Hong Kong Design Centre's 'Business of Design Week 2025' Returns in December with Global Design and Business Leaders on 'Curiosity Ignites Design Innovation'
Early Bird Tickets Now on Sale
HONG KONG, Sept. 11, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Organised by the Hong Kong Design Centre (HKDC), co-organised by the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC), and lead sponsored by the Cultural and Creative Industries Development Agency (CCIDA) under the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, the Business of Design Week 2025 (BODW 2025), Asia's premier annual event on design, innovation and brands, will be held from 1 to 6 December 2025 under the theme 'Curiosity Ignites Design Innovation'. The BODW 2025 Summit, taking place from 3 to 5 December at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre (HKCEC), will gather over 50 renowned creative leaders, entrepreneurs and policymakers from more than 10 countries and regions to participate in more than 40 sessions including keynote speeches, panels, networking and exhibitions. Visionary design masters and business innovators will share insights on how curiosity drives creativity and fuels design and innovation, inspiring global audience with its transformative potential. AI-empowered simultaneous interpretation services in multiple languages including English, Putonghua, Cantonese and Italian will be provided at the Summit to facilitate global audiences.
HKDC is excited to welcome Italy as the Partner Country for BODW 2025 and inviting Italian inspiration to pollinate Hong Kong's design landscape, which has historically thrived on a blend of Eastern wisdom with Western influence. Curiosity is a spirit that has long fuelled Italian innovation, prevalent across their arts, architecture, fashion and manufacturing, and in the 'Made in Italy' standard of long-standing design excellence. Through facilitating year-round collaborations, BODW endeavours to serve as a platform to showcase the dynamic creative exchanges between Hong Kong, Italy and Asia.
Mr Carmelo Ficarra, Consul General of Italy in Hong Kong and Macau, stated, 'It is with great honour that we announce our partnership with HKDC as Partner Country for BODW 2025. This is a marvellously impactful collaboration that will spotlight Italian culture, creativity and design legacy on a global stage, allowing Hong Kong and Italy to collaborate across artistic disciplines and innovate to unprecedented heights. This partnership showcases the inimitable role of design in promoting international cultural exchange and future-ready innovation. We are very excited to inspire dialogue for new modes of creativity and design thinking within the global design community at large.'
Mr Steve Leung, Vice Chairman of HKDC, stated, 'We are extremely grateful to Italy for serving as the Partner Country for this year's BODW. Italy's rich design tradition and vibrant creative energy beautifully complement Hong Kong's bold spirit of innovation and experimentation in design. We look forward to witnessing the dialogue between the two cultures during the Summit, sparking new ideas and innovations to the benefit of creative professionals, businesses, and society.'
Across its 3-day programme, the BODW 2025 Summit is upgraded to a 'dual track' model at HKCEC, featuring the Main Stage and Future Lab. The Main Stage serves as the centrepiece of the event and will feature world-class speakers and high-level discussions, showcasing global visionaries shaping industries and driving innovation such as Dr Carlo Ratti, Co-founder of CRA - CARLO RATTI ASSOCIATI and Angelica Visconti, Vice Chairman of Ferragamo. Concurrently, the Future Lab will serve as a more intimate setting for knowledge exchange and business networking. It facilitates dialogues and exchanges between international speakers, the local design community and audience, all with the aim of opening up limitless business opportunities.
Commencing HKDC's year-long collaboration with Partner Country Italy was the 'Italian Design Day 2025' event that took place back in February at the DX design hub, co-hosted by the Consulate General of Italy in Hong Kong and Macau, HKDC, and the Hong Kong Polytechnic University. One of the highlights was a talk on 'Curiosity is evolution' delivered by the renowned Italian architect and designer Michele De Lucchi, Founder of AMDL CIRCLE. Speaking to students and members of the public, he inspired audiences to adopt a curious mindset in exploring new design horizons.
Furthermore, an extension of BODW's mission and theme will be brought to life via the bodw+ Series programmes (formerly known as Knowledge of Design Week) organised by HKDC, together with Hong Kong Design Institute and The Hong Kong Polytechnic University School of Design as co-organisers, and CCIDA as the Lead Sponsor, and different local design associations for mutual benefits. Diving deep into 'Curiosity', a series of one-day programme comprising forums, workshops and networking activities will stimulate knowledge exchange and cultural dialogue among creative leaders, business representatives, educators and students from around the world.
