SKD Celebrates 25 Years of Connecting Creativity and Commerce
Southern California's Premier Industrial Design Firm Commemorates 25 Years of Building Brands Through Strategic Product Design
Marina Del Rey, CA (PRWEB) November 18, 2009
Stuart Karten Design (http://www. kartendesign. com) (SKD), Southern California’s premier industrial design firm, announces its 25th anniversary with the launch of an online retrospective (http://www. skd25years. com/) celebrating the people and events that have shaped the firm.
In 1984, Stuart Karten, a recent graduate from the Rhode Island School of Design, left Gould Medical to set up an industrial design office in his Malibu apartment. Since then, SKD has grown to become a strategic partner to leading companies in the healthcare, consumer electronics and housewares industries, known for its award-winning designs that excite users and build corporate brands.
From its studio in Marina Del Rey—a location infused with the creative combustion of nearby Venice Beach—SKD remains deeply focused on strategic product development. “We’ve succeeded by staying focused on a single guiding principle—creativity,” says Karten, who leads SKD’s staff of 25 designers, researchers and engineers. “Our process of ‘connecting creativity and commerce’ involves getting into people’s minds and finding hot points that get them excited. The empathy, imagination and open-minded exploration that define our design process are at the heart of the innovation that companies seek to differentiate their products.”
During 25 years in business, SKD has worked with industry leaders such as Samsung, Hitachi, Kawasaki, and Cardinal Health, and designed inaugural product lines for several start-up companies, including Jabra and Cardiac Science. SKD’s work has won more than 90 of industrial design’s top global awards, including the Smithsonian’s Cooper-Hewitt People’s Design Award for Starkey Laboratories’ Zon hearing aid. In 2008 Fast Company magazine has named SKD one of America’s top five “Design Factories” in its Masters of Design issue, and business consultancy Frost and Sullivan has honored SKD for Excellence in Medical Device Innovation. SKD’s work has been featured in museums worldwide, including the Museum of Modern Art and upcoming exhibitions at the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum and Israel’s new Design Museum Holon.
After 25 years, Karten believes that SKD has hit its stride. “Clients have entrusted SKD with some exciting projects, from designing hearing aids that banish a stigma to designing hard drives with a reduced environmental footprint. I’m proud of my team for rising to every challenge.”
A new feature on SKD’s web site celebrates 25 years of work and play (http://www. skd25years. com/) by recognizing the clients and employees who have contributed to the company’s success.
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