Designer - Tricia Guild

Tricia Guild formed the company ‘Designers Guild’ in 1970, her company’s turnover has risen from five million pounds, in the early years of the business, to thirty-seven million by 2009.

Guild was an interior designer previously, and has a huge amount of experience. When Guild was designing her fabrics she found a niche in the market where most fabrics available were very dull and uninspiring. Designers Guild produces twenty different collections a year, much more than the usual four seasonal collections within a clothing store. The company has showrooms across the world, and flagship stores in London, Paris, and München the growth in Guild’s business is massive. 

Tricia Guild has been honoured with a great deal of awards, including an OBE. Guild invests most of Designers Guild’s profit in other companies that support ethical and social projects, as well as investing more money back into Designers Guild. It is believed that investment is most likely where most of Tricia Guilds personal wages from her designs go. Designers Guild Cushion Range works out on average at roughly £80 per cushion, the pricing is understandably justified because of the sheer amount of colour, prints and textures which make up Designer’s Guilds textile products. The company's products offer a great variety of colour, texture and print, and are made from a variety of synthetic and natural materials.

“By using a fraction of a complementary colour as a sharp accent you can set up more vibrant effects, perhaps offset by an intermediary shade. Successful colour combinations often depend on getting the proportions right. A touch of contrasting colour is lively and refreshing; too much can be uncomfortable if blocks of vibrant colour are competing for attention.”  (Tricia Guild, 1995, p.24)

Guild expresses her interior schemes with intimate feelings and metaphors throughout her published work books, by exploring the atmosphere it is easy to stimulate and adapt your mind to the way Guild thinks - each material can layer to create an overall spirit and unity of space.

Guild in some cases hand paints prints, before mass-producing them giving them a unique hand-made look. Guild is continuously collecting inspiration to inspire further collections and Designer’s Guilds designs seem to be going from strength to strength.

Designer - Anne Kyyro Quinn

Anne Kyyro Quinn is a freelance fabric designer who embarks on producing three-dimensional textiles, mainly famous for her organic detailed cushions. Quinn does not describe her products as luxurious, but her designs have sculptural three dimensional qualities and could almost be looked upon as a work of art, making them incomparable to most other textile designs, and very rare.

Quinn is based in London and her company is a reasonably small textile based business which was started in 1999; and arguably not the most recognisable designer.

Quinn’s approach to fabric design is very different to traditional textiles as her designs are usually made up of only one block colour. The 3D qualities however within the material’s structure create extraordinary patterns, and speak for themselves. These are what would usually be printed on to the material – therefore creating unusual, yet aesthetically pleasing fabric designs.

Quinn works using, most significantly throughout all of her designs, felt. Felt is made up entirely of wool fibres, and most commonly merino wool. Felt also has a property which enables Quinn’s designs, particularly her custom fabric wall panels to be sound proof, as well as being flame retardant.

Quinn’s designs are finished by hand, this is something which large retailers would never consider because it would be extremely time consuming, meaning it would be hard to find something similar and making these the perfect choice. Typically the felt in Quinn’s design is usually very vibrant, felt is dyed easily, and can be effortlessly sculpted into virtually any shape, this is how Quinn’s stylish and modern designs are created. The finished textiles are very different to other designs on the high street and not easily replicated by larger brands, because they would find it extremely hard to manufacture and produce these sorts of designs in a factory environment.

Quinn’s designs also prove very time consuming to make, especially if you want a quick turnover, which large retailers do. Quinn’s textiles show how she connects with the materials she is using to enable maximum quality and function, as well as being aware of the overall appearance. 

Luxury brands are often the same sized companies as Quinn’s, but this company are still reasonably unrecognised and thus fairly flexible in what they offer, custom designs can be considered and Quinn can work closely with the client personally to achieve a superb service and gratifying finished product.

It is arguable that Quinn could be seen as more ethical than the other designer’s because her primary source material itself is eco-friendly, as well as not needing a great deal of machinery to manufacture it, other than sewing machines to embroider sections together. Because she finishes them by hand this is also saving energy. However regarding production there is no information stating Quinn’s company to be ‘fair-trade’ or ‘ethical’, this isn’t surprising though for such a small company. Quinn’s products, once finished, look very exclusive and impressive. Quinn’s cushions average between 80-130 British sterling pounds and it can easily be imagined people paying even more, due to the products being so unique and as stated before very hard to replicate thus no cheaper mass-production alternative.

Do social classes make a difference to Luxury?

Working class citizens in England are usually individuals earning minimum wage, and do not have a great deal of disposable income at the end of every month. Presumptions about luxury being equated to money can put lower class people off the idea of a ‘luxury’ product or service. This relates back to the importance that luxury can be considered as simple things or items which you already take for granted. For poorer households within our society you would expect the largest percentage of income and financial outgoings to be spent on food products, as eating healthy is usually the most important priority for a family.

