Twenty years. In product years, that's an eternity. Trends come and go. Technology ages. What was groundbreaking yesterday is in the thrift store today.
And yet. The 5X5® Connected by Innovation expo at WONDER Kortrijk featured a gardening machine that has been around for a decade. Not a museum piece, but a product that is still being sold. Still works. Still relevant.
The story begins with Frederic Lietaer, the man behind ELIET. An entrepreneur who understood that specialization in niche markets and constant innovation are the keys to success.
When ELIET approached Pilipili through the 5X5® trajectory of Designregio Kortrijk, the assignment was clear: develop a wood chipper for the private market. But the ambition went further. This was not to be a machine you hide behind the garden shed. But one that should be seen.
So we started where good design always begins: with people. Not with technical specifications. With people standing in their gardens, with branches in their hands, thinking: how on earth am I going to get this small? We observed. Painful recoil on hands when a branch snags. Frustration at branched branches that don't want to. Collection bags that fall over. Every problem became a design question. Every frustration an opportunity.
A viewable shredding chamber - so you can see what's happening and prevent blockages. A plastic-composite housing - lighter, quieter, more durable. An integrated collection bag - no more hassle. A rotating feed-in opening - so that even branched branches slide in effortlessly. But above all: a shape that's right. Organic and technical at the same time. A machine that looks as strong as it is.
This is design that looks beyond. Not product or user or brand or business. But everything together, in one movement. At pilipili, we don't call it method. We call it common sense. You solve problems by looking, listening, and then drawing.
Twenty years later, the NEO is still standing. Good products survive trends. They are not replaced, they are cherished.
