Check it out, we (eno and enovate) are the 8th most innovative company in China according to Fast Company and their annual list of innovative companies. I remember reading this list a year ago when we started enoVate and thought to myself that these were the companies we wanted to be working with as change agents in their industry. Not only are a lot of these companies on the list again in 2010 (Huawei, Alibaba, Baudu) and we have met with a number of them this past year, but we and our sister company eno also made the list! Congrats to everyone on the team.

Last Saturday, I attended the Design for the Disadvantaged (D4D) launch event at The Factory in Shanghai. The concept is great, how can those in the design and innovation field, design useful products and services for the other 90% of the world? Specifically, how can prominent global organizations such as Microsoft, Autodesk, Frog Design, etc. align with local partners, such as NeoCha, NextStep, etc. to come together and lend their designers and design processes for the disadvantaged in China? We are big fans of the human-centered design and innovation process and think this is a great organization to follow and get involved with as they continue to seek volunteers.

The event included many from the D4D design council and management team, including our good friend Sean from NeoCha as the MC. There will be 3 workshops running concurrently over the next few months (user research, architectural design, and industrial design) and their mission is:

To leverage design and innovation talent via a user-centered approach to improve quality of life, productivity and self-improvement of disadvantaged groups in China.

They will specifically target: migrant workers, street vendors, garbage collectors, rural poor, physically challenged, and rural students.

The event was well attended and will hopefully give the organization enough momentum to really get this off the ground and develop useful and sustainable products to make the lives of those in need better. To learn more, go to their website http://d4d-china.org/. Also for more information on design for social entrepreneurship, check out the following:

Design for the other 90% (Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum)
A Better World by Design (Brown University/Rhode Island School of Design Annual Conference)
IDEO Human Centered Design Toolkit (specially-designed for NGOs and social enterprises working with communities of need in Africa, Asia, and Latin America.)

Chinese Design

今天谈论一下设计，中国风格的设计。

我们在中国，但我们还没有在优秀的中国风格设计里生活。这是个很困难的过程，让我们通过一些图片来共同体会一番吧。我会把图片按生活中的事物到中国化的设计来一个梳理，顺便发几句牢骚。

01 佛教本来是没有这个形象的弥勒佛的，佛都是无性的或双性特征的，在中国内陆，我们的祖先就创造了这个可爱的佛，这本身是一种设计，客户是所有认为原先的佛教过于严肃的人们，这种中国化相当高深，关键客户很买账，佩服呀。

02 把狮子这种古中国人没有见过的野兽描述的这么可爱活泼，我们现在又有几个人有这么强大的想像力？我们被现实震撼的太厉害了，只知道看图片，不喜欢没有插图的书，这会让我们越来越没有想像力，创造出的东西都好像有别人的影子，看看，这狮子每刀的刻画都是国人的想像力呀。

03 我相信这图很可能是日本人拍的，我更相信这里的风格是源于中国，那原创禅味谁也偷不走。

05 我常拍这些非常古老的图形和物体，我会觉得一次次被唤醒。

6 我相信东方的情怀加西方先进的图形表述会让古老的中国更加的酷。

8 那个刚刚逝去的时代带给我们很多的欢乐，但是现在看来，我们对传统的感觉其实有很多都断了层。

11 为什么这些图形能唤醒我们的历史记忆，能让我们感慨，难道只是因为我们熟悉？

12 西方人的意识中国龙的外表：西方的龙都是邪恶的化身，看，这条龙看起来够狠够坏了吧，所以这是按西方人理解的东方龙，我在想：我们会不会也有这么多对西方事物的误读呢？其实误读也是很有意思的事，至少我们自己没见过这样精神的龙。

14 文字和图形有这么多中国的基因，用好可是非常高难度，看看上面的设计，应该很容易感觉到他们鲜活的DNA吧！

15 我不知道他要表达什么，可能只是这个姿势适合放两吧枪吧，很多设计都没想法只是凑巧，但为了好像有想法，会有很多臆造的解释诞生，我们最好只相信自己的知觉。

16 其实这画非常的西化，至少技法是这样。不知道为什么，还是很浓的中国味道。

17 等到我们周围的设计都像这个图上这么生动的时候，我们的整体设计力量就非常强大了，他没有作的有多么的好，我只是感觉到设计者在用心做事，仅此而已，足以感动大家。

18 这是个强大的设计，骨子里那么的中国！

eno, our lifestyle brand here in China, has been fielding requests from both local and international brands looking for insights into the youth market that can lead to product design innovation. The most forward thinking and innovative are looking to turn out new products and better customer experiences throughout China. As we started listening more and more to what these brands were saying this got us thinking a bit. Since the China youth market is very fickle, with tastes changing at lighting speeds and other trends lasting longer then one could ever have predicted, many brands are struggling to gain the proper insights. In addition, many are having trouble localizing and executing their designs. Be it a brand creating new lifestyle shoes, or a consumer products company trying to better modernize their packaging to improve their brand positioning with China’s youth; they are seeking young and creative talent to help navigate the marketplace.

