THE FUEGO BLOG

My job takes me a lot of places. All across the U.S., China, Singapore, Taiwan, England, Germany, Italy, etc. Lots of places you'd expect design and manufacturing to happen. But over the last year, I've developed a design relationship with a company in a place I'd never expected: Dubai.

First of all, let me tell you about Dubai. You've all seen the images and the news specials. It is a place of open possibilities. The tallest buildings. Communities rising out of the sea. Disneyland-like malls, hotels and entertainment centers. Development on a scale never seen before. It really is mind boggling. For example, you probably have seen the Burj al Arab. The famous hotel that looks like a sail, built on a man made island just off Jumeirah beach, in which the rooms start at US$1,700 a night. Well, when Sheikh Mohammed decided to build it, it was a $2 billion project. In a $10 billion economy! He spent 20 percent of their GNP on a hotel. Well he was right. It has come to symbolize Dubai and catalyzed the region as a destination. If you Google Dubai, half of the images will be of the Burj al Arab.

But right now, it is a work in progress. There is a statistic floating around that some 20-30 percent of the world's construction cranes are in Dubai. Being there, you believe it. You cannot go anywhere without seeing new construction. And there really is no "there" there yet. That is, the place is spread out and zones are only just forming. So no city center exists yet. No clear nightlife district. Just stuff popping up everywhere. It's a little tricky to get around.

I've been there twice now, and what strikes me the most are the people. Warm, open, cordial, friendly, accommodating. Really great. And while it is a Muslim culture, they are very accepting and respectful of Western ways. And it is very multi-cultural. You see many Europeans, Russian, Indian, Malaysian, Turks, Chinese, etc. Not a lot of Americans (which is nice for a change). But the locals are a truly warm and gracious people. And a joy to visit and spend time with. I'll be going every two or three months for a while.

So this brings me to the obvious questions of "what the heck am I doing in Dubai?" We are working with a company to bring high level product design and development to the region. There is a belief that the region can support design given its openness and idea centric culture. And the country seeks to diversify and expand, and become one of the world's true great cities. So we are working to help develop new product ideas indicative of the spirit of the region, and working to attract manufacturers from all over the world to participate in this effort. Look for a new brand emerging that will speak to this idea of design and Dubai. Exciting stuff.

And who knows, maybe a new grill might emerge from this thinking. Any ideas?