Business of Design Week (BODW), Asia’s premier annual event on design, innovation and brands, concluded its 20^th anniversary edition which featured over 90 creative leaders from around the world in more than 30 illuminating discussions drawing on the theme ‘Design for Change’. Anchored on five main pillars: Brand Transformation, Culture and the City, Metaverse and Metaliving, New Urban Models, and Social Design Innovation, the BODW 2022 Summit highlighted inspiring reflections and future trends not to be missed by anyone from the design and business industries.

Brand Transformation

Pioneers in Digital Transformation: “It is important for brands to build connection with their clients by observing their needs and understand their opinions. It could help them to accurately develop new products and enhancing their adaptability.” — Deng Chao (Head of Product and Design, Xiaohongshu, Mainland China)

Culture & the City

Reimagining Asian Design: “To use your own culture, you have to be not ashamed of it. Embrace it, and it becomes very special.” — Dr William Lim (Managing Director, CL3 Architects Limited, Hong Kong)

Metaverse & Metaliving

Brand and Service Design in the Metaverse: “If we're just looking at the data, some say the opportunity in the metaverse is in the trillions of dollars. This trend is being driven by growing wealth and technologies. We're seeing more consumers in the metaverse, particularly the younger generation. And as a marketer, you want to be where your future consumers are going to be.” – Grace Chan (Head of Brand & Brand Partnerships, Asia Pacific, HSBC, Hong Kong)

New Urban Models

Blue Urban Models: Building Climate-Resilient Neighbourhoods: “To design for change, you need a recipe. For me, this was living on water. If we want to be ready for the future, we have to change cities from static cities to dynamic cities.” — Dr Koen Olthuis (CEO Architect, Waterstudio.NL, The Netherlands)

Social Design Innovation

Keynote: The Future of Transportation – Integrating Mobility & Community: “In my profession, I've developed some of the highest speed vehicles in the world. But I've always wondered, why don't we slow down or take a bit more time to get where we need to go?” — Paul Priestman (Chairman & Creative Director, Puli Innovations Shanghai, UK)

Continuing BODW’s grand tradition of collaboration across borders, the 2023 edition of the event will be held with the Netherlands as Partner Country. Those who have missed the BODW 2022 Summit can revisit all 34 sessions on bodw+ with a bodw+ Plus membership; in addition, a special Cantonese highlight programme, featuring exclusive interviews from the Summit, is slated to air on ViuTV Channel 99 on 7 January from 7:30pm to 8:30pm.