Design by Studio F. A. Porsche: From Roof Tent to Superyacht

Interview with Carsten Monnerjan, CEO Studio F. A. Porsche

Porsche Design Roof Tent
Functionality, design and emotion: All of this is embodied by Porsche like hardly any other brand. With the design of the roof tent for the Porsche 911, Studio F. A. Porsche achieved something great

When Carsten Monnerjan talks about his work, you can feel it: The CEO of Studio F. A. Porsche and chief designer of the Porsche Lifestyle Group loves his job. He and his team give the Porsche design products their admired design worldwide. And it's not always about sports cars, but about entire product worlds, each breathing the Porsche lifestyle, and why he wants to remain a lifelong learner, he explains in conversation with Wirtschaftsforum.

Wirtschaftsforum: Mr. Monnerjan, Porsche Design is an iconic brand, the fascination of which lies not least in the distinctive design of the products. Which steps in the development of the company were important for this?

Carsten Monnerjan: That's a big question (laughs). The 1970s were a high point for product and industrial design in Germany. During this time, Ferdinand Alexander Porsche, the grandson of the company founder Ferdinand Porsche and designer of the Porsche 911, founded the design studio in Zell am See.

Carsten Monnerjan, CEO Studio F. A. Porsche
Carsten Monnerjan, CEO Studio F. A. Porsche

His vision was to integrate industrial and product design with the ‘feel’ of the vehicles because, then as now, Porsche is a brand that evokes emotion. They are functional products with a strong technical background and are very user-oriented - things you look at and immediately feel: everything fits. Starting as a very small unit, the studio has now grown considerably. We also saw the need to establish ourselves in other locations. For example, Berlin: where it is easier to bring young talents on board. In Ludwigsburg, on the other hand, the whole Porsche Lifestyle theme is located. Moreover, we are represented internationally, in Shanghai and Los Angeles, to be at the cutting edge of time.

Porsche Design Motorboat
Experiencing the Porsche lifestyle doesn’t always require just a car. Porsche has long established itself in other areas as well, both in engineering and in design. So Porsche drivers quite literally ‘are all in the same boat'

Wirtschaftsforum: This is a keyword: there is now a whole 'Porsche World' that encompasses not only the car and its equipment but the entire lifestyle of your customers, can we put it that way?

Carsten Monnerjan: Yes, because we have a product portfolio that spans 360 degrees. It ranges from clothing to vehicle equipment like roof racks and other things needed for travel, to the full spectrum of product design: watches, glasses, luggage sets, e-bikes, architecture to the e-yacht, where we collaborated with the company Frauscher. In addition, Studio F. A. Porsche works as an external design agency for renowned clients worldwide. The collaboration of product and transportation design works extremely well for us because we can provide comprehensive support to our customers and convey the Porsche lifestyle to them.

Wirtschaftsforum: Besides electrification, digitalization is also a megatrend. What role does it play in your considerations?

Carsten Monnerjan: Digital transformation has made us much more efficient and faster. In the past, model building was necessary to be able to physically represent the products. Today, from the first draft, there is a 3-D model that allows everything to be simulated, from technical testing to animation in the environment where the product will be used later. Today, a single designer at a computer does the work that previously required several departments.

Porsche Design E-Bike
"You can't reinvent the wheel, but there are so many vehicles," says CEO Carsten Monnerjan. The best example of this is this E-Bike
Porsche Design Studio
The Studio F. A. Porsche was founded in the early 1970s in Zell am See

Wirtschaftsforum: What vision do you have for Porsche Design and Studio F. A. Porsche? Where do you want to take the company in the coming years?

Carsten Monnerjan: I would like to continue as it is now. Currently, the market is extremely fast-paced, almost like a race: Who can do it the fastest? But for me, that's not a characteristic of a good product. Especially in the Asian and US markets, there are many different trends. Here, it is important for us to keep calm and continue to design products that are true to our brand and meet our customers' expectations. One must be fit to accept challenges, but first and foremost, take a good look at the situation. Chasing after fleeting trends entails certain risks.

Porsche Design Exhibition
Porsche Design Team Picture

Wirtschaftsforum: Finally, a personal question, Mr. Monnerjan: What drives you in your work?

Carsten Monnerjan: 'Drive', that sounds nice, it fits very well with the subject! (laughs). For me, the greatest thing is that you never stop learning. This profession, with the opportunities it offers us, is fantastic because it constantly confronts us with new ideas. No day is like another, you constantly get new impulses that enrich you. That excites me again and again. Lifelong Learning is what fulfills me the most.

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