Nuno Barra, Administrator in charge of Marketing and External Design at Vista Alegre (VA), was celebrating the three awards the brand had just received at the 2018 edition of the Good Design Awards, the oldest design awards in the world. This victory contributed to the international notoriety of the VA brand, which was preparing to launch two new operations in Mexico and India. International sales already represented 64% of the Portuguese company’s turnover, results that contributed significantly to VA presenting the best results in its nearly 200-year history in 2017.
Proud of the company he represented, Nuno Barra thought about the challenges the future held. VA was characterized by excellence, history, and tradition, where products were works of art created by the hands of experienced artisans, and which had successfully reinvented itself through design and
innovation. The internationalization strategy had yielded extraordinary results, but Nuno Barra reflected on the greatest challenge: becoming a global benchmark in all areas of porcelain: tableware, decor, and hospitality. How could this level be reached? How could VA be transformed into a global brand? And would production have the capacity to keep up with this evolution? Alongside this concern was the 4th industrial revolution. VA could not remain indifferent to new manufacturing and industrial production techniques, such as 3D printing.
