Born in London (Oct 1974), Afroditi was raised in the region of Mt Olympus, Greece. As a child, she dreamed of “owning the oceans” and building shipping yards. However, as a teenager, she realised that her passion for drawing, inventing and making things has got a name (design) and that it is an actual job.
At the age of 17, she moved to the UK to pursue her career in design. She was educated at top design institutions, such as the Central St Martins College of Art, and later on the Royal College of Art under architect Ron Arad. She worked at some of the world’s largest consultancies, designing strategies and products for international brands, such as Nokia, Jaguar and Casio. She was the first ever female designer to be employed by the design super-duo SeymourPowell and worked on the redesign of the humble brassiere, which was televised by Channel 4.
In 2002, Afroditi decided to go it alone and founded Afroditikrassa Ltd. Award winning, dynamic and passionate, the young designer’s work was immediately picked up by leading furniture and retail brands such as Cassina, DKNY and design afficionados, such as Mourad Mazouz (Momo) of sketch. In 2004, she met Julian Metcalfe, one of London’s most innovative entrepreneurs, who invited her to conceive his new “baby” brand. Working obsessively for two months, she came back with a masterplan for itsu. The pioneering low fat food store grew into a hugely successful chain of 25 stores in London and NYC, in less than 5 years. She was appointed Creative Director in 2005.
Offers for the branding and design of leading restaurant, office and retail establishments around the world followed soon after, as well as collaborations with prestigious producers such as lighting for Ligne Roset and Innermost, furniture for E&Y and Bonaldo, packaging for Pret A Manger and WMF and products for British American Tobacco and Phillip Morris. Constantly restless, Afroditi is currently working on the world’s first energy generating outdoor furniture range for a major European manufacturer.
When not designing, she teaches design, writes about design, judges design and occasionally dreams of design. Her work has appeared in the most prestigious art and design publications worldwide and has been televised by the BBC, Channel 4, CNN and NTV. She has won numerous awards including the EDIDA International Young Talent Finalist 2010, Edward Marshall Trust Award, the Guardian Best in Lighting and the 2007 Elle Deco Design Award. From political campaigns to car interiors, her work is always characterised by intellectual rigour, formal directness, visual lightness and wit.
