Success by design

In fact the names of these appealing young designers are not Hans but Horst, and not Franz but Konstantin. I had the opportunity to get to know them last year at the Milan furniture fair as two students of interior design at the Academy of Visual Arts in Munich. At the Satellite they had displayed an innovative arc lamp and a series of prototypes for a beautiful standard lamp called 'Three'. This was also what prompted the invitation to the ICFF in New York and their trip across the Atlantic.

In other words, a classic success story. For their very first major presentation at Satellite 2007 they received a special award for their 'Troja' arc lamp. At the following ICFF in New York they attracted the interest of 'Bernhardt Design, one of the largest US furniture manufacturers, and were promptly given a commission to design a collection specially for the company. "They are such amazing young designers and so talented, that I gave them an entirely free hand to design what they wanted", says Bernhardt's creative director Jerry Helling. "Their work is all about simplicity and purity, and that is what we strive for". The result was a group of stools and benches entitled 'Cycle', enabling Horst Wittmann and Konstantin Landuris early entry to a distinguished list of names such as Ross Lovegrove, Pearson Lloyd and Arik Levy, who have all already worked for the American giant.

On top of all this the pair's success then spread back to Europe, because the partnership with the Danish manufacturer 'Danerka' has in turn enabled 'Bernhardt Design' to gain a foothold in Europe with its current European collection 'Global Edition'.