Yves Behar Quotations

Design is a tool that either allows us to create new markets or disrupt existing ones.

Sometimes you can find peace of mind by transferring yourself to different situations. They're just reminders to stay... calm.

I've been influenced by some of the greatest designers. Charles Eames. And Bruno Munari in the '50s in Italy - when they had to retool the industry of war into an industry to help society. In a way, I'm influenced by designers that were there at a radical time of change.

My mantra is: 'Good design accelerates the adoption of new ideas.'

The notion of 'reduce and refine' is one I've pursued. I truly believe that by making things less complex, by finding innovative ways to make sustainability affordable, we can advance the notion that it is possible.

Consumers want products that tell stories, have magic, and inspire.

Design needs a new relationship with the world, one that is more focused on our planet's needs.

Design certainly has a cosmetic, aesthetic aim. It always aims at making things beautiful. But relevance is just as important. I often say, 'If it isn't ethical, it can't be beautiful. But if it isn't beautiful, it probably shouldn't be at all.'

The best design work is really done when you spend more time with people, when you have the opportunity to be of the same mindset and the same incentives as the founder of the business.

I want to work on things that aren't self-evident, to propose things that are radically different and game-changing.

Steve Jobs changed my life. He also changed the life of every designer.

I wanted to be a writer as a teen... so storytelling was my first love. In my late teens, design became an obsession as I realized that I could express myself through the medium. Much later, when I founded Fuseproject in 1999, our slogan became 'design brings stories to life.'

The biggest challenge is that when people look at low price point products, they essentially invest less money in development, innovation, and new technology. And in order to innovate at a lower price point, and make sustainability attainable to the masses, you have to invest more. But that's counterintuitive for a lot of businesses.

If you don't love something, it's not functional, in my opinion.

An ideal day for me is a combination of a fun-exciting creative moment with work partners, some laughs and games with my kids, a good surf session, and great conversation with friends around a meal.

What I learned from my years in Silicon Valley is that design can have a primary role in how a business is shaped, how a company can be design-driven. In my experience of large industry in Europe, that knowledge has been lost.

When clients come to my design agency and say 'I want to be the Apple of this or that,' we say 'Okay, are you ready to be the Steve Jobs?' Few are up to the task.

Part of my life is spent designing in urban centers, and part of my life has been spent in factories. But the other part of my life is spent in nature.

Advertising is the price companies pay for being unoriginal.

You can't do good work on a short-term contract. You need to be engaged over a period of time.

To the optimist, the glass is half full. To the pessimist, the glass is half empty. To the engineer, the glass is twice as big as it needs to be. Design is how you treat your customers. If you treat them well from an environmental, emotional, and aesthetic standpoint, you're probably doing good design.

Designers have a responsibility to show the future as they want it to be - or at least as it can be, not just the way an industry wants it to be.