Several regions of the world have experienced significant growth over the past year. What are they and how have they affected the market outlook?

The markets currently on the rise are the Middle East and Miami. As far as the Middle East is concerned, I believe the fascination of this market is the increased quality of offer and lifestyle. There is a great openness towards professionals from all over the world that makes it a kind of heavenly refuge. Personally, I was impressed by the strengthening of the Middle East on the qualitative side. For firms like ours this is a strong source of attraction.

Speaking of the United States, here is an upgraded offer in branded residences. The residential development of which Miami is the protagonist is perhaps the most concrete example of such an upgrade. It is not purely about design, but also lifestyle offer, service and better quality. I expect that for the next twelve months these markets will continue along these lines. 

It is also estimated that by 2030 over thirty megacities, nineteen of which are located in the Asia-Pacific region, will have populations exceeding ten million. Such an increase in global population will result in higher demand for housing in these areas, with significant implications for investors in the sector. Demographic shift, coupled with solid economic conditions, will set the basis for a thriving residential market over the next decade.

Speaking instead of the already well established markets, what would you say about the current architecture and urban transformation in the historical markets?

In historic cities with an important tradition of architecture and design such as Milan, London or Paris the regeneration and housing expansion will always be there. However, this year is going to be more difficult, both because of rising interest rates and increased competition with other markets. I believe that for Europe there is a need to catch up with the quality and high-level services offered in today’s emerging markets in order to remain relevant. However, I expect that such luxury developments will mark this year also in well established markets.

One of the topics of major interest for the global architecture and design industry is that of material and environmental performance. At what stage is the research on this front?

From the very beginning, Elliot March and I have carried forward research on craft materials for luxury projects. In recent years in particular, our research has focused on recycled materials – from woods to stones and plastics – with several commercial projects. We rely on the Red List Building Materials and carefully avoid the harmful materials listed therein. We want the best combination to ensure that the pieces meet the industry criteria. Hopefully in the coming months we will be launching a furniture collection, which will be a complete expression of our in-depth research into the sustainability of materials.

Among the objectives that MAWD has set itself is that of pushing boundaries and establishing new standards. What are these boundaries and what are the new standards?

MAWD is in an extremely unique position of growth and expansion, and are looking to scale our studio locations this year into the Middle East and Miami and I believe that this exploration of markets will bring novel challenges and much excitement. This is what keeps us busy at the moment. To us, to go beyond means designing each time from scratch, based on location, customer and context. We are constantly refining and rethinking the design styles that are relevant to the sector we are currently working on. Overall, I would say that our philosophy is based on design excellence, innovation and the creation of desirable spaces.