Design Guild Mark Calls for Entries 2018

Posted in Events, News on 13 October, 2017

The Furniture Makers’ Company, the furnishing industry’s charity, is now calling for submissions for the Design Guild Mark Awards 2018. The Design Guild Mark is recognised as a major mark of excellence in British design and in 2018 it will celebrate its tenth year.

The prestigious Design Guild Mark promotes excellence and raises the profile of British design and innovation. The award recognises the highest standards in the design of furniture in volume production by the finest designers working in Britain, or British designers working abroad.

The Design Guild Mark judging panel for 2018 will be:

• Simon Alderson – twentytwentyone
• Jeremy Myerson – Royal College of Art
• Joanna Biggs – GA Design
• Philippa Prinsloo – John Lewis
• Barbara Chandler – Evening Standard
• Pernille Stafford – Resonate Interiors Architecture
• Thomas Pearce – Sebastian Conran Associates
• Jason Wilary-Attew – The Conran Shop
• Diana Monkhouse – SpaceInvader
• Terence Woodgate – Terence Woodgate Design

Barbara Chandler, Design Writer for the Evening Standard, said: “The Design Guild Mark judging is a great opportunity for us judges to see a large selection of the best of British furniture. It’s truly ‘interactive’ in a thorough, traditional way. The Design Guild Mark has a growing following amongst consumers and in the design industry, and I am very proud to be part of it.”

Joanna Biggs, Associate Director for GA Design, said: “Always enjoyable and enlightening to see the wide range of products submitted from British designers. I love the variation of entries, from the elegantly simple, to the crafted and decorative. Each one is thoroughly scrutinised and if successful, a mark of Design Excellence is awarded. From designers pitch, through rigorous testing, with enlightening discussions from professionals afterwards; the Design Guild Mark always inspires!”

David Irwin, Design Guild Mark 2017 Awardee, said: “The Design Guild Mark award is one of the greatest measures of quality and excellence within the British furniture industry, providing validation of a product’s design integrity and commercial viability. I am delighted to receive this prestigious award from The Furniture Makers’ Company, for both the Narin and Tor chair, it’s a great honour.

Sarah Kay, also a Design Guild Mark 2017 Awardee, said: “This Design Guild Mark is a real honour which I share with Harvey Jones Kitchens. I see the process as a collaboration and this award is a wonderful way to acknowledge and encourage that. I think it is also really helpful to consumers to know when a design has such a prestigious endorsement from an organisation, The Furniture Makers’ Company, as well as an illustrious panel of judges, so dedicated to this industry.”

To submit your product please visit The Furniture Makers’ Company’s website or click on the following link: http://bit.ly/2yWxQMS and complete the Call for Entries form. Closing date 19th January 2018.