Shari Swan is the founder and leader of Streative Branding. She spoke at FutureDesignDays 2005 in the Industrial Design and Innovation block. Now she’s sharing more of her thoughts with us. Enjoy!

What project are you working on right now?

There are quite a few irons in the Streative fire however something I’m very excited about is the first phase of our design recruitment for the development of our 4th branded mobile phone for the service provider O2.

Name a designer/architect you appreciate?

Having spoken to architects, brand managers, product designers and consumers on the subject, we discovered that two of the biggest trends at the moment are Community and Simplicity. For that reason I’d have to say that Apple’s design of products, environments and brand architecture scores top points for iconic design. And as for a particular designer or architect, we are recruiting and developing up and coming designers all the time and I would prefer to say that we appreciate raw passion and energy as opposed to one person or another. There are so many creatives out there doing amazing work these days that I only wish we had time to meet them all.

What is the worst design icon off all time?

Bad design happens when either an object fails to do what it’s supposed to, or perhaps does it but in a way that says nothing, leaves no memory and makes no impact on the people who use it or the environment it inhabits. “Worst design icon” seems kind of a contradiction in terms to me because if something is deemed “iconic” in the first place, then it has made its mark and said something about its time or context – regardless of whether it is to people’s personal taste or not.

What is your dream project?

Happily I can say that we are currently developing a few projects at the moment that have been on our ‘dream-projects’ wish-list for sometime. What I can tell you about them is that they are community building projects that use new media and bleeding-edge communication tech to bring together consumers, creative industries and businesses.

Who do you want to see on FutureDesignDays’ stage and why?

When I attended the last FDD I was impressed by the caliber and talent of established designers and brands and their enthusiasm for innovation. I also loved the way FDD utilized a more informal type of presentation and workshops. I thought that this set-up would be perfect for introducing another layer of “experts”, the consumer Whiz-kids and Garage Entrepreneurs who are innovating in response to what they see as the gaps in product and services. It’s these D.I.Y. consumers who are breaking the newest ground and leading design and development. Faster to market and unhindered by large organizations, these spontaneous start-ups have a lot that they can teach more established designers and brands. The FDD stage would be a perfect forum for them.

Do you have an idea to share with our blog- and newsletter readers?

For sometime we’ve been tracking the ‘Sharing’ phenomena where communities are logging on and forming groups to share their knowledge and know-how to access the knowledge and know-how of others. This trend has shifted the balance of power towards the consumer and is affecting every industry. Never before has the consumer with an idea of how something could be better, held so much power and influence. So perhaps, instead, there’s something you can share with us! www.streativebranding.com or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it if there is!