Heineken® reveals a unique crowd-sourced concept nightclub at Milan Design Week

MILAN, April 18, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Milan's internationally renowned week-long design fair last night hosted the unveiling of a crowd-sourced nightclub concept from Heineken®. A yearlong design exploration project, created through the progressive minds of 19 emerging designers from across the globe, resulted in a prototype of a futuristic nightclub.

Designers from Tokyo, Sao Paulo, Milan and New York with the help 100 clubbers from more than 20 cities, who shared their social interaction insights, contributed to the pioneering concept club through a special virtual creative online hub. This allowed designers and their mentors across countries, cultures and different design disciplines to fuse together ideas with the aim to innovate nightclub design around the world.

Mark van Iterson, Head of Global Design at HEINEKEN said, "Clubs are really interesting spaces for us to explore new design ideas, as they're social, extrovert and progressive places where design really sets the scene for the nightlife experience. We set out to experiment with ways of making the night more welcoming, more memorable and igniting conversation through design concepts and innovations."

Six key areas that combine to set the right mood and energy for an enjoyable nightlife journey are at the heart of the design solutions presented in the concept club:

• Connecting: Interacting 'games' and unexpected activities take people out of their shells, encouraging social engagement and participation.
• Getting a drink: The interactive bar surface entertains, connects people in playful ways and lets the bar staff know who's next.
• Discovering: The Club is a place of exploration, packed with intriguing elements from playful interactive features to lighting that surprises people into seeing different images appear around the space. 
• Dancing: An alluring dance space invites guests to take the stage under a 3D origami star while the latest video mapping technology creates an interactive sense between the crowd and the DJ.
• Cooling down: With angular seating and other-worldly waitresses, the lounge area, calms the senses whilst inviting clubbers to express their thoughts on an origami-shaped 'wall'.
• Ending the night: When it's time to move on, a friendly concierge will guide clubbers onwards, giving directions and arranging cabs home.

Mark van Iterson is excited by the result. "We wanted to design a total environment and experience, while exploring how co-creation could push boundaries, keep surprising adult consumers and be ahead of the game."

Heineken sees this project as the first of several exploratory design initiatives, and will continue to seek fresh ideas and new perspectives in design-led experiences.                                  

Media contacts

Eric Sveum: [email protected]  t: 646.500.7759
Leigh Parrinello: [email protected] t: 646.500.7789

About Heineken
The Heineken brand, that bears the founder's family name - Heineken - is available in almost every country on the globe and is the world's most valuable international premium beer brand. Additional information is available on www.heineken.com and www.heinekeninternational.com/presscentre.

About Design for Heineken
Design (and innovation) is and has always been a key driver for the Heineken brand

• The brand now has a new, fresh and consistent identity worldwide
• The packaging redesigns go beyond the expected and continue to receive accolades
• Throughout history Heineken has had a lasting influence and changed the way people enjoy beer: It was the first to introduce green beer bottles and brought draught beer to the home through DraughtKeg.

Award Winning Design
Heineken's STR bottle won an iF award in February 2011; a Silver Lion at the 2011 Cannes Lions; a Dieline award in Chicago, silver in the packaging category at ADCN; and on 29 September, in New York, it won the Platinum Pentaward in the Beverage category. On 24 September in Tallinn, the Design Management Europe Award jury honoured Heineken in the Large Companies category for its 'superior branding strategy and touch points execution'.

SOURCE Heineken