When we were invited to explore and solve the challenges of Vestnes in 2006, our mission was identified as to deliver new appealing furnitures in a competitive market. Vestnes was mainly a regional and national actor in a complex international market. We rapidely realised that we had several clients: our host such as Vestnes, the ship owners, and their crew living onboard. Based on these dynamics, our team interviewed all stakeholders, explored and collected their points of view, defined and refined scenarios to optimise their life onboard. We unleashed powerful insights: if the goal of Vestnes, our first client, was to deliver sustainable and appealing interior collection, the goal of the ship owners was surprisingly very different: they are a critical issue to handle a far too high turn over. The crew was expensive to train for their tasks onboard; it was an big investement. This crew nevertheless used to quit their job and go else where faster than expected. It was speculated that it could be a financial issue and higher wages were implemented. It did not lower the turn over. What was the issue? Cruising periods to up to six months can build up home sickness, therefore we had to offer an experience of being home. The crew that was to live in the living quarters that Vestnes outfit, has a multi-cultural background. Because what defines home is cultural and changing accordingly, we explored universal aspects, like a random softness, put in a system. We explored, defined and refined a bespoke interior collection following an optimal ergonomy in compact spaces and crafted a material palette inspired by different cultural patterns and rituals. Critical issues was solved beforehand with bespoke, but systemised solutions within two collections; Willy and Keys. Creating a new value: each vessel can still have its own interior identity. Willy is a systemised and scalable production value chain that enable Vestnes to build interiors that ultimately give the crew a better life onboard.

The crew that live in the living quarters that Vestnes outfit has a multi-cultural background. Cruising periods to up to six months can build up home sickness, therefore we had to offer an experience of being home within different cultural patterns and rituals. Because what defines home is cultural and changing accordingly, we explored universal aspects, like a random softness, put in a system. Our design team explored, defined and refined a bespoke interior collection following an optimal ergonomy in compact spaces and crafted a material palette that followed harbour names, such as the perfect location any crew could relate to. The Willy collection is offering the interior collections following the Indian, Pacific and Atlantic Oceans including specific colours and materials following city inspirations like; Mumbai, Bergen, San Francisco, Jakarta.
The collections became part of a new sales strategy. Previously it could take Vestnes few months to sell a vessel interior, with back and forth adjustements. During the launching of Willy, several vessels interiors was sold within few hours, since critical issues was solved beforehand with bespoke, but systemised solutions within each collection. Creating a new value: each vessel can still have its own interior identity. Willy is a systemised and scalable production value chain that enable Vestnes to build interiors that ultimately give the crew a better life onboard.

To complement the offer of Willy Collection, we decided with Vestnes Ocean to go deeper into solving maritime crew issues and creating a better comfort onboard. Using our transformative design process, we met and listened carefully how people experienced their life onboard large vessels; from the smallest detail to bold evidence, we mapped their journey and lives, visualising the essence of the ideal interior scenario. We designed several concepts to create intimicy onboard for people working and living on oceans and whjo are far away from home. Beyond the insights that were gathered with Willy, the most powerful insight has been that the crew background in offshore industry includes mainly people who are not sailor but engineers: they are missing the shore and the joy of land (versus home). That is why we explored and unleashed the design concept of building up private islands (keys) within floating large vessels: people could find their private comfort there, surrounded by colours and materials refering to earth, wood and stones. KEYS was born and since than is installed to enhance a better life onboard world wide.