However there are many lower class people who believe that luxury does take a part in their life. Human behaviour is motivated by passion and pleasure, and there is a defining boundary between luxury and necessity. Surely poorer individuals though, have personal luxuries. Family experiences constantly take place at home and ‘the physical environment communicate[s] in a non verbal way, and non verbal communication, often powerful and important to the people [and the family] connected.’

Effortlessly some working class people would straight away jump to the conclusion that they in fact have no personal luxuries at all. Lower class families do not usually have the best social and financial background according to statistics, and this could be a factor in their disbelief and discontentment in ‘luxury’.

The middle class in England falls between both lower and upper class under social economic terms. In the United Kingdom it is usually implied that the middle class citizens would have their own family home, have good educational backgrounds, and work high up within the working sector, either as part of the managerial team or perhaps even the director of a company. The widespread trade in consumer goods sales coincides with a civility in middling and upper classes; this can be conveyed in new ways of eating, socialising and via public pleasure and leisure. In the seventieth and eighteenth centuries you would be limited where to go, for example there was basically a theatre some public gardens, but these days there is no excuse to not adventure out, socialise and explore.

Economic expansion and social redistribution of wealth means that a middle class citizen could afford to purchase ‘luxury’ branded products if they wish to do so with their monthly income – although most ‘luxury’ products and services could not be considered a part of everyday life, other than the occasional impulse purchase.

 

There are obvious pre-conceptions that the upper class have the most luxurious possessions, and obviously purchase the expensive up-to-date luxury goods on offer in today’s society. The upper class are at the top of social hierarchy, they have a much higher disposable income than the middle and lower class. Though surprisingly, most of the higher earning people I questioned on ‘luxury’ believed the more simple things in life to be of more importance to them than their material possessions.

Nicolas Barbon (1690) stated that –

The wants of the Mind are infinite, Man naturally Aspires, and as his Mind is elevated, his Senses grow more refined, and more capable of Delight; his Desires are enlarged, and his Wants increase with his Wishes, which is for everything that is rare, can gratify his Senses, adorn his Body and promote the Ease, Pleasure and Pomp of Life.

 

Equality and being treated the same is a factor in which now the social classes boundaries are becoming less and less obvious. The upper class are just like everybody else, most are grateful for the things they cannot pay for – Grateful for the situations and circumstances that they cannot control. Luxury to them can be when the uncontrollable goes well. There are many well-known phrases surrounding money, for example, “money cannot buy you love” –money cannot manipulate passion or get you your own way. Then there is the saying, “money isn’t everything, but I’d like to see you live without it,” clearly you could have a life without money, but it would not be very appealing to most. Money clearly takes up a huge part in everybody’s lives whether they wish for it to or not.

The well-off society can afford all that they desire and most already own all they desire. The comfort of being financially stable, can possibly lead to the upper class focusing on the smaller, uncontrollable things within their daily lives. It is more important to have freedom, time, family and health. Though no person is likely to want (or admit to wanting) a luxury product more than a healthy family member.

City Versus Country

A town or city is not just a group of buildings but usually a large community and worthy experience; urbanized environments have been described as ‘places in which new ideas and new ways of life are first introduced’ and many towns are said to have ‘encourage[d] displays of wealth and status’.

Our capital city, London, has been identified as a city which has huge prestige and significance within our society. This is unsurprising as it is the heart of the country, and provides us with more than sufficient businesses, communal areas, features and transport links. London provides us as individuals with greater access, and new experiences. ‘Harrods’ in London has a reputation of being the ‘world’s most famous, luxury department store.’ Having such a reputation and prestige makes it a very attractive place to shop and the overall experience of shopping there can become a luxury, just because of the location, status and interior characteristics.

‘Town life has been seen as intrinsically different from life in the country; our image of urban life is that it is aesthetically, psychologically, and economically more advanced than life in the country. [...] Towns are often taking to have played a crucial role in modifications to consumer behaviour throughout the pre-industrial era, acting as electric transformers on national or regional economics’

What is luxury?!

Having researched extensively in to how people personally perceive ‘luxury’ and what people class ‘luxury’ to mean nowadays, there is ultimate proof that everyone dictates luxury in different ways. Luxury seems to have gradually evolved in to lots of established personal meanings, and it has also proved a difficult challenge to pin down just one generalized modern meaning. However, it appears as you delve deeper in to the subject of ‘luxury’ it soon becomes apparent that the appeal [of luxury] is so deeply rooted in human nature.

