Designer + Small Business Collaboration 'DDP Design Fair' Best Award, Selected Directly by Citizens

One Product Selected from Seven Finalists through Online Citizen Voting
Products Reflecting Increased Interest in Personal Space Since the COVID-19 Pandemic Continue to Emerge

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] With the DDP Design Fair, the largest and first design business launch show in Korea, just a month away, the Seoul Design Foundation has begun selecting the final Best 7 products. Six finalists were chosen through expert judging, and the remaining awardees will be selected directly by citizens.

Now in its 4th year, the DDP Design Fair is an event promoted by the Seoul Design Foundation to strengthen the design competitiveness of small manufacturing businesses. The event drives a design new product development project that combines designers' ideas with the technical know-how of small manufacturing businesses.

The online citizen voting will be held for 26 days from the 21st to October 16th on the DDP Design Fair website, and anyone can participate. Products selected as the Best Award 7 will be honored with the Seoul Mayor's Award. Additionally, they will receive 5 million KRW for production costs and opportunities to be featured in DDP's online and offline stores, as well as promotion in Korea's top design magazine, Monthly Design.

This year, INNE CEO Ahn Kang-eun, participating as a judge for the second time at the DDP Design Fair, commented, “As the years go by, there are more products that stand out with new ideas and excellent marketability,” adding, “The increased participation of designers and small business owners working on a small scale or individually is a remarkable achievement, showing that it is recognized as a good promotional platform.”

Meanwhile, through expert judging last August, 120 excellent new design products resulting from collaborations between small business owners and designers participating in the event were selected. The selected products mainly featured camping, kitchen, and bathroom items, pet products, and eco-friendly products, reflecting the increased interest in personal spaces after the COVID-19 pandemic, attracting attention.

As part of the Seoul Design events, the DDP Design Fair will be held from October 19th to October 28th at the DDP Art Hall. Currently, an ‘Early Bird Ticket’ promotion is underway, allowing visitors to purchase exhibition admission tickets at the Art Hall at a 50% discount.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.