By crossing aesthetic and functional considerations, but also industrial and commercial logic, the work of industrial designer Stéphane Pietroiusti for the Qilive brand intends to gain height in the design of a product, where the user experience at the heart of the process remains a priority.
Recently awarded the Red Dot Design Award 2021, in the household appliances category, for the connected model of the fan range he has just designed at Qilive – the brand of products of the Auchan Retail group -, Stéphane Pietroiusti is an industrial designer who considers the user at the center of development product. However, this development must also take into account the industrial feasibility, the commercial logic as well as the DNA of the brand: a subtle game of balance between design and production which is precisely the salt of industrial design.
Graduated in 2014 from the ISD (International School of Design) of Valenciennes, Stéphane Pietroiusti knows it all the more since he began his career as a designer in a global design agency by developing a holistic vision of his profession. In recent years he has worked and accumulated experience in design agencies in Germany, Austria and France, as well as for international clients as a freelance. By joining the Auchan Retail International group as an industrial designer in the Retail sector, his perception of design has broadened, allowing him to take into account the economic factors linked to the constraints of Retailing as well as the difficulty in democratizing it. The approach. “Design is too often reduced to something aesthetic, beautiful. However, design is a real strategic tool to meet new consumer demands ” , he explains.
Improved usage, cost optimization and attention to detail
Within the Qilive design unit, Stéphane Pietroiusti works with a sales team to create new products for the general public, by learning about costs and dissecting manufacturing principles to apply concepts of “design to cost” and “do better, with less”. Behind the minimalist and refined line of headphones and earphones of the brand, hides a very thorough work to improve all user constraints for this type of product. “For headphones, we found that the hold of the neck loops was poor, products that were too rigid or too flexible and above all too fragile. We therefore thought about a practical and ergonomic improvement using a foldable fabric shape memory hoop. At the same time, we have also made its use more intuitive by integrating a very ergonomic dial, allowing more intuitive control and immediate access to the voice assistant or to their phone calls ”.
For fans, the entire range of the brand has been redesigned, drawing inspiration in particular from the world of the house. “The fan range is part of a sustainable approach that is accessible to all. We have redesigned the design by improving the use and aesthetics. It stands out from the market with its sleek design inspired by the home world, product assembly / disassembly and interfaces have been simplified as much as possible to improve the user experience. The products are more robust and benefit from a three-year warranty ”.
Laurent Catala
This connected fan, designed by Stéphane Pietroiusti for Qilive, has just been awarded the Red Dot Design Award 2021, in the household appliances category.
