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Talking to WANNA from Welcome Indoor Creatures

Talking to WANNA from Welcome Indoor Creatures

FEBRUARY 2025 | 4 minutes

"The visible common thread between projects has to do with the will to tell stories that connect with people".

We take a closer look at WANNA, the strategic design studio founded and driven by Cathy Figueiredo, Esther Mengual and María Lillo, which fuses branding, interior design and brand storytelling to create memorable experiences. With a philosophy based on emotion as a driver of connection, their holistic approach has given life to innovative projects that challenge the limits of design and communication. A vision that is embodied in"Welcome Indoor Creatures", his latest installation in collaboration with Actiu, presented at the Madrid Design Festival.

Wanna defines itself as a strategic design studio that creates experiences. How has your vision of design evolved since you started?

Before founding the studio, the three of us worked for years in the advertising industry. So when WANNA was born, it was clear to us that we wanted to combine branding and interior design, two apparently distant disciplines that, nevertheless, when combined give rise to coherent, conceptually very powerful and memorable projects. This comprehensive vision has been reinforced over the years, and has also been enriched with the creation of two business units that we continue to promote: brand storytelling and experience ecosystem design. Because today it is more than proven that without emotion there is no connection... or sale.

Throughout your career, you have worked with brands from different sectors. What would you say is the common thread that unites all your projects?

The invisible common thread between projects is that all of them, in one way or another, for one reason or another, have made us step out of our comfort zone. And that is, paradoxically, where we feel comfortable. Because they are an invitation to learn something new, to question our work processes, to investigate new fields or areas, to put new solutions into practice. And that's what fuels us.

The visible common thread between projects has to do with the desire to tell stories that connect with people. That's why we try to ensure that the narratives we create are based on an insight that people can identify with or through which they can project themselves.

And if you ask us for a common thread at a visual or aesthetic level, we will tell you that WANNA has no style of its own. Our style is the style of each client at all times.

Is there any project, professional or milestone in your history that has marked a before and after for the studio?

With WANNA we have been very fortunate; we have lived experiences that, to be honest, we would never have imagined. We can think of many milestones, but if we have to choose we could say:

Our first project, Lock & Be Free. The first opportunity is always a milestone. Because it was also an integral project with which we were able to present ourselves to the world as a studio capable of creating brands and translating them into physical space. That was very disruptive in 2016. And it clearly influenced the media repercussion it had.

It was also a milestone that we were invited to create a course in Domestika, which is one of the platforms we grew up with as creatives. So having the opportunity to contribute to the community as teachers was squaring the circle.

And finally, being chosen as Programame Leaders of the Master in Creative Direction for Commercial Spaces at the European Institute of Design in Madrid. That was like a pat on the back, as well as a huge pleasure, because we love being in the classroom.

How did the idea of "Welcome Indoor Creatures" come about and what attracted you to this concept for the installation?

It comes from analysis and observation of the context, fused with understanding the reality of people. Understanding how we live gave rise to the insight from which we developed the whole narrative of the installation. And what attracted us to the concept was, above all, its universality (something key considering that this installation is intended to travel to different international fairs) and the possibilities it offered us to generate a playful, interactive and memorable brand experience in the space.

The collaboration with Actiu has allowed you to explore the design of spaces such as Qyos from a new perspective. What has this process been like and what values do you share with them?

We had wanted to collaborate with Actiu for a long time because we share a strong desire to make a positive impact with what we do. So making our debut at the Madrid Design Festival was perfect. As is often the case with ephemeral projects, the process has been intense and at times frenetic, but we have enjoyed it. We have loved the dream team we have formed with Green Area, with whom we feel very aligned. And it has been very nice to see how all the teams involved have worked hard to make the project a success.

This project has a clear international projection. What impact do you hope the installation will have and what would you like people to remember about it?

We hope that the message gets across wherever the installation goes. That we understand how we are and how we live, that we accept it, and that professionals and the industry are creative, responsible and respectful and commit ourselves to providing indoor creatures all over the planet with the best possible interiors.