Designing Everyday Objects
A Collection
Ritzenhoff is a glass manufacturer who uses a Design inspired business model that reaplies the Swatch principle of creating one base product (archetypic form), and adding value through exchangeable decorations created by artist who respond to a creative brief.
Telling the Design Story asking designer and artists to deliver decoration for products in self-displaying packaging that target the gift market – allowed Ritzenhoff to generate additional revenue in the stagnant market of their core business.
A vital element of Ritzenhoff’s success has been and still is the synergy of product and packaging. With exceptional and technically advanced solutions they set new standards and inspired their customers: in many living rooms the products were displayed along with their packaging.
For the elite of international designers, creating a Ritzenhoff collection became a sporty competition. Even today, certain designs remain unforgettable – such as the “Milky Way” milk glass featuring stars, the portrait vases whose flowers serve as the hairdo for the figure, and the tea glasses with elaborate packaging that eliminated the need for additional gift wrapping. They functioned as decorative items and objects of prestige.
As only those designs created exclusively for the individual glasses made it into series production, unique design was made affordable for the common household for the first time. Mendini, Arad, Sottsass and Co. found their way into German households. The Ritzenhoff milk glasses became coveted collectors’ items.
