ddp design fair

October 24 marked the start of Seoul Design 2023 and a huge number of visitors were brought to DDP. As a design festival hosted by the Seoul Metropolitan Government and organized by the Seoul Design Foundation, it was in the spotlight even before it began. Among the festival's many events, the DDP Design Launching Fair, an industrial business launch show, showed its strength despite being only in its fifth year and received a lot of attention and focus not only in Korea but also overseas. Since 2019, the DDP Design Launching Fair has lived up to its reputation as a business launching show that has created synergy between small makers and designers to improve the competitiveness of the manufacturing industry and promote the design industry, showcasing new collaborative products every year in the fields of household goods, lighting, furniture, beauty, and fashion.

This year's fair featured products that fit the theme of "Valuable Partnership," a more realistic and serious theme for the environment and people. Following the cheers and admiration on the first day of the fair, which showcased 60 products selected as outstanding among collaborative products developed through collaboration between makers and designers, as well as newly launched products from 12 domestic and international design studios, the awards and opening ceremony on October 25 brought even more applause. First, Mayor Oh Se-hoon attended the awards ceremony at Art Hall 1, where he viewed the main contents of the design exhibition, including the theme exhibition "Wise Cohabitation," the overseas trend exhibition, and the corporate + young designer brand exhibition, and then attended the DDP Design Launching Fair Awards Ceremony. A total of seven teams were awarded, including three for Best Design, one for Best Design (Citizen Award), two for Best Activities, and one for Best Launch. The opening ceremony began with an opening speech by Rhee Kyung-don, CEO of the Seoul Design Foundation, and unlike last year, this year's ceremony was held at Ouillim Square instead of indoors, so both VIPs and visitors to DDP participated in the opening ceremony, marking the beginning of a more meaningful design festival.

We are looking forward to next year's DDP Design Launching Fair already as it contains the future of sensory design and the wise will of Korean makers and designers for sustainable living while allowing people to enjoy a rich design festival.