An emotional design approach to luxury in the design of a 40ft sailing yacht

Yacht design from an industrial design perspective, is about understanding the needs of the consumers. Designers must examine the contemporary understanding of the term 'luxury' in design from the perspective of the consumer. There is an increase in consumers wanting design functionality and usability as well as products that elicit other feelings such as luxury and pleasure. Emotional design involves developing an understanding of consumer characteristics, expectations, desires and needs, and translating them into sensitive and balanced design solutions. This paper presents a number of design case studies, which applied a methodology framework for emotional design, to a 40ft sailing yacht for a range of European personas. Coventry University Industrial Design students carried out this case study as part of EBDIG (European Boat Design Innovation Group) a European Union Leonardo funded research project, with the objective of developing training material for the European marine industry. The design output presented, demonstrates an emotional design framework, enabling luxury to be elucidated visually in a cultural context, as a tool to inform the interior design process for a specific persona. The students explained the significance of colour and form, and the rationale for the design detail. As case studies, these will help European design consultancies gain an appreciation of the value of Emotional Design to the yacht industry.