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"Design has to be alive"

Interview with Fabio De'Longhi by Gerrit Terstiege

Italian entrepeneur Fabio De’Longhi speaks about the acquistion of Braun Houshold by his family’s company, how he sees the heritage of Dieter Rams and what he expects from the future in terms of design, production methods and management strategies.

GT: Mr. De’Longhi, 12 years have past now since you acquired the license for Braun Household from Procter & Gamble. What were the reasons for this decision? Was the history of the Braun brand a factor?
FD: The first point is that we made not a, let’s say, a very traditional or usual license agreement. We bought the rights for a lifetime to use the brand in the household sector, royalty free. So for us it was a very important step. At the same time it’s a very long term process for P&G as well, because it means sharing the brand in a way, forever. And to answer your question: We bought Braun for what it represents, and for what it will continue to represent in the world, particulary for consumers in Germany, where the brand was born, but also in many other countries. I believe a brand is stronger when it’s in relation to people or to a class of products. Not just in general. So with the acquisition of Braun Household we wanted to grow in segments where the brand continues to have a strong potential. Because De’Longhi had very little presence in some product segments where Braun has a very strong heritage. I’m thinking for example of the famous orange juicer by Dieter Rams and Jürgen Greubel.
Fabio De'Longhi
Braun Citrus Press
Left: Family entrepreneur Fabio De'Longhi, right: The Braun classic citromatic MPZ 2, 1972 designed by Jürgen Greubel and Dieter Rams, is now called the “Tribute Collection CJ 3050”.
©  De'Longhi Group
GT: Do you think that Braun has become more of a“household name“ in Italy in the last 12 years? Have you raised the awareness of the brand in Italy?
FD: Yes, not just in Italy, but around the world. I think we have almost doubled sales for the household division of the brand. This is an incredible success. I think it was a fact that P&G was focusing more and more on personal care and had less interest in food or kitchen or home appliances, which really is the De’Longhi core. So these very complementary strategies of P&G and De’Longhi made sense.
GT: To me, it was very interesting to understand that you decided to leave the design team for Braun Household in Germany. And not only that, but with Duy Phong Vu you made an experienced designer from the Braun team in Kronberg the De’Longhi Group Director Global Design. Was this a decision to preserve the heritage of the brand?
FD: Yes, you use the word heritage, and I agree. The heritage, the company culture around the brand, the attributes that make the brand unique to its consumers are very important for us. Also sticking to its tradition and the original concepts and ideas behind the brand. Even though it does come at a cost because if you have a headquarter in Italy, obviously it would be much cheaper to have everything under the same roof. But to continue the culture and the legacy of a brand, is crucial.
headquarters of De'Longhi in Treviso
The modern De'Longhi Group headquarter in Treviso was designed by Signorotto+Partners
©  De'Longhi Group.
GT: How would you describe that heritage of the Braun brand?

FD: Well, it’s not too complicated. You know, the design rules of Dieter Rams regarding simplicity, the wise use of materials, his concept of „as little design as possible“ for a honest, easy-to-use product – all that is a very important heritage. However, the world is changing: just think of the success of luxury goods in recent years for example. So today, we sometimes have to go a little bit beyond simplicity. It’s a fact that we have to stick to the heritage. But we have to take in to account what the consumer needs today. Also, the consumer interaction with products is changing as well: the way they cook, the way they iron. So in this respect, design has to be alive. Designers have to have a good understanding of the past, while looking into the future. And Phong has the ability to interpret the brand. Rules in design are fine, but they have to be interpreted.

GT: Give me an example, please.
FD: I mean, the concept of simplicity, for instance, can be applied in many different ways to various products, from ovens to vacuum cleaners or personal blenders. Because the way the product is used, commands different buttons, different functionalities, different weights or aspects of cleanability. Does a product have to be movable or can it be static, can be heavy? There are really so many requirements that have to be interpreted in a precise way, individually for each product.
GT: And then there is the important aspect of a global market that is still consisting of consumers with local preferences … How important is it today to communicate a somewhat „typical“ national design language for globally distributed products?

