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Panda’s Licorice Chair – 50 kg of Sweet Design
Building on the story of Finnish candy design
In 2023, Panda made history when its iconic licorice shape, Lakukka®, became the first candy design to receive the Design from Finland label.
With Panda’s licorice now recognized as a design material, we saw an opportunity to push the boundaries even further. How could we continue expanding the story of Finnish candy design in an unexpected way?
Finland’s first registered candy design, Lakukka®, is a guarantee of good taste. One can recognize the distinctive, sweet, and soft flavor of Panda’s licorice just by looking at it.
Recognising good taste
With the Design from Finland label, Panda’s licorice had become a design material. Now, our task was to explore ways to build on that. Could Panda’s licorice, a well-known classic for decades, once again reinvent itself in a fresh and exciting way? We decided to explore whether the taste of licorice could extend to other mediums. After all, Panda’s licorice has become a designer material. Together with award-winning furniture designer Yuki Abe, we crafted what is believed to be the world’s first Licorice Chair, made from 50 kilograms of designer licorice.
A sweet debut at Helsinki Design Week
The Licorice Chair made its grand debut at Helsinki Design Week, the largest design and architecture festival in the Nordics. There, we invited influencers to see the chair and immerse themselves in the project through a licorice workshop, where they could experience firsthand the possibilities of candy as a creative medium. A PR and social media campaign spread the word about the world’s first Licorice Chair.
Finland’s most delicious design lived up to its name
Panda’s Licorice Chair earned 17 media mentions, including a feature on MTV3’s Viiden jälkeen program, where the reporter called it “one of the best things I’ve seen in a very long time.” Following Helsinki Design Week, Panda’s Licorice Chair was returned to its birthplace—Panda’s factory store in Vaajakoski. However, the chair didn’t stay untouched for long. Soon, telltale bite marks appeared on the seat. Finland’s most delicious design had truly lived up to its name.
After the launch, the Licorice Chair was moved to our factory shop in Vaajakoski. It wasn’t long before we noticed signs of real snack attacks: teeth marks. We’re proud that Finland’s most delicious design has lived up to its name—now in the form of a chair.
Vesa Vainio
Business Manager, Panda
Contact us
Tanja Ijäs
Project director Miltton Finland +358 401 462 714 tanja.ijas@miltton.fi
