Context and history

Since their inception in 2016, the DesignEuropa Awards have evolved into a flagship initiative highlighting the role of design in European competitiveness - and cultural identity. Each edition showcases how registered European Union designs can protect the value of creative effort, guard commercial success, and deliver tangible benefits for society.

By way of example, the winner of the 2024 Industry category was LINET, a healthcare manufacturer from Czechia. Their Essenza 300 LT hospital bed stood out for its thoughtful design, combining patient comfort with a clean, modern aesthetic. The bed’s form and user-friendly details not only created a reassuring environment for patients but also supported the daily work of healthcare professionals. This harmonious blend of innovation and design excellence demonstrated how good design can improve both the care experience and the efficiency of hospital routines.

The diverse industries among the award winners shows how design touches upon so many areas of our lives. Remigo, a newly established company based in Slovenia, scooped the 2023 Small and Emerging Companies award with an innovative lightweight electric outboard motor, designed to address challenges including weight and manoeuvrability, corrosion, and oil leaks. In 2018, Danish company Marcus Pedersen won the award for its sleek self-service bag drop, redefining the check-in experience with intuitive design and ease.

The Awards

Previous ceremonies in Milan, Warsaw, Eindhoven, Berlin, and Riga have celebrated sixteen winners from seven European countries. Lifetime Achievement laureates such as Giorgetto Giugiaro, Hartmut Esslinger, André Ricard, Maria Benktzon, and Dieter Rams underline the Awards’ global calibre, honouring careers that have redefined design and industry. The 2025 ceremony will take place in Copenhagen’s architectural masterpiece, the Black Diamond library with a livestream accessible worldwide via the DesignEuropa social media channels.

This year’s categories include:

• Entrepreneurs and Small Companies – recognising agile and innovative smaller firms.

• Industry – honouring larger businesses that strategically embed design.

• Next Generation Design – spotlighting designers under 29, a new category introduced in 2024 when Italian yacht designer Chiara Mignani won the top prize for her eco-friendly yacht designs incorporating electric drive systems and carbon-fibre construction.

• Lifetime Achievement – the 2025 award will go to Hella Jongerius, the Dutch designer renowned for blending craftsmanship with industrial design. Founder of Jongeriuslab and based in Berlin, she has pioneered new approaches to material research and sustainability. Her work has shaped global design through collaborations with IKEA, KLM, Vitra and many others, and her pieces are held in major museum collections, from MoMA in New York to the V&A in London.

The suspense will build until 23 September, when the winners of the first three categories are revealed.

The long-term value of recognition

Awards have helped past finalists and winners build lasting commercial momentum, helping them strengthen market positions and build new collaborations. Emerging designers will find that the visibility and credibility of the Awards opens doors to investors and clients, enabling them to scale ideas into viable businesses.

Practical lessons for businesses and designers

For companies and designers, the Awards highlight three practical lessons to apply to business strategy:

1. Build in IP at the design stage!

   Creativity thrives when supported by structure. Integrating thoughtfulness about intellectual property into the design process ensures that protection enables, rather than constrains, innovation.

2. Protect, disclose, and activate

   Secure registered design rights to establish ownership and deter copycats.

   Be clear and transparent in what makes the design distinctive — this strengthens enforceability. Strong governance enables designers to experiment, scale, and commercialise with confidence.

   Do not simply “file and forget.” Active enforcement is crucial to maintaining value. Commercial benefit is derived from proactively using design rights to gain credibility, secure investment, open new markets, and through licensing deals and partnerships.

3. Demonstrate real-world impact.

   The finalists and winning designs stand out because they improve lives or operations in measurable ways – from faster hospital workflows to reduced environmental impact. Companies should track and communicate these outcomes. Evidence of impact convinces not only award juries, but also customers, investors, and partners!

The pattern is clear: an effective design strategy is about blending aesthetics and creativity with usability, sustainability, and legal certainty – and then leveraging those qualities for growth and resilience.

Looking ahead

On 23 September 2025, the winners will be unveiled in Copenhagen and via the live stream online. But the journey will not end there. Preparations are already underway for the next edition of the DesignEuropa Awards in 2026. Designers, entrepreneurs, and companies across Europe are encouraged to start preparing their entries, with the call for applications opening on the EUIPO website before the end of the year.

Becoming a finalist or winner also means joining the DesignEuropa Awards community – a growing network of professionals whose talent and experience continue to shape the future of European design.Now is the time to get ready, get involved and spread the word on the DesignEuropa Awards.

Source: https://www.euipo.europa.eu/en/news/designeuropa-awards-2025-a-celebration-of-innovative-european-design