FD: On one side I see the importance of respecting the regional design preferences. At the same time, I believe that consumers change, habits change, and brands must evolve. Otherwise you are kind of blocked and hostage of your original idea. So you have to move on and to be courageous and to understand what we have to keep from the past and what has to change. So in this perspective, the heritage of Dieter Rams is a very heavy one, because he was such a genius who created such beautiful products. But some of them are not contemporary anymore, because consumer expectations change. Technologies change—and habits as well. Just look at the many ways people drink their coffee today. In the past, most people were fine with drip coffee and now they want cappuccino. They used to have a big mug or a large carafe, and now they want a short cup or special milk. So protocols have to take these developments into consideration and also other things related to them. So you have to know where you are coming from, but you also have to be courageous to adapt. Otherwise brands die. Plenty great brands with beautiful designs have disappeared from the market. We forget that phenomenon sometimes, because the brands themselves are forgotten. So we have to make sure that we meet consumer needs. In the end, they should be happy with our products. It is a very important aspect to make products that people feel good about using. This must be kept in mind as a design goal all the time.

GT: In your eyes: What was typical for German design in the past?
FD: I think its image was a very, very practical one. I would say: maybe less fantasy, more of a pragmatic approach, while Italians tended to have a more romantic or more emotional side which also showed in our products. So German design often came with an inner technological differentiation or innovation while Italians were more about the pure aesthetic, a kind of classic approach.
GT: Ettore Sottsass once compared German „gestaltung“ with the protestant church and the Italian design with the formal language of the catholic church. And there is some truth to that. If you visit catholic churches in Italy, they do look very different from protestant churches in Germany. What would you say is typical for German and Italian design today?
FD: I think that Italian design is more revolutionary. If you think of brands like Lamborghini, Ferrari. In contrast, German design is more evolutionary, I see more consistency in German design. There is more intrinsic attention to the heritage of a product generation. While I see an instinctive desire for change, for the new, in Italian design. A new Ferrari is always surprising.
Automatic coffee machine from De'Longhi
Front of the new automatic coffee maker Rivelia by De'Longhi
© De'Longhi Group
GT: For Braun, a strong and consistent corporate design has always been a contributing factor to its success. Is that an aspect that will influence your other brands as well in the future?
FD: Yes. I think it’s not easy to find a successful design. I mean, it’s a fact that some designs are better than others. And once you find a good design, you have to try as an entrepreneur to exploit it as much as possible. But there must be a good balance between taking advantage of the opportunity offered by consistency and by going beyond. To give an example, we have recently launched, as De’Longhi, a new line is called Rivelia, new fully automatic coffee maker. Totally different, new shape, new interface. Its design has very little to do with the old ones. So I like an existing design as long as it works, as long as it is appreciated. But when at some point it appears to be old and out-dated, you need a new design.
GT: Right. But where do you see Braun Household in relation to the other brands of your company, especially De’Longhi and Kenwood?
FD: Complementary. Our brands are very complementary, regarding the regions, the product scopes, the design guidelines. I mean, De’Longhi has no presence in ironing systems, almost no presence in certain hand blenders, for example. We as De’Longhi have a heritage in heating, air conditioning, that´s the field where the company was born. But besides that, our core is really coffee making. There may be some overlapping with Kenwood, because most of the products in the kitchen are made by Kenwood in the group, but really with a different design approach and a different appeal to consumers in the various countries and regions.
Kenwood food processor
Model of the Kenwood series Chef: the British company Kenwood has been part of the De'Longhi Group since 2001
© De'Longhi Group
GT: The De’Longhi group today is run by you and members of your family, like your father and your sister. Braun was once family-controlled, too, until the Braun brothers sold the company to Gillette in 1967. What would you say are the advantages of a family-run company today?
FD: Well, I think when a family owns something, they really care about it. They have a long-term vision for their company. This is an incredible value. Sometimes they take less risks, they might act more conservative, which can also reduce risks for the brands and the company itself. This situation for us has been, like for many family-owned companies, a very important element of success. In other companies, the CEO’s change every four or five years and they move on. Sometimes they had great success, maybe by putting a lot of pressure on the company. Or they experimented too much.
GT: Are there also disadvantages in family-owned companies?
FD: Of course, most families are less rich than the big multinationals. So financial means are not as strong. In fact, sometimes they even have to sell the company because of their financial situation. But as long as the company is successful, the typical long-term approach of family members is providing an incredible advantage. And also many people prefer working for a family-owned business, because the company culture is usually more human, more about sharing values, less short-term result driven. Also the decision making processes are often quicker in a family, than in a multinational company with international divisions where the marketing is in one country and the technical workers are in another.
Food processor from Kenwood
Kitchen machine with digital display: a manufacturer like Kenwood has to react to cooking trends
© De'Longhi Group
GT: In what fields do you see the challenges for household-focused companies in the future? Will the kitchen become more and more a technical laboratory? Or is the trend rather back to craft, back to simplicity, with knife and saucepan?
FD: Well, that´s a good question. What will be the future challenges of De’Longhi? If you asked people 30 years ago: who’s going to be the leader in coffee makers in the world, nobody would have answered De’Longhi, right? But then we became the leader because we were able to capture opportunities, to capitalize in know-how. We had and have the ability to reinvent ourselves, to adapt. Maybe in the future some products will become less relevant because people will spend less time preparing food. But then again, the new trend for quickness can ask for new products. I give you an example. We acquired a brand in the US which is called Nutribullet. It stands for simple, powerful, clean, easy-to-use blenders. Affordable, but not cheap. They can deliver great tasks in a quick way. You have healthy fruits, vegetables, you add supplements, with the push of a button it becomes a meal. So again, maybe you have less time to make a cake as your grandma was doing it, but you do that instead now. Because it´s faster and healthier.
GT: In what way will design, production methods or the choice of new materials change in the years to come? And do these developments require a new expertise for designers?
FD: Yeah, for sure. I think young generations will be using the new technologies and will be open to new materials. As a young designer, you have to watch what the competitors is doing, what happens in other product sectors, learn quickly, be open, travel a lot, talk to people and see what is happening in other countries in design. Certainly the opportunities offered by the new technologies are fascinating. And I think the design universities have become better and better.
GT: Do you plan to make more acquisitions?

