A Place To Talk

In today’s episode Luis De Oliveira, founder of De La Espada, meets David Harry Stewart who travelled from LA to meet us in the neighbourhood of Santos in Lisbon. He founded media company AGEIST addressing the modern 50+ lifestyle. David shared anecdotes of how society overlooks this group of people.

In today’s episode Luis De Oliveira, founder of De La Espada, meets Portuguese architect Manuel Aires Mateus, in his atelier in the Principe Real neighbourhood of Lisbon. They talk about how he never breaks with tradition without falling into imitation.

In today’s episode Luis De Oliveira, founder of De La Espada, meets Joana Astolfi who is an artist, architect and designer, in the Marvila neighbourhood - Lisbon. They look at Joana’s childhood and early professional experience as she sought her unique creative voice.

In today’s episode Luis De Oliveira, founder of De La Espada goes to Alma, a members club in the Östermalm neighborhood of Stockholm, to meet Fredrik Carlström, its co-founder and creative director. We looked at how hard work and taking risks paid off, followed by how his experience in the film industry led him to other ventures.

In today’s episode Luis De Oliveira, founder of De La Espada, meets Karin Wickberg, Chief Marketing Officer at Kasthall, a long established rug manufacturer. She brought up the struggle for brands to stay relevant today, and how marketing should never rest on its laurels.

In today’s episode Luis De Oliveira, founder of De La Espada, meets Annica Eklund, Chief Creative Officer of Swedish brand Bolon, in the Miss Clara hotel in Norrmalm - Stockholm. They look at how Annica and her sister Marie reinvented a struggling family business and made vinyl flooring relevant and exciting.

In today’s episode Luis De Oliveira, founder of De La Espada, meets Hanna Nova Beatrice, editor in chief of Residence Magazine, in the Berns Hotel in Norrmalm - Stockholm. They look at the changes affecting the world of publishing, and the issues that surround the tide of new products flooding the market.

In today’s episode Luis De Oliveira, founder of De La Espada, meets Fredrik Sweger, a successful commercial photographer, in his studio in Vasastan - Stockholm. They discuss how focusing on the niche of interior photography has helped further his career.

In today’s episode Luis De Oliveira, founder of De La Espada, meets Magnus Wästberg, founder of Swedish lighting company Wästberg. They discuss how keeping the balance between the technical aspect and the emotional, aesthetical values of lighting is at the core of the business.

In today’s episode Luis De Oliveira, founder of De La Espada, meets Morgwn Rimel, former Director of the ‘School of Life’. They discuss ways to better live our lives and how emotional intelligence is in short supply.

In today’s episode Luis De Oliveira, founder of De La Espada, meets Oli Stratford, Editor in Chief at Disegno Magazine. They managed to get away from discussing about the press and mused about how history informs our present.

In today’s episode Luis De Oliveira, founder of De La Espada, meets Deborah Spencer, Founder of Design Junction. They discuss how this contemporary design show started and ended up talking about how dyslexia has helped with project management.

In today’s episode Luis De Oliveira, founder of De La Espada, meets interior designer Brian Woulfe inside one of his latest projects. They discuss how having vision boards can be challenging as that often gets in the way of a rewarding design process.

In today’s episode Luis De Oliveira, founder of De La Espada, meets designer Matthew Hilton in his studio in Crystal Palace, a neighborhood in South London. They first met eleven years ago, and even then Matthew had a reputation for honesty in the world of design and for how he approaches the design process, like an artisan views his craft, patiently and without fuss.

In today’s episode Luis De Oliveira joins Stephen Briars, Creative Director at the Conran Shop, London’s leading luxury retailer. From its background working for paul Smith, Louis Vuitton and Urban Outfitters, the conversation bounces between the worlds of fashion and design, setting differences, discovering unexpected links, looking at how two very different industries can still have lessons to teach each other.

This is Luis De Oliveira founder of De La Espada and host of ‘A Place To Talk’, a series of conversations that take us to new places. Starting out with no formal hidden agenda, we talk to our guest and engage our listeners, by going with the flow we walk in digressions and new turns. We’ve reached out to wide range of people representing different points of view within the design world. As an industry, we are often seen as self-referencial rather than inclusive. In this moment in time, defined by the broad sharing of ideas through new channels, we saw the opportunity to create honest dialogs. We aim for nothing more than a breath of fresh air, some humour and hopefully some good ideas to enrich the conversations. So sit down, and let us take you to new places.