK designers are so successful and likely to remain so,” says Clive Grinyer, director of customer experience at Cisco’s Internet Business Solutions, “is their intimate knowledge of customers in Europe’s local markets.” David Godber, the Design Council’s deputy chief executive and former director of Nissan Design Europe, agrees: “The UK’s market is representative of the whole of Europe. Every brand, every product, every service is resident here – you can be completely market reflective by being here.”
Nokia’s Mark Delaney, head of Connect design, says: “London is probably the most cosmopolitan city in Europe. If you go to German design agencies, you’ll find a lot of work that looks culturally German. In Italy, there’s definitely an Italian style. The thing that strikes you in London is the mixture of approaches.”
'The successful brands will be those that have put design right at the top of their business... if you don’t take design seriously, you will fail' Gerry McGovern, Jaguar Land Rover
Long-term, though, how useful will the UK’s rapport with European consumers prove – especially if the most powerful global brands look for centralised design solutions? Nico Macdonald, consultant and author of the spy.co.uk blog, sounds a note of caution: “Our familiarity with European markets and consumers makes us attractive. But as Asian and other markets increase in importance, the importance of British designers will decrease, especially as British design schools train the Asian designers of the future.”
Craft
Realising your creative and commercial potential
Quality and creativity must be put to a purpose that makes commercial sense. Lin Dickens, managing director of branding agency Aricot Vert and a director of the Design Business Association, says: “It’s all about creating effective design that is commercially impactful and the UK does this consistently. The DBA’s Design Effectiveness awards are a good example of how we foster commerciality in the UK through publicly rewarding commercially effective design. But we must keep fostering that because the emerging markets are rapidly embracing design.”
Many British designers learned this working with multinationals in the 1980s. “You can design anything, but if you can’t build it for the right cost, you’re not going to have a business,” says McGovern. “Creativity is a prerequisite, but there has to be a commercial balance. Designers have to be responsible.”
The UK’s market is representative of the whole of Europe. Every brand, every product, every service is resident here David Godber, Design Council
Morris says the opportunity to develop those skills in a commercially aware environment brings the finest talent to Britain : “Colleagues in Holland and Singapore say there is something about developing craft skills and nurturing talent that attracts them to the UK.”
Attitude
Finding solutions, no matter how big the problem
For British design, attitude is key. Godber says: “In a lot of companies and organisations around the world, there’s a massive fear of failure, whereas British designers are willing to have a go. We don’t have to be told to solve problems – we love solving problems.”
This is one reason LG Electronics now employs 22 designers in the UK, the largest chunk of the multinational’s £2.6m investment in design in Europe this year. “The UK design industry’s attractiveness to overseas clients is linked to the creative essence of what makes us quintessentially British,” says Miles. “We have a distinctive personality as a nation, a clear sense of identity and a means to make that work for us. Some creative studios blend intellectual rigour with wit and smart reflection and there is something very special in that. The ability to create subtle yet powerful connections awakens something in people. Our creative techniques and our way of seeing can lead to something compelling.”
Ingenuity
Being part of the global marketplace
Emphasising British qualities doesn’t mean encouraging an island mentality. “Companies need to have an international perspective and a deep-rooted understanding of what’s going on in the world,” says Morris.
Miles adds: “The core of UK design’s success was born from skills and expertise that are intrinsically British. We should adopt these without closing our minds to what is happening globally. Many firms place consumer research at their core. Insights from examining subtle meanings in people’s behaviour may lead to something truly innovative. Technological differences can be learned, but cultural differences are something you have to have a feel for.”
Yet as British design faces tougher global competition, it is imperative that British education is at the very top of its game. Macdonald is worried about the future: “British design schools lack a serious engagement with interaction and service design, and struggle with the academic and intellectual side of design in its broader context.” Even Grinyer, who is more optimistic, suggests that “our academic institutions do not represent the cutting edge of design thinking.”
Article first published in Design Council Magazine, Issue 5, Winter 2008