Surprise factor

This is a brand that claims its products often leave customers surprised and delighted. Anyone who has seen the Alessi Philippe Starck lemon squeezer or the Alessi Anna G corkscrew will agree. Alessi products are part of a luxury design philosophy that aims to make its user feel special.

“Luxury can mean different things—high price, exclusivity, top quality. In our case, the luxury associated with our products is all this and more. The luxury we propose is satisfying the needs—not the primal needs—but needs that evoke feelings and emotions,” explained Matteo Alessi, trade marketing and international director, Alessi, at the Mint Luxury Summit held in March. “Our products often bring a smile to your face; they are conversation starters because often you don’t understand what they are meant for and they make you curious. They evoke feelings,” says the great-grandson of the company’s founder, who was visiting India for the first time. We asked Matteo Alessi to pick three of his favourite things from the recently launched Spring/Summer 2011 Alessi collection:

1) Hellraiser by Karim Rashid

“I really like the basket and the centrepiece designed by Rashid even though personally I don’t think it will be a huge commercial success. It is made of stainless steel and has too many straight and sharp lines.”

2) Dressed by Marcel Wanders

“A whole set of dinnerware, flatware and glassware designed by this Dutch artiste is a completely different language of design but a very interesting project for us.”

3) Pirouette by Frederic Gooris

“This desk organizer is a little object and is all about good design applied to affordable objects. A lot of times you see products you don’t really need but they are interesting and good to have around. This fits that description.”

seema.c@livemint.com