Vittorio G. Carelli —Founder and CEO, Carelli International Corporation USA
Over the last few decades, design has really been liberated from the cultural discrimination between developed and developing countries on a global level. Today, no matter where you go, the United States, Europe, Asia, Latin America, the Middle East, or Russia, customers want the best possible product, and they want world-class design. Tokyo, Seoul and Singapore are now as sophisticated as Milan, New York or London. Hong Kong, Shanghai and Kuala Lumpur lead in urban architecture. The most beautiful contemporary bridges are in Tokyo, Istanbul and Denmark. At one fell swoop, India has taken the lead in software development. As a consequence of all of this, designers need to be more knowledgeable about the world’s individual cultures than ever before.
Design was rather boring back in the sixties. The majority of designers were often required to perform nothing other than to simply clean-up obvious aesthetic oversights—simply beautifying things ugly. Entrepreneurs saw design more as a cultural mission than a vital element of any business strategy. Then in the early seventies, we suffered the first oil shock and suddenly designers were required to be much more business-oriented and efficient in terms of raw materials and resources, particularly with the use of plastics. We had to be more environmentally conscious while attempting to lower manufacturing costs, and at the same time meet the increased value demands of the consumer. This eventually led to effective mass-production and the first real design boom of affordable products in the late eighties, a period when marketing and corporate design managers began trying to make everything accountable.
The nineties were a gloomy period for design. Everything was about money, greed and hype. Moreover, it was the nineties that were to blame for creating a generation of young designers who grew up with the idea of delivering mere mediocre work, avoiding the basic values of human society such as modesty, hard work, or ethics. These same young designers are now learning the hard way about what it takes to succeed in the real world of providing effective solutions.
Designers come to us with a multitude of backgrounds and expertise that bridges disciplines and spans industries—including transportation, medical, consumer, retail, software, technology, finance, and more. This extraordinary collection of talent—analytical and artistic, conservative and unconventional, technical and whimsical—is what makes working with us a unique experience. These brainiacs, as we refer to them, could often reside until eternity in their specialized field. We pull them out of their occupational space and challenge them to broaden their vocational spectrum. This has proven effective in our appeal as a creative organization because it allows those an opportunity to find and develop their own identity and additional talents.
Today, we are a global innovation firm that continues to help some of the world’s most celebrated brands create and bring to market meaningful products, services, and experiences. We do so with perseverance and without boundaries. The desire to improve the world by humanizing technology is at the core of our mission as a company. If you’re asking, “What is it like to work with us?” our answer is, “What do you want to do?” Opportunities are plentiful. After 50 years of innovation, we have only just begun.
We are always honored by the public’s curiosity in our work, creative vision and philosophy.