I’m fascinated with Dutch design; not only because I’m a Dutchman, but mainly because Dutch design has a reach that exceeds far beyond the relative importance of the Netherlands, which has roughly only about 17 million inhabitants.
Dutch Designers are able to think outside of the box. It’s about Idea Hatching (see photo 1). One reason is that their schooling is very fundamental. They have to learn to start from scratch.
Another reason is that already famous Dutch designers are well inclined to help newcomers. A very, maybe the most, influential woman in this respect is Lidewij (Li) Edelkoort, I would call her “The Mother of Trendhunting."
Lidewij Edelkoort studied fashion and design at the School of Fine Arts in Arnhem and became a trend forecaster at Dutch department store, “De Bijenkorf”. Her talent for sensing upcoming trends and unique ability to predict what consumers wanted several seasons ahead of time brought her to Paris in 1975 where she created Trend Union. Every six months, Edelkoort conceives a Trend Book which sets forth fashion trends two years in advance.
And you know what? One of Li’s trend forecasts is we’re back to knitting (photo 2)...and finally: the lately Red Dot doted Senz Umbrella is selling by the millions.
- Gen Z
- Gen Alpha
- Gen X
- Millennial (primary audience)
