Porsche Design is an industrial design company with its own product portfolio, expressing high quality and high-tech products. For the course Graphic Language of Products, the brand of Porsche Design is analysed and several stick blenders is designed that are representatives for the brand of Porsche Design.

Porsche Design is a brand with a very various portfolio. In this project, only the electronic products are considered because they give the best representation of what Porsche Design stands for. Besides, these products are related the most with a stick blender. The Design Format Analysis below gives a clear overview of the chosen products and maps them against the most typical Porsche Design style characteristics. Most striking is the use of materials, followed by the difference in level of detail and the use of a shield-like structure in the products.

The most important design features are translated in design elements and summarized in a moodboard that shows the range from 2D to 3D design cues. First order and second order associations are derived from this moodboard with three core brand values as the result of this phase: Luxurious, Quality, and Sophisticated. Besides, the design of the mixers should not only focus on a Porsche Design appearance, but also on a Porsche Design experience when using.

The first design is based on an existing blender. Only 2D elements such as materials and graphics can be changed. Moreover, the Porsche Design logo cannot be used in the design. In the iteration, the logo was initially placed under the button. Though, Porsche Design uses only one point of interest per surface and therefore, the logo is placed in the button. The main colour, matt black, is combined with a brushed aluminium look. Also, the middle section line divides the mixer in a perfect 5:2 ratio, one of the typical aspects of Porsche Design. Although the basic form of this mixer is far from Porsche Design form language, the final concept still ‘blends’ in with their portfolio.

Next, a new concept is created in which only 3D style elements can be used. It is not allowed to use any material. The style elements as described in the analysis of this project, result in very geometric stick blenders. At first sight, this is a good sign, since the form language of Porsche Design is used in an obvious and explicit way. However, straight perpendicular planes do not have a high ergonomic value when used in a blender. Porsche Design is a luxury brand which means that not only the appearance, but also ergonomics and performance should give a luxurious experience. Therefore, the focus of the form language is broadened and handles of products such as the drill and child wagon are used for the design of the stick blender as well.

In this design, the choice is made to physically divide the face of the product and the ergonomic handle by using the iconic shield as the geometric element, and the inner part as ergonomic element. Though, this product has a main cylindrical shape, the straight elegant surface at the front of the product will give the Porsche Design appearance that is required.

The final design of the blender, as shown on the right, gives the opportunity to combine 2D and 3D design elements of the brand of Porsche Design. The result is a perfect balance between geometric and organic shapes. Therefore, the luxurious appearance and handling are achieved that were required in part one of this project. Besides, a lot of style elements are used that were described in earlier phases. Moreover, people say about this design that it looks like a high-quality and luxurious product, meaning that the translation of the brand values is done well.

For more information about this project, please contact me. This project is done in cooperation with Rick Uilkema.