Design Dynamite

No matter how small, each piece of furniture at Nando's is an opportunity to share South African design with the world. Such as the recent collaboration between the award-winning Wiid Design Studio and Nando's HYD finalists to reimagine the Nando's table caddy

TEXT MALIBONGWE TYILO TEXT MALIBONGWE TYILO

PATTERN BY SPAMANDLA MDUNYELWA

he collaborative relationship between Nando's

Tand the world of South African design is a deeply productive one and has grown the Nando's aesthetic design into one of the most sustainable and authentic collaborations in Southern Africa.

A charming example of this communal design approach is the new Nando's caddy or table topper, designed by Wiid Design Studio founder Laurie Wiid van Heerden and featuring patterns by four Nando’s Hot Young Designer (HYD) 2018 finalists.

The smallest piece of furniture in the Nando’s world, the table topper is an iconic sculptural piece that holds the table number, signature cockerel stick as well as the QR code to access the online menu.

Conceptualising a collaboration that would deliver excellence was the task of Clout/SA. Of the process, Tracy Lee Lynch, the creative director of the Nando's Design Programme, says, “In the past, we’ve used incredible pattens by our HYD finalists across the globe in Nando’s casas, in both large scale and smaller installations. When Clout was approached to facilitate this item for Nando’s, it made complete sense to work with a local South African designer and manufacturer. "Laurie Wiid’s practice includes designer pieces made from cork, steel and timber. He is an incredibly versatile designer. His attention to detail is phenomenal and he merges creative solutions with practical applications within all his pieces. I had every confidence that he would deliver something exceptional.” One of the greatest rewards Clout/SA has received from facilitating the Nando’s HYD since its inception in 2016 is the incredible community of young designers that it gets to work and grow with. For this project, four finalists — Primrose Chimhanda, Bonolo Chepape,

Dillon Joseph and Spamandla Mdunyelwa — will benefit from a licence fee and a little global nod to their excellence. Every table in every

Nando’s should one day be their showcase space. The global rollout is in the works, with the table topppers already being tested in most of

Nando's markets, locally and globally. Assisted by the manufacturing expertise and resources of Wiid

Design Studio, each of the finalist’s patterns has been translated into powder-coated steel table toppers in a cut-out stencil fashion. The table topper is one of the most ubiquitous pieces in any

Nando’s restaurant. Now, with this collaboration, it becomes a new vehicle to bring South African creativity and storytelling that much closer to Nando’s restaurant patrons, wherever they may be. As with previous collaborative design pieces facilitated by Clout/SA, the pieces are available on Nando’s Portal to Africa, the online marketplace that connects South African designers to interior designers working on Nando’s restaurants globally. O