In the studio with our designers: Alain Gilles

Today we visit the studio of Alain Gilles, who designed some of our most iconic products, including BuzziBooth, BuzziHood, BuzziPicNic, BuzziBlinds and several others of our newest additions such as BuzziSpark and BuzziHat.

His studio is located on the ground floor of his loft in Brussels. It’s a very light and bright space, which makes it easy for Alain to focus on a project and get to work anytime he’s feeling inspired—day or night.

Where do you mostly work on new product ideas?

Generally, I have the best ideas or concepts when I am walking in the city or driving a long distance on the highway. My mind can freely wander (which tends to scare my wife when I am driving…). I notice all sorts of details that inspire me and trigger new concepts. Once I have a clear idea in my head, it needs to be refined back at the studio.

Do you work alone or with a team?

BuzziSpace and I entered into the world of design around the same time. The Studio is also ten years old this year. The first five years I worked alone, but now I have two assistants. There came a time when I needed to grow and dedicate more time and manpower to ensure total satisfaction with every project. But, I would like to remain small, so we can continue to be selective about the types of projects we choose and want to work on.

Do you find it important to have a fixed space where you can work or can you work from anywhere?

New ideas don’t come in fixed spaces. However, I need my team in one place when we are working together on a project. We all work around the same workbench in a very white space, so we can exchange ideas easily without getting distracted by our surroundings.

What do you really need in your workspace to work well?

It’s important to have a space where I feel at home. But in fact, I don’t need that much. A few pens and paper, a computer since we model in 3D, and eventually a few material samples and color swatches, and some music, of course!