Issue 13^th: 29 Sept 2014

Fashion may change but style is forever; one Thai designer decides to show the world the eternity of Thai style, albeit in an innovative and unique way.

SARRAN’s first projects was Cha-da, a creative chandelier

Global interconnectivity means that your client could be anyone from anywhere with any taste. As designers imitate fashion and styles from major cities, such as New York, Paris and London, it raises the question whether other styles have a place in this increasingly globalised world.

“Someone once told me that nobody wants to buy Thai-styled products and Thai-ness; they're an outdated concept,” says Sarran Youkongdee. “He also told me that [Thai designers] should work on European and Scandinavian styles. I'm determined to prove that Thai-style products are demanded, and I will not simplify or change any detail.”

So Sarran Youkongdee set up his own SARRAN YOUKONGDEE Conceptual Studio, later renamed SARRAN. One of his first projects was Chada, a creative chandelier; traditionally, a chada is an elegant and elaborated headpiece wore by Thai dancers. Youkongdee contacted a chada maker, asking him to expand this headpiece. The result was a huge success, and now he exports around 200 chadas (each costing US$3,100) ever year. Another similar project was Wiman where he used a mural painting from northern Chiang Mai, as an inspiration.

Unsurprisingly SARRAN has been awarded Thailand's DEmark and Japan's Gmark several times.

In addition to being true to Thai creativity, Youkongdee believes in the importance of individuality and innovation in design.His latest awarded collection – fragrant flower-shaped earrings – combine both these concepts. He has developed a water resistant paper which he then folds into a flower. Then he keeps the paper flower earrings enclosed in a chest of potpourri for a month. The result is fragrant earrings which maintain their aroma for a few months.

Youkongdee encourages customers to choose their own perfume for the earrings, in this way ensuring that each pair of earrings is unique. At the moment he is planning to extend this concept into a new collection. “I am working on … a butterfly-shaped bracelet,” he says.“I enjoy matching different colours and fragrances for each single bracelet. It creates a story for every piece.”

Now that SARRAN is an internationally recognised brand, Youkongdee works with many famous international names, such as HARNN and Hilton, sometimes as an interior decorator. However, he never works on the same project twice. “I think the change fuels creativity,” he says.

Words by Ratipol Opasjaroenkij

About DEmark

Design Excellence Award (DEmark) was established in 2008 in order to give recognition to outstanding product design. It is in conjunction with the Prime Minister's Export Award (PM’s Export Award) which is presented annually by the Prime Minister under the auspices of Thailand Institute of Design and Promotion, Department of International Trade Promotion, Ministry of Commerce, Royal Thai Government. The winning product receives the DEmark logo for outstanding design, which can be used to promote well-designed Thai products in the international market. It is hoped that this award will help promote development of domestic products, which will in turn better the quality of life of both domestic and international consumers.

The Department of International Trade Promotion (DITP) receives cooperation from The Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) and the Japan Institute of Design Promotion (JDP) in determining the judging criteria for DEmark Award of Thailand, inviting experts to be judges in this contest and also help promote the DEmark Award to be widely accepted in the international arena.

For more information, please visit http://www.demarkaward.net