But do luxury products and services make us feel better? Today products’ have the theory and ability to make us happier and more comfortable in some ways, and ‘studies identify a variety of categories in which extra spending would promote longer, healthier and happier lives for all’. Though, understandably ‘luxury’ does not always involve and rely on the expense paid – but it entails the services we offer as designers, and receive as clients. A large part of quality service and ‘luxurious’ experiences comes with gaining trust and providing loyalty, and not just focusing how designs are demonstrated aesthetically and technically.

A luxurious interior can be created just by completing and exceeding a client’s wishes – creating the perfect aura or colour palette etc. Purchasing expensive fittings to create a ‘luxury’ setting is unnecessary, the chosen items merely need to work and feel right in the environment. Simple details like adding unexpected touches, balancing elements and transitions within spaces can also create a luxurious experience and impact. Even flooding areas with light can be interesting - shadows can be thrown in spaces creating striking silhouettes. Most importantly, items and possessions can be opulent in appearance yet be very inexpensive. As Tricia Guild has said, 'a room can possess grand ballroom proportions, yet be uninviting and dull.' Luxury within design involves a great deal of thought, time and subtle surprises. 

So can purchasing a luxury product or service cause us to feel luxurious? By exceeding a product or service luxury has in some cases been proven to provide us with a ‘spiritual edge.’ Luxury appears to have a deep meaning which is closely linked within human thoughts.

What is ‘luxury’ and how can it help us as designers? There is huge clash of opinions concerning ‘luxury’, but everyone appears to expect an exceptional service as part of a luxury product, ‘customers expect service to be at the same level as the creations brands are promoting’. Conceivably ‘luxury’ comes down to the happiness that the products or services we offer, provide. ‘Customers value some products as much as what they symbolise as for what they do’. Significance is in how consumers will come and go, while finances will fail and thrive yet ‘luxury’ forever endures.

I believe luxury should be considered within the design process, and part of the provisions we offer. But are you worth the luxury?

Ps. If anybody would like a copy of my research questionnaire regarding luxury, please email - the results are actually incredibly interesting :)

Social Responsibility in Design

Designer’s are responsible for a huge variety of steps which impact everyone, from the initial design process through to the production and then on to the client. Designer’s today need to show compassion when creating their products. It is easy for designs to have unwanted effects, for example relating back to the ‘size zero’ phase, the designer’s weren’t intending to introduce a disease like anorexia to a huge number of people, they were merely thinking of the best way to display their fabrics, clothing and finished designs, without considering the consequences. 

It is easy to discover that each designer has individual ways in which they deal with social responsibility and ethics within their companies. It has become apparent that money is a huge issue within the production of fabrics. An unnamed designer of a major retail chain said “I think more time would probably be needed to produce things ecologically and ethically” this seems to ring true for all retail sectors, whether it’s fabric or food.

Status Sells and Exploitation in Design

Internationally successful and recognised products are perceived as either ‘top quality’, ‘fashionable’ or ‘expensive’. Therefore most designs and finished products are sold for a vast amount of money compared to average high street store prices. Yet, are the expensive price tags acceptable to pay for a label? 

A designer's success and reputation are factors in the high prices; however, quality and cost of materials are also contributing factors. 

Receiving status awards, such as OBE’s (Officer in The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire), may have an effect upon the pricing of their produce because they have been acclaimed for their products excelled quality and their triumphant design decisions, so become much-admired. Is it down to the principle of awarding the designer’s for the designs they themselves came up with, or is it just greed?

Are communities in third world countries seeing the vast amount of money we see on the retail prices of the finished fabric? This is very much undoubtful and there is much exploitation within the production and industry in general. However this question seems to have a different answer depending on the fabric designer. 

Obviously it is clear Anne Quinn (a fabric designer who uses felt) isn’t exploiting anyone, she’s working from a sustainable material and finishing her products by hand, herself. Her products aren’t sold for a massive price, they are sold at a price which arguably justifies the fact that they are partly handmade and extremely time consuming to make, as well as being aesthetically very pleasing. 

It appears big brand names like Versace don’t seem to have a lot of care for where their materials come from, and don’t give off a very fair-trade image.

Versace, who’s reputation is so huge they don’t seem to be willing to do much for change – they already know their products sell and for a great deal of money and thus see no reason to change their ways regardless of carbon footprint or social inequalities.

But large designer brands aren’t always selfish, for example, Gucci have had a partnership with UNICEF since 2005, “Gucci has intensified the company’s commitment to UNICEF and to saving and improving children’s lives by expanding the annual campaign and introducing significant new initiatives to support the partnership.” In February 2008 they raised in just one night, $2.7 million together with UNICEF.

I am sure no designer’s deliberately choose to exploit anyone for labour, they are merely doing what as a company they need to do in order to gain profit and survive the market in these tough financial times.