Business of Design Week 2026 connects design, brands and cross-cultural exchange
With Switzerland as Partner Country, the Hong Kong event brings together more than 50 creative and business leaders to explore architecture, brand transformation, craftsmanship and longevity under the theme “Design in Dialogue: Connect + Transform”.
Business of Design Week 2026 will take place in Hong Kong from November 16 to 21, with its flagship summit running from November 18 to 20 at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre. Organised by Hong Kong Design Centre and co-organised by the Hong Kong Trade Development Council, the event brings together designers, architects, entrepreneurs and brand leaders to examine how design contributes to business and society.
This year’s theme, “Design in Dialogue: Connect + Transform”, places exchange across disciplines and cultures at the centre of the programme. Switzerland joins as Partner Country, contributing perspectives on precision craftsmanship, sustainable architecture, technological innovation and the evolution of brands. More than 50 speakers will participate in a summit structured around six areas: spaces, regenerative culture and curation, brand transformation, luxury and artisanal innovation, longevity and vitality, and transmedia and education.
Business of Design Week 2026 – Highlights:
Architecture, landscape and public value
The architecture programme examines how buildings and landscapes respond to their surroundings and the communities that use them. Wim Walschap, CEO and Senior Partner at Herzog & de Meuron, will discuss dialogue as part of the studio’s design approach. Drawing on projects including M+ and Tai Kwun in Hong Kong, his contribution will address adaptive reuse, local context and architecture’s capacity to create lasting public value.
Landscape architect Enzo Enea will explore connections between nature, architecture and well-being. His work includes Central Crossing, a mixed-use development in Hong Kong created in collaboration with Foster + Partners.
Emily Yan, Director of Snøhetta’s Hong Kong studio for the Asia region, will bring a complementary perspective through the practice’s concept of generosity. Referencing projects including AIRSIDE and the Shanghai Grand Opera House, she will examine how spaces can contribute to public life while addressing environmental responsibilities.
How brands evolve through design
Brand transformation forms another substantial strand of the summit, connecting product development with identity, communication and customer experience. Thilo Brunner, Chief Design Officer at On, will discuss the relationship between craft and technological development across sportswear, retail environments and collaborations. His presentation will draw on technologies including CloudTec, Speedboard and the LightSpray spray-on upper.
Suyong Joh, founder of Magazine B, and Janine Weiz-Bühler, Navigator / CEO of FREITAG, will examine how brands adapt to changing conditions while maintaining their core values. Chef Grégoire Michaud will offer a hospitality perspective through Bakehouse, exploring how baking traditions, visual identity and storytelling contribute to a neighbourhood business. The programme also includes representatives from Vitra and Vacheron Constantin, extending the discussion across furniture and watchmaking.
Materials, experiences and longer lives
Craftsmanship and material experimentation will feature through speakers including Aurel Aebi, co-founder of atelier oï. His contribution will explore the studio’s hands-on approach to materials and the connections between traditional skills, product development and spatial design. Markus Venzin, CEO of EHL Group, will discuss how hospitality education intersects with spatial design, digital innovation and changing expectations of high-end services.
The longevity programme broadens the conversation to health, wearables and environments that support active living. Contributors include researchers and practitioners working across healthy ageing, healthcare design and architecture, bringing different approaches to the relationship between design and human well-being.
From discussion to collaborative work
Alongside keynote presentations, panels and smaller speaker encounters, bodw Future Lab returns with participatory sessions on empathetic spaces, major societal shifts and approaches to longevity combining Eastern and Western perspectives.
The wider Business of Design Week 2026 programme connects with design initiatives across Hong Kong, including DESIGN@HKG, the DFA Awards Presentation Ceremony, DesignInspire and deTour 2026. The summit will also be streamed through bodw+ and social platforms, with English subtitles and AI-driven translation tools supporting ten languages.
