Electrolux recently launched its built-in kitchen appliances range in India which would be available through their distributors Grandeur Interiors (New Delhi) and Nestlinks Home Appliances (Banglaore). Kitchen design is now a revolutionary gather of ideas from across the world. To cater to Indians wanting to do up their spaces, Electrolux offers appliances of international acclaim, and in its ingenious link-up with distributors provides design ideas too. A buyer can visualise the products and draw up a plan. Nestlinks has a design team for helping such people.
Recently, Laura Ashton (president, Electrolux Major Appliances-India) and Pernilla Johansson (design director, Electrolux, Asia Pacific) were in India to see their range of integrated cooking and laundry appliances take off, and urge Indian designers to share international trends.
Says Laura Ashton, “We think not only of appliances, but kitchen in entirety while going through a product design. Electrolux also brings in newer ideas for outdoor/barbecue and talks of design perspectives where laundry is snugly fitted into kitchen modulars.”
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Laura explains the company's design features that are environment specific. “Electrolux high-powered extraction hoods can neatly draw the fumes emanating from Indian masalas, while our tropicalised refrigerators have compressors to handle high temperatures.”
From a company that started off with vacuum cleaners in 1919 in Sweden, today, Electrolux has a product-design director who works with a gamut of designers representing food cultures in Latin America, the U.S., Italy, Australia, Singapore and the Asia Pacific.
Milan's Eurocucina (world-renowned kitchen fair) saw Electrolux celebrating its 90{+t}{+h} year last year. Design expert
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Question:Comment on the indoor and outdoor aesthetics of kitchen appliances in terms of ergonomics and design décor…
Pernilla: The strongest driver for today's kitchen design is open-planning and integration. The modern kitchen is designed to blend with our new living space, where we often aspire for clean, minimalistic and uncluttered aesthetics. The built-in kitchen is taking on a new meaning with new hide-away features, using hi-tech motorised cabinets, low-tech sliders and simple covers.
Lights are another major trend, driven by the explosion of LED-based light source. The light solutions are functional, ambient, smart, and are seen in built-in drawers, cabinets and countertops. Overall, we can see a strong focus on craftsmanship, quality of material and attention to detail. The horizontal lines play a major role and to perfectly balance the kitchen design you need to start by selecting the appliances.
Black glass is coming in strongly as it has great ‘hiding power' and blends perfectly with any modern kitchen interior. Electrolux recently launched the Ebony collection, the versatility of black glass allows the collection to blend seamlessly with dark stone surfaces and contrast brilliantly with colours, white and stainless steel.
The outdoor space is taking on a new shape through the seamless integration between inside and outside. The barbecue is becoming an integrated part of the outdoor kitchen, used both for socialising and for keeping odour out of the house.
Electrolux ENV Barbecue was launched in Australia last year and was designed to put the chef in the centre of attention. Through our research we had observed how often the chef was left with little opportunity to socialise, spending most of the time with his back to the party. By simply lowering the hood, adding good quality wheels and extended side tables, we have created a different solution that adds a wow to any modern outdoor space.
Your interaction with the 140-member design team on aesthetics of products, user interface and product graphics…
Electrolux Global Design organisation, a team of 140 multifunctional multicultural professionals, works to translate the global brand strategy into the different regions. Teams are based in six locations, allowing regional consumer insight to be used throughout the product development process.
It's all about defining the relevant functionality that solves the problem and ensures that it's easy for the consumer to carry out the task. It's also about ensuring that the user is not only satisfied but also delighted.
(080-65365111 / 222 – info@nestlinks.com)