Press Release
HKTDC Creative Department Receives the Silver A' Design Award for China International Import Expo 2025 Exhibition Space in Event and Happening Design
The international grand jury of the 2025 - 2026 A' Design Award & Competition recognizes HKTDC Creative Department for event and happening design
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
COMO, Italy, April 16, 2026 /DesignNewswire/ A' Design Award & Competition has confirmed the Silver A' Design Award in the Event and Happening Design category for China International Import Expo 2025 Exhibition Space by HKTDC Creative Department, designed for Hong Kong Trade Development Council. The result belongs to the 2025 - 2026 A' Design Award & Competition and was reached through blind peer review by an international grand jury panel of established academics, design professionals and press members, who assessed anonymized entries against predetermined criteria.
About the Silver A' Design Award
The Silver A' Design Award celebrates top-tier designs that embody excellence and innovation. This award acknowledges creations that are not only aesthetically pleasing but also highly functional, reflecting the designer's deep understanding and skill. Silver A' Design Award recipients are recognized for their contribution to raising industry standards and advancing the practice of design. Their work often incorporates original innovations and elicits a strong emotional response, making a notable impact on the improvement of everyday life.
About China International Import Expo 2025 Exhibition Space
China International Import Expo 2025 is an exhibition space created for Hong Kong companies at a trade fair in Shanghai. The design comprises two pavilions, one for products and one for professional services. The Food Pavilion uses warm modular wood, metallic details, garden inspired features and curated lighting to form a multisensory tasting route. The Service Pavilion uses organic wave like forms, gradient colors and digital walls to guide movement. Both pavilions are built with reusable modular framing and energy efficient LED lighting.
About HKTDC Creative Department
The Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) is a statutory body established in 1966 to promote, assist and develop Hong Kong's trade. With 50 offices globally, including 13 in Mainland China, the HKTDC promotes Hong Kong as a two-way global investment and business hub. The HKTDC organises international exhibitions, conferences and business missions to create business opportunities for companies, particularly small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), in the mainland and international markets. The HKTDC also provides up-to-date market insights and product information via research reports and digital news channels.
Award Record
This recognition makes HKTDC Creative Department a winner of 16 A' Design Awards. The awards were granted between the 2020 - 2021 and the 2025 - 2026 editions of the A' Design Award & Competition.
About the A' Event and Happening Design Award
The A' Event Design Award is an international event design competition recognizing good event designs by leading event designers and organizers worldwide. It is organized within the A' Design Award & Competition and is open to event designers, corporate event planners, wedding planners and festival organizers from all countries. Typical entries include trade fairs, award ceremonies, festivals, conferences, exhibitions and concerts. The awarded event designs are published at https://designers.org/design-category/event
About A' Design Award & Competition
Organized annually since 2008, A' Design Award & Competition is an international, juried design accolade. The competition is open to entries from all countries. The philanthropic mission of the A' Design Award is to advance society through good design, by recognizing and promoting superior products, projects and services that benefit society, and by creating a global awareness and appreciation for good design practices and principles. Nominations are peer reviewed and evaluated anonymously by an international grand jury panel of established academics, design professionals and press members against predetermined criteria such as functionality, ergonomics, engineering, presentation, innovation, usability, sustainability and technology, with score normalization applied to remove biases. Awards are conferred at Platinum, Gold, Silver, Bronze and Iron levels. Eligible laureates receive the A' Design Prize, which includes the award trophy, the certificate of design excellence, the hardcover yearbook, a lifetime license to use the A' Design Award winner logo, exhibition of awarded works, an invitation to the gala night and award ceremony in Italy, inclusion in the World Design Rankings and Designer Rankings, and public relations and publicity services. Registration, uploading a work and receiving a preliminary score are free of charge, and Professional and Digital Edition laureates are not contractually obliged to pay further fees to claim the A' Design Prize. More information is available at https://competition.adesignaward.com
Press Resources
- Winner Page: https://designers.org/179627
- A' Design Award Page: https://competition.adesignaward.com/179627
- Media Showcase: https://www.designnewsroom.com/!179627
- Laureate Profile: https://designers.org/d/270249
- Further Information from the Laureate: http://www.hktdc.com/
Media Contact
Giulia Ferrari, Press Office
Designers.Org
Via Leone Leoni 32, 22100 Como, Italy
press@designers.org
+39 031 4491953
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Fact Sheet
The Work
- Project
- China International Import Expo 2025 Exhibition Space
- Function
- Exhibition Space
- Category
- Event and Happening Design
- Discipline
- Service Design
- Industry
- Branding & Advertising and Arts
- Colors
- Black, Dark Slate Gray, Midnight Blue and Dark Green
- Images
- 5
- Client
- Hong Kong Trade Development Council
The Recognition
- Laureate
- HKTDC Creative Department
- Country
- Hong Kong (China)
- Recognition
- Silver A' Design Award
- Edition
- 2025 - 2026
- Design ID
- #179627
Credits
- Image Credits
- Hong Kong Trade Development Council
Design Details
- Unique Properties
- To support Hong Kong companies in expanding their domestic sales in the mainland China market, the Hktdc established two pavilions at CIIE 2025: the Hong Kong Products Pavilion and the Hong Kong Service Industry Pavilion. These pavilions served as vital platforms for Hong Kong enterprises promoting their branded services and products with ethnic, cultural, and regional features, such as foods, health, and household products.
