Why Designström Enters Design Competitions — And How It Benefits Homeowners
Awards are often seen as surface-level achievements—nice to have, but not essential. For us, they represent something more meaningful. Entering design competitions is a way to hold our work against the highest standards in the industry, refine our process, evaluate decisions objectively, and ensure that the homes we deliver remain thoughtful, functional, and globally competitive. The motivation isn’t the trophy—it’s the discipline that the process demands.
Designström has earned over 25 awards across categories such as kitchen design, bathroom design, outdoor kitchens, compact spaces, specialty rooms, and conceptual work. But the true value isn’t in the number itself. It’s in what the competition process forces us to do: review our work with a critical lens, articulate design decisions clearly, and benchmark our standards against the best in the industry. Each entry becomes an internal audit of our own expectations.
Most reputable competitions—especially the NKBA Awards and the Sub-Zero Wolf Kitchen Design Contest—evaluate far more than aesthetics. They assess space planning, ergonomics, appliance integration, material selection, lighting strategy, functional performance, millwork detailing, cohesion, execution, and craftsmanship. Submissions are reviewed by architects, designers, builders, editors, and product experts with decades of experience. Entering means stepping into a spotlight where every detail is examined. When our work stands up to that level of scrutiny, it confirms that our internal standards are aligned with global benchmarks.
Competitions also push us to innovate. Renovating older Toronto homes often means navigating restrictive footprints, structural limitations, and aging infrastructure. These constraints force innovation on every project, but competitions encourage us to push that even further—concealing complexity behind clean detailing, maximizing storage in limited square footage, refining millwork systems, and improving lighting plans that balance function with mood. They require us to think beyond solving a single home’s challenges and instead consider how our solutions stack up at a national or global level. That pressure elevates every client project, not just the ones we submit.
Preparing an entry is its own form of refinement. A strong submission isn’t just beautiful photography; it demands a clear explanation of the design intent and the logic behind it. We have to articulate why a layout works, how daily routines improved, what challenges were solved, how technical decisions supported the design, and why the final space functions as well as it does. It forces us to slow down and analyze the work in a way we don’t always do in the rush of day-to-day project execution. This self-examination strengthens our understanding of what makes a project successful and reinforces the principles we want to carry forward.
While we don’t design spaces with the goal of winning awards, recognition does help homeowners feel confident in the value of our approach. Awards signal several things: consistency across years of work, technical excellence beyond the visual layer, a strong design process supported by clear documentation, and accountability to industry standards. Competitions look at details most homeowners may not notice immediately—ventilation planning, appliance requirements, millwork tolerances, clearances, structural coordination—yet these decisions shape how well a home functions. Recognition reassures clients that the unseen work is as considered as the visible design.
Our 25+ awards—including multiple NKBA Ontario wins, Pinnacle Awards, national category placements, outdoor kitchen wins, compact and large kitchen awards, concept recognition, and both global and regional finalist placements in the Sub-Zero Wolf contest—reflect this ongoing commitment. But we try not to treat them as a measure of identity. They’re simply the result of doing our best work consistently, with clarity and intention.
Competitions also strengthen the relationships that support our projects. Entering means engaging with manufacturers, judges, editors, fellow designers, tradespeople, and appliance specialists. These connections expand our knowledge, expose us to new materials and technologies, and keep us aligned with evolving standards. When we have deeper relationships with the people behind the products and systems we specify, our clients benefit directly through better insights, better recommendations, and better solutions.
We continue entering competitions because they challenge us, keep us sharp, reward discipline, push the entire studio forward, and validate the decisions we make on behalf of our clients. They reinforce the values that shape every project: clarity, structure, accuracy, professionalism, adaptability, and a commitment to thoughtful design that holds up long after trends fade.
