YFD-SUUNNITTELUKILPAILUT YRITYKSILLE
YFD-SUUNNITTELUKILPAILUT YRITYKSILLE
Make emerging designers’ expertise your company’s STRENGTH!
New perspectives don’t always come from within your company.
YFD helps companies bring real business challenges to emerging designers. Together, we define the challenge and curate a selection of designers whose expertise fits the brief.
Through a YFD competition, companies gain new perspectives, access to design expertise and the opportunity to discover new talent for future collaboration.
For emerging designers, it’s a chance to showcase their skills, build professional networks and establish meaningful connections with companies — with real opportunities to continue working together beyond the competition.
A win-win for both.
HOW A YFD DESIGN COMPETITION WORKS
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It all starts with a company’s needs. YFD helps define what the company wants to develop and what new perspectives designers can bring to the challenge. Together, we turn this into a clear design brief.
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YFD shares the opportunity with its designer network and opens the call for applications.
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YFD selects the most suitable emerging designers based on their applications, interviews and fit for the brief.
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Designers explore the company’s needs and develop their own proposals.
YFD manages the competition from start to finish, ensuring a smooth process and seamless collaboration throughout the project.
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The company gets to know the designers, their thinking and their proposals. Through discussions and feedback, designers gain a deeper understanding of the company’s needs and refine their ideas throughout the competition — developing solutions the company can put to use and take further.
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The company gains new perspectives, actionable ideas and the opportunity to discover emerging design talent for future collaboration.
But the collaboration doesn’t end with the competition. Together, we explore the next steps — from developing promising ideas further to finding new ways to apply design expertise and create value for the business.
YFD remains a partner in turning emerging designers’ expertise into a lasting business strength and opening doors to new possibilities.
SIGNALS FROM THE FUTURE!
Why emerging designers?
Emerging designers bring new design expertise, different perspectives and new ways of looking at users, the environment and a changing world to business development.
Through YFD, companies connect with designers who have the skills and vision to contribute, but may not yet have had the opportunity to work with businesses.
Why Emerging Designers?
New Perspectives
An external designer approaches a challenge without the company’s established assumptions and ways of thinking.
New Design Expertise
Companies get to discover designers whose skills and expertise may not yet be widely recognised in the professional world.
Concrete Ideas
The goal is not just discussion, but tangible concepts, ideas and solutions developed by designers.
Connections with Emerging Talent
A competition can be the first step towards longer-term collaboration, a commissioned project or employment.
An Easy Way to Explore New Ideas
YFD manages the process, from designer recruitment and curation to facilitating collaboration throughout the competition.
A Curated Process, Built Around Your Needs
YFD identifies your needs, selects the right designers for your challenge and facilitates meaningful collaboration throughout the process. You gain access to relevant expertise, new perspectives and concrete ideas — with connections that can lead to future collaboration.
WHAT PEOPLE SAY ABOUT US
"It’s wonderful to see how the competition has brought Aarikka’s values to life and strengthened our connection with a new generation of Finnish designers. YFD has managed the competition professionally from start to finish, and the winning designs have now become products available for purchase. It’s exciting to see ideas turn into real products and find their way into customers’ homes and everyday lives. I highly recommend working with YFD."
-Riia Sandström, CEO, Aarikka Oy
"The competition exceeded our expectations in the best possible way. The ideas were of a high standard and reflected the courage and creativity of emerging designers. YFD’s competition process was clear and efficient from start to finish. All we had to do was define our wishes and fulfil our part along the way, with YFD providing a clear schedule and guidance throughout. I highly recommend working with YFD."
Elina Tolonen\
Business (Retail) and Marketing Director, Airam Oy Ab
"It has been a pleasure working with the YFD team. You’ve understood our genuine needs and brought solutions to them through design. Even after the brand project, YFD has created updated versions of our brand characters and produced video animations that we now use in Liikku’s outdoor and digital advertising. Our collaboration with YFD has left us with a lasting smile — I highly recommend them!"
-Terhi Kukkonen
Marketing Director, Liikku Fitness Centres
The Competition Is Just the Beginning
A YFD design competition is more than a standalone challenge. It’s a practical way to bring a company and an emerging designer together to work on a real design challenge.
During the competition, companies get to see how different designers approach their challenge, what expertise they bring and what new perspectives they can offer.
The competition can lead to:
A new design brief
Design collaboration
Product or service development
Hiring an emerging designer
Long-term collaboration
OUR AMAZING CLIENTS!
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YFD x SANDUDD
Three emerging designers developed new ideas for Sandudd’s upcoming collection. After the competition, the collaboration continued with a factory visit, meetings and feedback sessions, taking the designers’ concepts forward for Sandudd’s 2027 collection.
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YFD X HTH
The winner of the HTH design competition, Egor Tchernykh, had the opportunity to work on the design of HTH’s Habitare exhibition stand. The competition gave the company a way to discover a new designer and offer them the opportunity to contribute to a real business project.
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YFD X TIETO
In collaboration with Tieto Tech Consulting, Flow Festival, Inklusiiv and YFD, emerging designers tackled a challenge in inclusive design. The competition brought new perspectives on how to make Flow’s environment and festival experience more accessible.
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YFD X AARIKKA
Aarikka’s open design competition received 376 proposals from emerging designers. The competition resulted in four new products for Aarikka’s collection, all available to purchase through Aarikka’s online store and retail shops.
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YFD X AIRAM
Airam’s design competition brought emerging designers together with a well-established Finnish lighting brand. Through the competition, the company had the opportunity to discover new design talent and explore their perspectives.
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![YFD x Liikku kuntokeskus, metrovaunun teippaukset]()
YFD X LIIKKU
Liikku brought emerging designers into the development of its brand. The collaboration resulted in new characters and visual concepts, which were used in applications including branded wraps on metro trains.
YFD DESIGN COMPETITIONS FOR BUSINESSES
YFD DESIGN COMPETITIONS FOR BUSINESSES
The Next YFD Collaborative Competition
Bring Your Company’s Challenge to Our Next COLLABORATIVE COMPETITION
YFD organises two collaborative design competitions each year: one in spring and one in autumn.
Each competition has a limited number of company places, allowing us to carefully define every challenge and select designers whose expertise best fits the brief.
NEXT COMPETITION: SPRING 2027
Limited company places available
YFD CUSTOM DESIGN COMPETITIONS
A Design Competition Tailored to Your Company’s Schedule
A custom design competition is planned and delivered entirely around your company’s needs and timeline. It can be launched at any time of the year, with YFD managing the entire process — from designer recruitment and communications to competition delivery.
Unlike YFD’s collaborative competitions, every aspect of a custom competition, including the application process, media communications, timeline and implementation, is tailored specifically to your company.
Custom design competitions are available year-round.
Clarify what 'implementation' includesEmphasize the company’s key benefits
YFD
Young Finnish Design connects emerging designers and businesses through design competitions.
We have organised design competitions for Finnish companies since 2017, creating new connections, commissions and opportunities for emerging designers along the way.