On the road together - Two Cologne-based design labels joined forces at the end of last year to operate together in the market. Less'n'more and Next are both known and loved as brands with bold, independent luminaire design, albeit in actually very different directions.
While Next is known for organic, sometimes very expansive designs, Less'n'more stands for finely crafted, unusual luminaires and furniture. Despite these apparent opposites, new opportunities are opening up for both brands, which will each retain their independence in the cooperation. One with more reference to the contract business and the other with a focus on furniture and lighting retailers opens up access to the other sales channel for the respective partner. The merger of the two brands was therefore also called a brand wedding - in a relationship, many things work better together, even though the partners are quite different. The most important message for customers and the market was that the product worlds will remain independent, but the team will merge. As a cover for this, the business will be completely transferred to Less'n'more GmbH.
Thinking light differently. This motto stands above the Next programme. Next luminaires are different, not system luminaires, but light cast in form with a lot of emotion. The luminaires with their unusual design language shape and illuminate the room. The luminaires are suitable for a wide range of requirements and provide suitable accents in both commercial and private environments. Next was founded in 2000 by Thomas Schulte. Since 2005, the company has been based in Cologne, bringing together the network of players from the Rhineland, Grasbrunn, Munich and Berlin. Production and shipping also take place there. At the beginning, designers such as Volker Albus, Constantin Wortmann, Benjamin Hopf and Jan Meulendijks were responsible for the design language. In the meantime, it is Constantin Wortmann alone who creates award-winning designs at Next. For example, the luminaire Cosmo , which he developed in 2012, won the "Luminaire of the Year 2013" competition and received the "Selection" award in the Thanks to its organic shape, Cosmo can also be used in different architectural styles. The luminaires, here the DNA by Next, are particularly popular as eye-catchers in retail outlets. The luminaire Cosmo by Next shapes the room and can work particularly well in very large-volume surroundings, here in the Cologne Design Post. Interior Innovation Award 2014. Its NLC luminaire came second in the "Luminaire of the Year 2012" competition. Luminaires by Next can be found wherever good light in an extraordinary form is required. They are used in large buildings such as shopping centres and malls, hospitals and swimming pools, but also in restaurants and, of course, in countless homes around the world.
Rooted in Cologne. Less'n'more has its origins in the design metropolis of Germany, in the Braunsfeld district, where the design manufactory is located. Just like the furniture and luminaires designed by Kai Steffens - the company headquarters is a bit idiosyncratic, experimental, always with a twinkle in its eye and definitely not conformist. Within the old walls, design is created that gladly and consciously deviates from the course and asserts itself with a lot of stubbornness between the designs that conform to marketing. Designer and managing director Kai Steffens always follows his idealism, his intuition, no tinsel, no superfluous bling-bling. But instead, more solution-oriented design, innovative technologies and loving quality work. Design that is non-conformist but highly functional, that is the clear guiding principle that shapes all of the manufactory's work. The two managing directors Kai Steffens and Christian Dinow began over 20 years ago in the cellar of their shared flat. On an old workbench, Steffens screwed away at his own designs and not only developed his love for beautiful design, but also laid the foundation for their own design label: fascinated by the creative possibilities of LED technology, Steffens and Dinow initially developed lighting tools for industry before they achieved a breakthrough in the residential lighting segment in 2008 with their idea for the first focusable LED luminaire, which won them several awards. In the meantime, not only the product range has grown from luminaires to reading furniture, but also the team to an extended family. With the new brand partners Less'n'more and Next, the market is thus offered two very different portfolios together, but the idea of a luminaire that is at the top in terms of both design and product quality is behind both lines. And at a time when sustainability is more important than ever before, the marriage is illustrious.
