James Joyce once said: “A man’s errors are his portals of discovery”, and this quote well summarize this Salewa project. “Prototype”, the first version of a handmade item. The first one sometimes, the last one some others.We decided to create a post about unfulfilled ideas. All designers know that not always a good intuition becomes an actual product, nor a prototype automatically enters the market. There are many reasons for this to happen: the idea may be too innovative or the materials too expensive.

We decided to create a post about unfulfilled ideas. All designers know that not always a good intuition becomes an actual product, nor a prototype automatically enters the market. There are many reasons for this to happen: the idea may be too innovative or the materials too expensive. In FusinaLab 90% of the projects become actual products, but we think that the remaining 10% has a great potential in teaching us to do better.

The Salewa shoe displayer is an example of that 10%. Salewa is an Italian outdoor product and equipment company settled in Bolzano we already had the pleasure to work with in the past. The prototype for the displayer was really good: its aim was to enhance the innovative sole of the new shoe collection. The structure of the displayer was made of different materials, such as wood, and its shape took inspiration from the firm’s new headquarters which recall the mountains outline. A set of mirrors enabled the customer to see the shoes’ lower part without needing to touch them.

What did not work?
In FusinaLab we like to be honest: the prototype’s base would take too much room. A weakness? Yes, but also a chance to find new ways to optimize space.