The governmen continues to invest in Sweden as a design through an assignment to Visit Sweden along with the Swedish Institute, Architects Sweden, the Swedish Fashion Association, the Swedish federation of Wood and Furniture (TMF), the Swedish Society of Crafts and Design/Svensk Form and a number of cities, regions and other design organizations in Sweden. Starting in 2020, we will work together to increase the international awareness of Sweden as a design nation, get more tourists to choose Sweden and discover Swedish design, and strengthen the export of sustainable products and services.
The continuation of the programme will focus on sustainability issues and include many different design expressions. The Swedish Institute (SI) is a new partner in the programme, as project manager for the international activities.
From 2020 the program also changes its name to Swedish Design Movement to manifest the force among Swedish creators, design companies and organizations in Sweden towards sustainable change through design; a movement that wants to show the world that Sweden – through our architecture-, fashion- and design companies – is ready to lead the way and drive the development in a sustainable direction.
During the first four years of the design program (Swedish Design Moves 2016-2019), a number of international exhibitions and activities were held in for example Tokyo, Milan, New York, Paris and London, including Sweden’s official exhibitions during Milan Design Week. In addition, several programmes for journalists and influencers were organized in Sweden, and more than 260 design, fashion and architecture companies were involved in creating visibility for the country’s architecture-, design- and visitor destinations
Focus markets for the programme will continue to be Germany, France, the UK, the US, and to some extent, Japan.
The design programme is part of Sweden’s export and investment strategy, where sustainability issue has been given a stronger focus in the updated strategy. The government emphasizes that Sweden will take a leading position in the global work of realizing the goals of the Paris agreement. It also concludes that the transition to a circular and bio-based economy is needed to achieve the global sustainability goals, while at the same time being able to strengthen competitiveness and help create new jobs.
The programme will most likely run for at least three years and the draft plan for 2020 includes international activities at London Fashion Week, Milan Design Week, Paris Design Week, Archtober in New York, and Expo 2020 in Dubai.
Swedish Design Movement is an initiative that aims to increase the international passion in Swedish design, including architecture, fashion, furniture and other design expressions. The overall goal is to strengthen the Swedish design position and thereby increase both international tourism and Swedish design exports. The program is led by Visit Sweden in collaboration with the Swedish Institute, Architects Sweden, the Swedish Fashion Association, The Swedish federation of Wood and Furniture (TMF), The Swedish Society of Crafts and Design/Svensk Form and a number of Swedish cities, regions and other partners.