The founder director of British Design Innovation (BDI), Maxine Horn, is to step down from her role as chief executive of the trade organisation for industrial designers, service designers and innovation professionals after 17 years at the helm.
Maxine, who formally relinquishes her position on the BDI national board on January 31, formed British Design Innovation Ltd in 1993 and licensed the assets to BDI as a not-for-profit trade membership organisation in 2005.
She retains an ambassadorial role within BDI and will offer ongoing guidance and knowledge-sharing to the management team in order to ensure a seamless transition.
Maxine intends to spend more time developing Creative Barcode, the innovative ideas protection and trading company she launched last September and which recently received the support of the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO).
"This step away from my BDI responsibilities is a case of natural evolution rather than revolution," Maxine said. "The creative industries' trading environment is changing at a rapid pace, so I will now be able to adopt a broader creative sector role and focus on specific issues in a less complex way. I also intend to address intellectual property issues and new trading models for open innovation, supported by licensing, royalty and ideas trading.
I feel very confident in entrusting BDI to the strategic and commercial direction of a widely-respected new Chairman, Gus Desbarats, his fellow board directors and an excellent management team."
"Maxine has been the driver of BDI since its formation, and I thank her for her tremendous contribution on behalf of the countless designers who have benefitted from her efforts over many years," commented Gus Desbarats. "She remains a respected and influential voice within the creative industries and we are convinced that her expertise, drive and enthusiasm will ensure that her new venture will be a great success."