The BODW 2025 Summit will centre around the six Key Pillars including Urban Visions, Crafted Living, Innovating with AI & Tech, Mobility Revolution, Luxury Reimagined, and Cultural Innovation & Creativity. Highlighted speakers include:
- Dr Carlo Ratti, Co-founder of CRA - CARLO RATTI ASSOCIATI (Italy)
- Michele De Lucchi, Founder of AMDL CIRCLE (Italy)
- Mario Cucinella, Architect & Founder of MCA - Mario Cucinella Architects (Italy)
- Angelica Visconti, Vice Chairman of Ferragamo (Italy)
- Patricia Viel, Architect & Co-founder of ACPV ARCHITECTS Antonio Citterio Patricia Viel (Italy)
- Ole Scheeren, Founder & Chief Designer of Büro Ole Scheeren (Germany)
- Tim Marlow, Chief Executive & Director of the Design Museum (UK)
- Nicolas François Luchsinger, CEO of Buccellati Holding Italia S.p.A. (Italy)
- Matteo Battiston, Chief Design Officer of EssilorLuxottica (Italy)
- Tina Norden, Principal & Partner of Conran and Partners (UK)
- Dr Andrea Ferraresi, Strategy & Centro Stile Director of Ducati Motor Holding (Italy)
BODW 2025 tickets are now on sale. From now to 12 October, enjoy the 70% off Early Bird discount when you purchase tickets for a 3-Day Pass at HK$799. Tickets include:
- 3-day Summit access (3 to 5 December 2025)
- In-person networking opportunities with global speakers
- Unlimited access to on-demand content from BODW 2025 on bodw+ platform
- Complimentary bodw+ Plus membership (1-year)
For more details on ticketing and the event, please visit https://2025.bodw.com/en.
Book the BODW 2025 tickets now and witness the power of curiosity! Stay updated by following bodw+ on: Facebook (bodw+), Instagram (@bodwplus), X (@bodwplus), LinkedIn (bodw+) and YouTube (bodw+).
About Hong Kong Design Centre (HKDC) (www.hkdesigncentre.org)
Hong Kong Design Centre is a strategic partner of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region in leveraging the city's East-meets-West advantage to create value from design.
To achieve our goals, we:
- Cultivate a design culture
- Bridge stakeholders to opportunities that unleash the value of design
- Promote excellence in various design disciplines
About Consulate General of Italy in Hong Kong and Macau (conshongkong.esteri.it)
The Consulate General of Italy in Hong Kong and Macau represents Italy and the Italian Government in the two Special Administrative Regions of Hong Kong and Macau. The activity of the Consulate General focuses on consular services provided to the Italian nationals formally resident in Hong Kong or in Macau as well as to the local and international community (mainly for visa services). The Consulate General of Italy in Hong Kong and Macau contribute to the implementation of the initiatives to promote Italy in Hong Kong and Macau, especially cultural activities, together with the Italian Cultural Institute, and business and trade promotion together with the Italian Trade Commission. From 1st of September 2022, the Consul General of Italy in Hong Kong and Macau is Mr. Carmelo Ficarra. More information on the Consulate General of Italy in Hong Kong and Macau and its activities are available on the website https://conshongkong.esteri.it/it/ and on social profiles IG (@italyinhongkong) X (@italyinhongkong) and FB (@italyinhongkong).
About Business of Design Week (BODW) (https://2025.bodw.com/en)
Business of Design Week (BODW), Asia's premier annual event on design, innovation and brands since 2002, is organised by Hong Kong Design Centre and gathers some of the world's foremost design masters, brand leaders and entrepreneurs from Hong Kong as well as overseas, driving discourse on the value of design and innovation to inspire global audiences and explore new business opportunities.
About Cultural and Creative Industries Development Agency (CCIDAHK) (www.ccidahk.gov.hk)
The Cultural and Creative Industries Development Agency (CCIDA) established in June 2024, formerly known as Create Hong Kong (CreateHK), is a dedicated office set up by the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR Government) under the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau to provide one-stop services and support to the cultural and creative industries with a mission to foster a conducive environment in Hong Kong to facilitate the development of arts, culture and creative sectors as industries. Its strategic foci are nurturing talent and facilitating start-ups, exploring markets, promoting cross-sectoral and cross-genre collaboration, promoting the development of arts, culture and creative sectors as industries under the industry-oriented principle, and promoting Hong Kong as Asia's creative capital and fostering a creative atmosphere in the community to implement Hong Kong's positioning as the East-meets-West centre for international cultural exchange under the National 14th Five-Year Plan.
Disclaimer: The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region provides funding support to the project only, and does not otherwise take part in the project. Any opinions, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in these materials/events (or by members of the project team) are those of the project organisers only and do not reflect the views of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau, the Cultural and Creative Industries Development Agency, the CreateSmart Initiative Secretariat or the CreateSmart Initiative Vetting Committee.
SOURCE Hong Kong Design Center
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