Marcel Wanders interview

WORDS Nadine Botha

The idiosyncratic Dutch brand Moooi recently appointed Edge Interiors as its South African representative. VISI went right to the top of the food chain and chatted to Marcel Wanders about what’s happening with Moooi, Delft and his own design.

VISI: Earlier this year, you and Casper Vissers rebought the controlling stake in Moooi after founding the company together in 2001.

Marcel: Yes, we bought back a percentage of the shares so that Casper and I are now 75% owners of Moooi, which we are very happy about. We have a great partner in B&B Italia and are grateful that they are willing to stay with us and build the future of Moooi. There was a fourth partner, who did a lot of great things, but the synergy was finished. It was the right moment for us to make a little step. Casper and I really believe in the future of Moooi, and want to dedicate our lives to it for the future.

What is your future vision for Moooi?

To be a company that is very well organised compared to other companies in the creative world. So we have been working hard on all the service levels and quality. Working at the systems level of the business is very important in a market that is so under pressure and has to deliver top quality and service.

Now is also the time to relook at our design identity and find ways to keep pushing the market with brilliant ideas. We will continue to push upholstered and furniture products, as well as lighting. With all the new technology, there is potential for a lot of improvement and innovation to be done in terms of lighting. We have been spending a lot of our time, energy and creativity on new types of LED lighting, and want to be a leader on this front, from an ecological perspective too.

This will make us a company that is a serious player in the design world, not only from a business perspective but also in terms of creativity – by still working with young designers as we always have, and leading when it comes to innovative design.

So why the shift to Edge Interiors in South Africa?

I am friends with the people at Edge Interiors and am very happy with the shift. It is a pity that we have to leave another company that did everything to their best knowledge. Sometimes you have to make new friends and say goodbye to old friends. We can look back on a beautiful period we had together, but hope that we do even better with our new partners.

Being Dutch, South Africa is a very special market for us and we have a lot of friends there too. There is the historical connection between the Dutch and South Africa, with its ups and downs. However there is also the connection now in terms of being in the same time zone and also having opposite but complementary climates. So it has become a positive connection.

I visit the country often myself, I love it. Design Indaba has made a fantastic contribution to the mentality and idea of design in the country. The country is important to us and we’re glad to have a good position.

What has your experience of South Africa been?

I love South Africa. It is a magnificent country and Cape Town is a wonderful city.

The connection between Dutch and South African design also comes through in the recent upsurge in Delft motifs. You have personally also done a lot of Delft work.

When it comes to design, I like to give my audience something of myself. I have a lot to give of myself, but one of these things is my cultural background and heritage. So I love to play with Dutch elements and then to work with them in a contemporary way. It is design made today by a new generation but based on an existing heritage. Delft blue is an important component for me and we have made a few fantastic collections for Moooi.

Yes, you launched the Delft Jumpers at London Design Week. Tell us about those.

It’s a sofa with a pillow using Delft patterns, which I think is fun because Delft is always hard and breakable, but a pillow is soft.

In terms of your Marcel Wanders work, you seem to be doing more and more mass-produced work with large brands such as KLM and Marks&Spencers.

As a designer I think we have the responsibility to not only work for the rich, but also not only work for the poor. We have to work for people and take our responsibilities there. To make an expensive or an economical piece doesn’t make a difference to the values I have as a designer, which will always be in the object. My designs will always be lighthearted, good quality, interesting conceptually, and have a beautiful way of respecting the past and the future.

What’s fun is the photos we do in the studio where we put all the pieces together regardless of their cost and then you can really see how the designs are all from one world. The price is the last thing that defines the piece; the soul of the piece is from the same family. I always advise people to have all these pieces and mix them.