Film: Moritz Schmieg

FOCUS OPEN

BADEN-WÜRTTEMBERG INTERNATIONAL DESIGN AWARD

Design is a crucial key to commercial success – as the Baden-Württemberg International Design Award has been proving ever since 1991.
In the more than 30 years since, the Baden-Württemberg International Design Award has established itself as a constant at both national and international level and has been held under the succinct Focus Open label for many years now.

The initial spark that led to the founding of the Baden-Württemberg International Design Award came in 1988 from Lothar Späth, who was Minister-President of Baden-Württemberg at the time and a keen promoter of economic development. That put him on the same wavelength as the Design Center, whose intrinsic task has always been to convince companies that design’s impact is a highly relevant factor when it comes to competitiveness. 

Photographer: Benjamin Stollenberg, Ludwigsburg

The benefits for award winners

Moderate costs – hassle-free participation
Focus Open is one of the few non-commercial design awards with an international orientation in Germany. The costs for taking part are moderate – even newcomers and the smallest of companies can afford to enter their innovative products and compete at international level.

Independent jury
All members of the jury are independent – and agree not to submit any of their own work. Another special feature of the Focus Open competition is that the entries are not pre-selected on the basis of photographs prior to the judging. Wherever possible, every entry is presented to the jury for assessment in the form of the actual product.

Broad-based publicity!
The benefits for award-winners are considerable – besides feedback from the independent experts of the jury, they can also look forward to a publicity boost via the Design Center Baden-Württemberg’s numerous communication platforms, which include the international yearbook, exhibition, award ceremony and placement in social media and networks! This has a particularly positive impact on brand communications: the Focus Meta, Focus Gold, Focus Silver and Focus Special Mention labels are a mark of quality and a valuable branding tool.