FD: Oh, yes, of course. We just have completed the acquisition of La Marzocco, a Florentine company, almost 100 years old, producing professional, high-end espresso machines. They just launched a cooperation with Rimowa, the German luggage company. A pop-up Café was created during this year´s Milan furniture fair. And there, a hand-made, limited-edition of La Marzocco coffee machines was created, quoting the aluminum grooves that Rimowa suitcases are famous for. That was a very special German-Italian cooperation. So what do we do when we buy a company? Our first mission and concern is to protect the company culture and to make sure that what makes a difference is independent, and stays independent. But we’re not making super many acquisitions. In the last 24 years, we bought Kenwood, Braun and Nutribullet. So we have now four brands in household and two in professional.

Nutribullet Mixer
Three product examples of the blender company Nutribullet that is also part of the De'Longhi Group
© De'Longhi Group
GT: How do you make sure that every brand keeps its identity?
FD: Independent design, independent Research & Development, different headquarters. We make sure that there are people that understand and respect the company culture. And we as the leadership team or board of directors, we respect these individual cultures as well. And we go more for the growth rather than the synergies to squeeze the costs. It’s more about really exploiting the brand potential.
GT: Our final question: What are the requirements for managers if good products and good design are the main goals?
FD: They have to understand, they have to love their products. You have to understand the consumer, understand what people need. It´s important not to have too many preconceived notions. A good manager has an understanding for the technologies, for the industry. And he or she knows about sustainability as well. This is playing a major role today. And I’m very proud that the new product that we’ve launched, Rivelia, is not only featuring innovative design and new functionalities. It is also the first product of our company that is going to be carbon neutral. So it’s an important milestone in the direction of sustainability. There is a great desire from the side of the consumers to feel good about the products they use. They want to live for a long time with their products and believe in them. And our managers should love what they work for and be passionate about it. Passion and love for what you do are absolutely crucial. The desire to attract consumers, be competitive, do better than the others. Be innovative, know the market, know technology. And sustainability is the decisive new factor in the equation.

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Cooperation-partners
Politecnico Milano 1863 - School of Design
museum angewandte kunst
TU Delft - Industrial Design Engineering
DeLongi Group - Braun
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