- Inspiration
- The Hong Kong Food Pavilion showed inspiration from modern oriental elegance, blending abstract artistry, luxury, and sustainability. Warm modular wood, rose gold accents, garden like features, and curated lighting created a refined, multisensory dining journey rooted in cultural heritage. The Hong Kong Service Pavilion embodied global synergy, using organic, wave like forms, gradient colours, and digital media to express Hong Kong's vitality, adaptability, and forward looking, sustainable business spirit.
- Research
- Over a six month design and research process, the Creative team developed two complementary pavilions that strategically showcased the strengths of Hong Kong exhibitors at CIIE 2025. Drawing on the themes of Modern Oriental Elegance and Global Synergy, the project translated cultural identity, innovation and sustainability into immersive spatial experiences. Through material studies, digital integration and modular planning, the design successfully enhanced visitor engagement, promoted wellness and business excellence, and presented Hong Kong brands as forward looking and globally competitive.
- Challenge
- Set within the Shanghai National Convention and Exhibition Center, the world's largest exhibition complex, the key challenge was to create a highly distinctive, eye catching pavilion that could stand out at scale and attract visitors from a distance. The project also required navigating tight move in schedules, restricted site access and complex logistics. A modular construction strategy was carefully developed to streamline installation, reduce on site complexity, improve efficiency and ensure timely delivery without compromising design quality.
- Realization and Technology
- Both pavilions adopted an eco friendly booth design built on reusable modular framing and energy efficient LED technology, reducing waste while enabling fast installation and flexible reuse. A nature themed social media zone was introduced, featuring a dedicated KOL livestream studio for real time product promotion. Integrated greenery, lighting and digital media created an engaging backdrop to amplify brand stories, while spotlighting the market success of Hong Kong firms and their innovative wellness and lifestyle.
- Operation and Interaction
- The two pavilions were designed with clear circulation and seamless interaction at their core. The Food Pavilion guided visitors through connected zones for tasting, display, and livestreaming, using garden inspired elements and focal features to encourage exploration and dwell time. The Service Pavilion adopted a fluid, wave like layout supported by digital walls and touchpoints, enabling intuitive movement, effective exhibitor visibility and direct engagement between Hong Kong businesses and global buyers.
- Project Duration and Location
- The project was delivered for CIIE 2025, held from 5 to 10 November 2025 at the Shanghai National Exhibition and Convention Center, the world's largest integrated exhibition venue. To address the distinct positioning, business objectives and programme needs of each pavilion, the Creative team partnered with project team from initial concept development through detailed design, coordination and final delivery, ensuring innovative, sustainable and well executed pavilion environments.
- Specifications
- The Hong Kong Pavilions at CIIE 2025 comprised two purpose designed areas with distinct scales and functions. The Food Pavilion measured 42m wide x 23.88m deep x 6m high, covering about 1,000 sqm and hosting 30 exhibitors presenting food and health products. The Service Pavilion measured 28.6m wide x 17.5m deep x 6m high, spanning around 500 sqm and accommodating 16 professional services and logistics exhibitors, enabling efficient buyer engagement and new partnership opportunities.
- Keywords
- CIIE, HKTDC, Exhibition Design
