Bangkok，February 6, 2023（AseanAll）— The Department of International Trade Promotion (DITP)under the Ministry of Commerce of Thailand organizes the Design Excellence Award 2023 contest with the concept of “Brave The Wave of Creation” to show off the Thai designs with international potential and their creativity that drives the national economy and follows megatrends.
According to NNT （National News Bureau of Thailand）, Ekachat Seetavorarat, Deputy Director-General of the Department of International Trade Promotion (DITP) , told a press conference that “The Design Excellence Award or DEmark Award is one of the important projects of the department to raise the awareness among Thai business operators that designs can increase the value of products and services and that Thai identities can be applied with the help of innovations and technologies to create the strengths of products and business, meet the market demand that is based on megatrends and the next normal and respond to the new economic era. This complies with the strategies of market-driven production and the development of Thai business operators’ competitive edge as instructed by Thai Deputy Prime Minister and Commerce Minister Jurin Laksanawisit. Implementing the strategies, the DITP is dedicated to turning the creative industry, especially design, into a powerful engine to drive the Thai economy, support export and enhance the international competitiveness of Thai business operators.”
The DEmark Award contest has been organized since 2008 and marks its 16th anniversary this year. The DEmark Award has been presented to 1,081 entries and 128 entries of them have also won the Prime Minister’s Award in its Best Design category. DEmark Award-winning designs have built up positive reputations for Thailand. For example, 503 DEmark Award winners also received the Good Design Award (G Mark) in Japan. The DEmark Award has enjoyed great contributions from Japan Institute of Design Promotion (JDP) which has sent experts from the internationally recognized G Mark Award to join DEmark judging panels and also invited DEmark Award winners to take part in the G Mark contest in Japan. In addition, the Department of International Trade Promotion has cooperated with the organizers of other international design contests including the Golden Pin Design Award of Taiwan and the Hong Kong Smart Design Awards of Hong Kong.
On the occasion of the 16th anniversary of the DEmark Award, the department renamed the Thai name of the award so that it covers not only product designs but also design services including interior, graphic and digital designs. This year the department also changed judging criteria to respond to the trend of sustainability-oriented designs and introduced a new award category – covering digital systems, digital services, digital platforms, online interface designs, apps for smartphones and tablets and websites – to follow the new trend of businesses applying designs and technologies to create the innovative digital services that solve users’ problems and create new business opportunities.
Moreover, the department improved judging criteria to promote BCG products and encourage designers to work toward Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and respond to the elements of sustainable development. In 2023, the department expects at least 600 entries and 80 award winners.
The DEmark Award 2023 consists of 7 categories:
(1) furniture (industrial processes and industrial crafts)
(2) lifestyle and fashion products (gifts and decorative items, household items, creative and innovative fashion, apparel, jewelry, textiles etc)
(3) industrial and digital products (home appliances, equipment and facilities for offices, digital appliances, equipment, IoT etc)
(4) packaging designs
(5) graphic designs (fonts, graphics on surface, digital media, identity designs, illustrations, characters and digital arts)
(6) interior decoration (concerning hotel, restaurant, caf?, retail shop, co-working space and condominium projects)
(7) the new category of digitalsystems, digital services, digital platforms, online interface designs, apps for smartphones and tablets and websites).
This year the organizer of the DEmark Award focuses on products and services in value-added agriculture which include processed farm products (herbal products and cosmetics), halal products, health products and biotechnology-based foods with packaging and graphic designs; future industries and services such as modern cars, medical instruments and technologies for aging societies, smart electronics and agricultural machines; furniture, lifestyle and fashion products for the New Normal; products for niche markets including work from home/work from anywhere products; BCG products; design service business such as graphic designs, illustrations, cartoon characters and digital arts; the interior designs of hotels, restaurants, caf?s, shops, co-working spaces and condominiums; and the designs of digital systems and digital platforms.
In 2022, the value of exports by DEmark award winners was estimated at 9.83 billion baht (based on exports by the 43 exporters who won the DEmark Award from 2019 to 2022), up by 10% from the value in the previous year (8.87 billion baht in 2021). The DEmark Award is the pride of the public and private sectors that have joined forces to support the businesses that are driven by designs and innovations in progressing continuously and creating economic value in a sustainable manner.
In a press conference on the DEmark Award, there was a discussion on “Brave The Wave of Creation” by DEmark award judges and DEmark award winners in many categories. They included Prathan Theerathada, Editor-in-Chief of Art4D Magazine and a DEmark Award judge, Niwat Aunprueng, Senior Partner of PIA Interior Company and the DEmark “Interior Design” Award winner who designed the Sirimahannop boat, Ankul Assavaviboonpan from Ankul Design who designed the Key Visual DEmark 2023, and Nutjarus Eangmahassakul, Design Director of Studio Dialogue and the DEmark “Graphic Design” Award winner. They shared tips on designs and contestants’ preparation for the contest in 2023.
The DEmark Award 2023 welcomes entries until May 3, 2023. All entries will be exhibited at the ICONSIAM shopping center in June 2023 and award winners will be announced in July. Considerable privileges await award-winning products. They can use the DEmark logo for their promotions free of charge and enter the second round of the G Mark Award contest in Japan. The entries that win the G Mark Award will take part in the Good Design Exhibition 2023 in Japan in October 2023. DEmark Award winners will also be promoted for their images and trade opportunities at the world’s major design forums including the Milan Design Week in Italy, the Maison & Objet Paris in France and the Creative Expo in Taiwan.
The Department International Trade Promotion under the Ministry of Commerce invites Thai business operators to enter the DEmark Award contest to heighten the awareness of their products and services for business benefits. Award winners will take great pride and be models for the development of product designs in the country. Designers, manufacturers, business operators and exporters who are interested in the DEmark Award 2023 contest can register for the participation in the contest free of charge via https://demarkaward.net/ until May 3, 2023. For more information, please contact the Thailand Office of Innovation and Value Creation under the Department of International Trade Promotion at tel. 1169 and email address: [email protected]