This, along with the desire to better inform our eno brand, led to the development of enoVate. An innovation agency within the bowels of eno. Actually, we are situated in the center of our giant bullpen of an office. We pump eno and our enoVate clients with knowledge about the latest youth insights, styles, and ideas surrounding china. In addition, we have develop our own innovation process to help brands create new products and service.

You can read more about our innovation process and view case studies at enovatechina.com but the in short, our goal is to not only provide insights but also to provide the design, development, and execution. Great ideas can die easily in China especially during the execution phase. We believe if you focus on great design across the entire innovation lifestyle and supply chain, you can disrupt markets.

Each of us here at enoVate has a passion and perspective on what we are trying to do. This will be the platform to share these ideas. I personally am passionate about how the many facets of design can better our daily lives and experiences. I look forward to sharing some of these ideas and also gaining your perspective.

[a johnwrede production]

However, many Chinese companies are relying on innovative ideas and unique design thinking to make their brands stand out in China and on the world stage. We at enoVate want to examine these brands and acknowledge the innovative steps being taken to improve their brands.

The first company in our innovation series is Li Ning. Li Ning is at an awkward stage in their brand development and positioning. In the Chinese market, where they do 99% of their business, they trail global sportswear giants, Nike and Adidas. Like many famous international brands in China (McDonald’s, Kraft Foods, Amway) Nike and Adidas have established their international image and brand philosophy within the minds of Chinese consumers. This translates well to Chinese consumers of whom many prefer more “global brands” to local Chinese brands.

It is a commonly held perception that Li Ning views Nike as the cooler, more mature older brother in the sportswear scene. Similar logos and slogans play into this view as well. In a BusinessWeek report on Li Ning, Abel Wu, head of Li Ning’s footwear division brings to the table this thought: “We don’t have as strong as brand as Nike and Adidas [so] our thinking is that as a local brand, we need to have an international image.”

But how is Li Ning trying to accomplish this?

Li Ning has turned its sights to the mecca for creative sportswear art and design: Portland, Oregon. Located in a two-story building in Portland’s Pearl District, Li Ning’s creative Portland headquarters are headed by Alan Hardy, a former senior designer at Nike and design director at Converse, Inc (now under the Nike umbrella). By positioning themselves in Portland, Oregon, Li Ning is giving itself access to innovative companies and designers that it might not have found in China.

Li Ning feels that solidifying a global image will help it’s brand in China.  The 2008 Beijing Olympics propelled Li Ning into the global sportswear vernacular. But Li Ning is taking further steps in this direction by partnering with leading global artists to display innovative product and design campaigns. Famous graphic designer KAWS designed a nifty Olympic Track Jacket and another famed graphic designer James Jarvis held a Li Ning sponsored event in Beijing showcasing his distinct designs. Collaborations of this sort mark Li Ning’s entrance into a more fashion conscious “Hypebeast” type market.

Li Ning x KAWS

Li Ning x Jim Jarvis
Li Ning is also embracing local creative Chinese design teams for innovation and product designs. Local graphic design agency Jellymon has recently been working with Li Ning on various graphic design and photography projects displaying hip, new youth targeted products made by Li Ning. Our streetwear and youth lifestyle brand eno is also brainstorming and developing innovative concepts to help Li Ning connect with a fashion forward youth audience. And recently, to celebrate Earth Day, Li Ning teamed up with renowned Hong Kong illustrator and toy designer Tim Tsui and Hong Kong based Milk Magazine to produce large, life-like statues made entirely from wood.

Li Ning x Tim Tsui x Milk Magazine

Li Ning x Jellymon

All of these collaborations display innovative approaches to attracting youth markets to Li Ning. We applaud innovation at enoVate and hope Li Ning continues with their innovative ways.

[a Joey Dembs x enoVate production]