Frequently Asked Questions

In very short: IFB Award offers credibility with the industry, visibility with a global audience, and a process with no upfront risk.

It is built around a simple idea: design deserves to be seen by the people who can actually take it further.

• The jury brings together independent designers and executives from leading design-driven companies. Winning here means your work has been evaluated by the same people who decide what reaches the market.
• The recognition that comes with it is equally concrete. An IFB Award win is a verifiable credential — one you can reference in your portfolio, on your website, and in business conversations.
• Winners receive editorial coverage on DesignWanted, reaching an international audience of industry professionals, buyers and media. That visibility doesn't disappear after an announcement: it lives online, permanently attributed to you and your work.
• The process is also designed to be accessible. Submitting is free — no payment is required until your project has passed editorial review and been confirmed as eligible. Entry fees are kept deliberately accessible, because an international stage shouldn't be reserved for studios with large budgets.

Students, independent designers, design studios and design-driven brands of any nationality. Over 18 years old at the time of registration.

The submission date is what counts, not the approval date (both for Early bird and Call closure).

If you submit before 15 October 23:59 CET (Early bird deadline) or before 31 December (Call closure) and your project is approved after that dates:

• you will still pay the Early bird rate of €149 in the first case
• or still be eligible to join the Award in the second case

You will have 3 days from receiving the approval email to complete your registration via the payment link we send you.

In any case, we warmly suggest you to submit way in advance to be sure that everything works smoothly and you have time, if necessary, to resubmit your project if not approved.

Yes, always. Submitting to IFB Award does not transfer or affect your intellectual property rights in any way. Your project — including unreleased concepts and prototypes — remains 100% yours before, during and after the Award. See our Terms & Conditions for the full statement.

Both tracks use the same evaluation criteria, interpreted according to the project's development stage.

• Market Ready is for products already available for purchase — launched no more than three years ago.
• Vision is for concepts not yet in production: prototypes, thesis projects, or independently developed ideas.

Both are special prizes awarded across all category winners — one for the best Vision track project, one for the best Market Ready track project.

Each winner receives:

• A physical certificate
• A dedicated digital kit with logo and jury statement
• n. 1 editorial interview
• n. 1 full article on DesignWanted
• (1) one-hour mentorship session with DesignWanted's founder
• Mentions across PR, social and newsletter.

Both prizes are announced at the same time as the Category Winners in February 2026.

Media Exposure on DesignWanted > Commercial value: €9.980 (each)

Numbers first:

• Category Winners receive media exposure on DesignWanted valued at €11.990
• Best Placed recognition carries a media value of €7.490

Both figures cover editorial features, social posts and newsletter coverage — DesignWanted's core channels.

Beyond that, all shortlisted projects and winners are included in PR communications sent to the international design press. That reach is real, but impossible to quantify before it happens.

These figures don't account for the less tangible — but equally real — value of the award itself: the credibility of being recognised by an industry jury, and the weight that carries when positioning your work and products in the market.

The shortlist will be announced publicly in January 2026. All participants — shortlisted or not — will be notified by email.

Yes, as long as you haven't submitted your project for review.

Once submitted, the project enters our editorial review process and can no longer be edited unless it's rejected. If approved, you will receive a payment link to confirm your entry — at that point the submission is final.

We recommend reviewing all information and images carefully before submitting.