Winner in the category Biophilic and in the category Surfaces & Finishes with the project The Meat & Wine Co. Safari, Circular Quay, Sydney – Australia
1. Can you tell us more about your Design Firm?
COOOP is a multidisciplinary independently owned design studio. We are headquartered in Sydney Australia with satellite offices in Dubai and the Netherlands.
The hospitality industry faces challenges in optimizing space design to enhance customer engagement and maximize footfall. Traditional design methods often overlook the scientific principles of predictive desired behavioural patterns, resulting in suboptimal visitor experiences. COOOP addresses this gap by leveraging science-driven strategies in interior design for restaurants, bars, and hotels, aiming to deliver strategic solutions that enhance engagement and ensure maximum ROI for
C-suite executives.
2. What does “design” mean to you?
The exact meaning of the word design, depends on the context and can also mean a variety of different things. There are many different forms of design, however, every type of design exists to solve problems. In order to solve problems, one must first be able to see it and in order to see it, one must be able to collect all the data around it. That’s when real problem solving and thus real design starts. It’s neither art nor science, but probably rather a careful blend of the two.
“Design is a solution to a problem. Art is a question to a problem.” John Maeda.
However unlike art design does not have to be original. Designers are not inventors. They are problem solvers and for every problem, there are often many tried and tested solutions in all categories of design. It is true that design can often be dressed in a fashion that has wider or less visual or commercial appeal. This is as true for furniture, architecture, a space, and object as it is for a user interface.
Within understanding this then of course one must also be 100% mindful of the fact that the way humans behave can very seldom be altered and that the best design solutions are most often found in designing for how they behave naturally and instinctively within a specific context. Designing for Human behaviour is therefore almost always better than designing for behavioural change.
3. Can you describe your design style and its main characteristics?
We would like to think that we do not have a style but its true that some signature of designers sit in all their designs. That said, we never set out though with any style in mind. We never start with any kind of pre-conceived visual pattern. In fact our approach is always that design comes last. Identifying the problems to be solved always comes first and in most cases the brief to a specific project always needs extensive interrogation so as to establish its actual legitimacy.
4. As the winner of the FoodInSpace Design Awards 2024, what does receiving this award mean to you, your company and your team?
Validation is important as no matter how loud and clear one may think one is with respect to one’s unique selling proposition and all the reasons one feels that one’s company is the obvious choice, competion winning is always louder. It travels further and lands harder. So to this end we are exceptionally grateful to have won these 2 categories, knowing that there were over 250 project submissions for the competition. It’s a big achievement also after seeing the quality of the projects submitted during the awards. Thank you very much for this amazing honour.
5. What was the biggest challenge for your winning project/projects?
Local bylaws and the approval s we needed from the owner of the building. As this project broke many conventions within the design it took a tremendous amount of time and effort to convince all the gate keepers to let us through.
6. In an increasingly global world, how do you balance local identity with international trends in your design work?
Trends are dangerous as they are fleeting and fickle. Their shelve lives are unpredictable. To this end our designs try to ignore trends as far as we can. We never follow popular colours, tones or finishes as we believe that following these narrows the chances of our clients to lead, be unique and get the maximum return on their investments.
7. Are there any other topics you would like to talk about that were not addressed in these questions?
Thank you for inviting and including Roberto ZAMBRI and on one the judges this year in the awards. This is a big accolade for us as company for also being recognised of the people we have part of our business.
Thank you for the interview!
Find out more about COOOP. and its projects!
