HK works to solidify its position as international design hub

Taking advantage of the country's promotion of high-quality development in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and support for Hong Kong's role as an international innovation and technology center, Hong Kong is making efforts to solidify its position as an international design hub.

While the city hosted the Business of Design Week 2025 between Dec 3 and 6, it aimed to explore the role of design in driving innovation, promoting sustainable development, and further consolidate its position as an international design hub.

This annual summit of the Asian design community, themed "Curiosity·Igniting Design Innovation", drew over 50 top designers, international creative leaders, technology pioneers, and representatives of cultural institutions from around the world to discuss topics such as urban vision, mobile innovation, craftsmanship, and lifestyle, as well as artificial intelligence, technological innovation, cultural innovation, and creativity.

Guests, including Rosanna Law, secretary for culture, sports, and tourism of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Massimo Ambrosetti, Italian ambassador to China, and Joseph Lo, chairman of the Board of the Hong Kong Design Centre, attended the opening ceremony.

Rosanna Law stated that, following successful collaborations in 2007 and 2017, Hong Kong and Italy are once again joining hands in 2025 — carrying special significance as it marks the 55th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Italy.

Ambrosetti noted that the Business of Design Week is a highly influential platform in the Asian design community, and that the partnership between Italy and Hong Kong reflects the deep exchanges between the two parties in the fields of culture and creativity.

Amid the country's push for the high-quality development in the Greater Bay Area, and Hong Kong's role as an international innovation and technology center, the design industry — as an important link connecting technology, culture, and economy — is becoming a significant engine for regional collaborative development.

Since its establishment in 2001, the Hong Kong Design Center has transformed Hong Kong into a design hub in Asia and beyond through initiatives such as operating the "DFA Design Awards", nurturing young design talents, and hosting outstanding design exhibitions.

Over the years, the "DFA Design Awards" has become one of the most influential design awards in Asia, providing a platform for showcasing world-class design works and masters, while discovering and recognizing designers from the Chinese mainland, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Macao, and promoting their work globally.

Beyond the summit, the Hong Kong Design Centre also launched its flagship project, "BODW in the City 2025", focused on the public.

In major areas such as Central, Admiralty, Wan Chai, Causeway Bay, and Tsim Sha Tsui, the project planned over 40 themed activities — including exhibitions, guided tours, workshops, and themed tram tours — encouraging the public to re-examine the city with curiosity and experience global design trends.

Among them, the "themed tram tour" that integrates design culture and urban memory attracted numerous tourists and became a moving landscape on Hong Kong Island.