European Industrial Designers Jump Into the Frying Pan

By David Sokol
From

Move over, Mario Batali and Jamie Oliver. The latest names on pots and pans belong to European industrial designers better known for sleek watches and high-tech seating.

Cookware manufacturers are increasingly collaborating with designers not usually seen in the kitchen. Royal VKB worked with Dutch designer Jan Hoekstra, creator of stationery and store displays. Their Cookware line ($250 for three pots and a saucepan) landed in stores in January, featuring lids with spouts for straining liquid. In February, Tefal brought out a series with Bakelite handles by London-based Marc Newson, who is often associated with futuristic-looking chairs. And Sambonet USA introduced Spot in April, for $120 to $320. The pieces, designed by Milan-based architect and product consultant Rodolfo Dordoni, resemble truncated wine buckets.

Some of the sets have been available abroad for a few years. They're just hitting U.S. shelves as cookware-industry sales are strengthening to pre-9/11 levels, after a slump in 2002. Cookware sales rose 3.4% in 2005, to $695 million, according to market-research firm the NPD Group.

Manufacturers say they're trying to reach a new segment of the market, who has had little to choose from other than Le Creuset and All-Clad. Tefal's pieces by Mr. Newson are about four times more expensive than the company's other offerings. Jack Markuse, a consultant to Tefal parent company Groupe SEB, calls the line a way "to introduce an upscale consumer to the trademark." Finnish company Iittala and Swedish furniture designer Björn Dahlström just expanded their Tools line, with pieces from $165 to $250; it's available in stores that don't typically stock fryers and casseroles, including furniture galleries and museum shops.

It's also an appeal to design-conscious consumers. Claire Stansfield, a Los Angeles clothing designer, spent $180 on two Tefal frying pans, to go in a kitchen that has a Wolf range and Heath Ceramics backsplash. "I bought them based on looks," she says.

Another factor: Makers are trying to draw notice with names beyond the restaurant world. "The problem with celebrity-chef lines is that people think companies slap a celebrity's name on cookware that's lying around," says Sam Farber, founder of Copco, which has sets with Mario Batali. Celebrity-chef lines made up 7% of the market in 2005, says Hugh Rushing, president of the Association of Cookware and Bakeware Manufacturers.

Some retailers have seen a cool reception to the new lines. Euro Kitchen in Laguna Beach, Calif., has not sold any Tefal pans since their debut, and the Terence Conran Shop in New York hasn't had any buyers for the Royal VKB series. "It's hard to improve upon basic utility," says Mr. Rushing.

Julie Chung has checked out several new designs, but says that she found Royal VKB's screw-top lids hard to operate, and was disappointed in the look of Mr. Newson's pieces. "He's done really sexy furniture," says the exhibition designer in New York. "But I don't see it carrying over."

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