Designer Interview

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Interview with Derrick Frohne at Saturday 2nd of June 2012

FS: Could you please tell us more about your art and design background? What made you become an artist/designer? Have you always wanted to be a designer?
DF: I became an industrial designer when their were not many jobs who would hire me because I don't have an advanced degree from a university. I didn't always want to be a designer, it just happened and was a blessing from God.

FS: Can you tell us more about your company / design studio?
DF: December 2011:
○ Frohne was founded by Derrick Frohne, Florida-USA. The eClip and Florida Key was created. This simple idea slowly shaped the future for the company.

February 2012:
○ Frohne began marketing and distributing the eClip and Florida Key through the following online portals and distributors: UnbeatableSale, Microfiber Products Online, Amazon, eBay, Shop.com, PriceGrabber, and ShopAmex, PriceGrabber, Underbid, GrabCart, and Sears.

April 2012:
○ Doctor Raffaele Pilla and Doctor Huquan Yin endorsed the eClip and Florida Key.

May 2012:
○ Derrick Frohne is presented the IDA 11 Award in the Media and Home Electronics category for the Frohne eClip. Derrick Frohne receives publication of his work in the 2010 International Design Awards Book of Designs, to be distributed nationwide; promotion to 100,000 design professionals and potential clients worldwide; year-long coverage on the International Design Awards website; and critical acclaim by our distinguished panel of judges.

Stanford Who's Who 2013
○ The Founder, Derrick Frohne was inducted in Stanford Who's Who. Stanford Who's Who is an elite business social network of selected executives, professionals and entrepreneurs from around the world. Stanford Who's Who documents the biographies of the world's brightest minds.

Marquis Who's Who 2013
○ The Founder of Frohne, Derrick Frohne, will be inducted into Marquis Who's Who. Since 1899, Marquis Who's Who has remained the standard for reliable and comprehensive biographical data. Marquis Who's Who books are often found in the reference section of local libraries, at corporate libraries, and are also used for research by universities. This powerful online database of over 1,444,914 biographies provides up-to-the-minute information of leaders and achievers from around the world in the areas of business, law, science, medicine, the arts, government, entertainment and more.



FS: What is "design" for you?
DF: Design is something that represents yourself so making a design will express your thoughts.

FS: What kinds of works do you like designing most?
DF: Industrial consumer electronics and cutlery

FS: What is your most favorite design, could you please tell more about it?
DF: Frohne eClip because it was the first product design of its kind.

FS: What was the first thing you designed for a company?
DF: the Florida Key USB flash drive was the first consumer electronics device I designed.

FS: What is your favorite material / platform / technology?
DF: stainless steel, ABS, graphene, aluminum, and damascus steel

FS: When do you feel the most creative?
DF: I feel most creative at night

FS: Which aspects of a design do you focus more during designing?
DF: Industrial consumer electronic and cutlery designs.

FS: What kind of emotions do you feel when you design?
DF: N/A

FS: What kind of emotions do you feel when your designs are realized?
DF: Excitement and Peace.

FS: What makes a design successful?
DF: Profitability and exposure

FS: When judging a design as good or bad, which aspects do you consider first?
DF: good

FS: From your point of view, what are the responsibilities of a designer for society and environment?
DF: To make a design that is useful to the most amount of people and is environmentally friendly

FS: How do you think the "design field" is evolving? What is the future of design?
DF: Frohne has already initiated the next steps of future industrial designs and what I can say is, the technology is faster, smarter, holds more capacity, and stylish.

FS: When was your last exhibition and where was it? And when do you want to hold your next exhibition?
DF: I never had an exhibit.

FS: Where does the design inspiration for your works come from? How do you feed your creativity? What are your sources of inspirations?
DF: My inspiration comes from my dreams. I have dreams of technology. Sometimes I daydream and that's how it happens also.

FS: How would you describe your design style? What made you explore more this style and what are the main characteristics of your style? What's your approach to design?
DF: Success was never given to me, I created it. I have chosen this style because it's the future. I want people to use the future in their daily life.

FS: Where do you live? Do you feel the cultural heritage of your country affects your designs? What are the pros and cons during designing as a result of living in your country?
DF: I live in Tampa-Florida, USA at the moment and the culture of the USA is consumer electronics. There are many people and companies, which need consumer electronics to maintain business and personal life.

FS: How do you work with companies?
DF: I allow companies to distribute Frohne brand consumer electronics.

FS: What are your suggestions to companies for working with a designer? How can companies select a good designer?
DF: You need to allow the designer to create his or her own identity with no restrictions. Make sure that you have good communication and make the designer feel like family. When the designer has individuality and feels like family, the designer will be more comfortable and loyal to your brand.

FS: Can you talk a little about your design process?
DF: The design process is arbitrary for me. I don't have a step by step process, because I just think of ideas, put them on paper, then the rest is history.

FS: What are 5 of your favorite design items at home?
DF: Frohne eClp USB Flash Drive, Frohne Florida Key USB Flash Drive, Frohne versatile 1, versatile 2, and the Frohne Smartphone

FS: Can you describe a day in your life?
DF: N/A

FS: Could you please share some pearls of wisdom for young designers? What are your suggestions to young, up and coming designers?
DF: The only people who can change the world are the people crazy enough to think they can. Eventually their manifestation becomes reality and the world is changed. -Derrick Frohne

Never follow dreams. Lead them
-Derrick Frohne

FS: From your perspective, what would you say are some positives and negatives of being a designer?
DF: Positives: The opportunity to make a name for yourself by brand exposure and profitability
Negatives: Eating ramen noodles because spending money on designs are expensive. You will be a starving artist but if you have faith and dedication, God will provide you the tools to be successful and profitable.

FS: What is your "golden rule" in design?
DF: Success is measured by your ability to create the unknown. -Derrick Frohne

FS: What skills are most important for a designer?
DF: The ability to create something useful and different.

FS: Which tools do you use during design? What is inside your toolbox? Such as software, application, hardware, books, sources of inspiration etc.?
DF: N/A

FS: Designing can sometimes be a really time consuming task, how do you manage your time?
DF: make sure you can balance your work life and relationship.

FS: How long does it take to design an object from beginning to end?
DF: It depends because of the design.

FS: What is the most frequently asked question to you, as a designer?
DF: Why does it cost so much for the Frohne eClip?

FS: What was your most important job experience?
DF: My most important job experience was starting a company from nothing and expanding it to a global level.

FS: Who are some of your clients?
DF: UnbeatableSale, Microfiber Products Online, Amazon, eBay, Shop.com, PriceGrabber, and ShopAmex, PriceGrabber, Underbid, GrabCart, and Sears.

FS: What type of design work do you enjoy the most and why?
DF: Industrial design because these items are needed in society.

FS: What are your future plans? What is next for you?
DF: I have submitted my applications to business incubators, accelerators, and Venture Capitalists in Silicon Valley for the expansion of Frohne. Frohne will design cutlery next.

FS: Do you work as a team, or do you develop your designs yourself?
DF: I develop designs myself but after I obtain funding from Silicon Valley-California, I would allow others to join the Frohne team to help design the most unique products on Earth.

FS: Do you have any works-in-progress being designed that you would like to talk about?
DF: Frohne versatile Knife: This is a versatile chef knife unlike any other.


FS: How can people contact you?
DF: They can contact me by Skype, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, or email. info@frohneusa.com

FS: Thank you for providing us with this opportunity to interview you.

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