D’art Design Gruppe

In the MARTOR WORLD, the character of the Solingen-based knife manufacturer can be experienced in the truest sense of the word. The D'art Design Group, which specialises in staging brands and has offices in Berlin, Neuss and Seoul, not only places the premium products in the right light; the agency also conveys the company’s values, innovative spirit and openness as a holistic customer experience.

Interview with D’art Design Gruppe

Red Dot: The MARTOR WORLD presents products, but it also provides insights into the company. Is this transparency essential for trust in a brand today?
D’art Design Gruppe: The MARTOR WORLD welcomes customers with the expression “Knife to meet you”. This humorous twist on the English expression “Nice to meet you” also symbolises the customer proximity that is particularly important here. At its headquarters in Solingen, the company presents itself as authentic and approachable, while also demonstrating its overall performance capability and the people behind it. Indeed, at MARTOR a brand is not just a product, but the totality of lived values, a clear positioning and a strong identity.

Which element of the showroom was the most complex to realise?
There is an enormous depth of detail in content, design and construction in all areas. However, the material art boards were particularly special, as they certainly provided the most “creative fun”. Everyday packaging materials such as foam, adhesive tape and film were used to create an impressive and surprising spatial installation. The individual cutting noises for the sound showers were specially produced, and our designers even lent a hand with some of the frames in the workshop.

Did other possible uses of the showroom also have to be considered?
The MARTOR WORLD is a customer centre that combines the showroom with a multifunctional training area. This is where individual and team training sessions take place, as well as presentations and webinars, and even larger events. A specially defined trend area enables the rapid communication of innovative products and relevant topics in temporary exhibitions. The result is a lively, versatile brand space.

For such an assignment, you probably delved deep into the company yourself. Did you also discover aspects that the customer hadn’t even considered?
The collaboration between like-minded people was a complete success right from the start. The requirement for a predominantly analogue, physical design, in which digital staging was only used selectively, was immediately met with great approval by us designers. Both content-related and creative approaches were quickly developed in intensive workshops. We were certainly able to surprise everyone with the idea of the unusual material art boards that were immediately met with great enthusiasm at MARTOR.