- BKID product design case analysis reveals how industrial design firm differentiates its brand identity

Shin Young Park, a third-semester student in the Department of Industrial Design at the University of Seoul Graduate School of Design, received the Outstanding Paper Award from the Korean Design Research Society for the paper titled "Analysis of Iconic Design Elements for Design Identity Differentiation."

Shin Young Park and her advisor, Professor Byung Soo Kim, published the paper "An Analysis of Iconic Design Elements for Design Identity Differentiation - Focusing on the Case of BKID Product Design" in Design Research Vol. 10 No. 1. On April 9, she received the Outstanding Paper Award from the Korean Design Research Society.

The study analyzed 100 BKID product design cases using five iconic elements derived from prior research: simplicity, experimental form, intuitive structure, restrained color, and bold color. The results show that industrial design firms can gain a competitive advantage by strategically integrating iconic elements to create a unique and consistent brand identity. 

"The study was a practical demonstration of the strategic use of iconic elements in building a design identity," said Shin Young Park.

The Graduate School of Design at University of Seoul (Dean Yang Minha) aims to develop a small group of designers with the expertise to respond flexibly to changes in society while maintaining their own spirit and philosophy, and recruits 20 new students each year. The completion of this research during the academic program demonstrates the rigorous curriculum and professional leadership of the faculty at the University of Seoul Graduate School of Design.