Form and Function: nendo Reimagines the Zipper Concept

At Milan Design Week, nendo introduced a series of five zippers it designed for YKK Fastening Products Group.

YKK develops and sells all different types of fastening products, including zippers, hook and loop fasteners, plastic hardware, and snaps and buttons. They came to nendo with a design brief that would turn the concept of a zipper inside out and upside down – reimagining what it is, what it can do, and what it looks like.

“In lieu of focusing on superficial finishings or decoration, it was important to take a step back and delve into the fundamental question, “What exactly is a zipper?” Fastening elements aligned together on a straight line are interlocked together or separated depending on the movement of the slider.

The basic concept of a zipper is to open and close the opening between two pieces of material without any gaps, but by thoroughly assessing each component individually and further reassessment – five new zippers were created.”

Just as the contract furnishings and interior design fields are experiencing unprecedented diversification in consumer needs and faster, shorter product cycles, so too are the world’s textile and sewing product industries. There’s an intersection between all of these fields, and disruptive innovation is occurring at every level. nendo’s “zippppper” project for YKK is evidence of this disruption at a conceptual level that could trickle down to legitimate innovation in product development.

Below, explore each of the five “zippppper” designs. And be sure to check out the zippy video nendo createdto introduce the new project.

01: Zipper that crosses

“In contrast to ordinary zippers which can only be opened or closed in one direction, one zipper is crossed with another one at a right angle enabling them to be opened and closed “lengthwise” and “widthwise.” The intersection part of the zipper is fixed by using four small elements that snap on to each other.”

02: Zipper with gaps

“While still keeping the typical usability of a zipper, new functions were intended with the creation of gaps, such as breathability, flexibility and the means to pass cords or cables, by fastening at “points” rather than in a “line”. Elements are fastened on top of each other like a button and not side by side.”

03: Zipper to fasten three elements

“By moving a three pronged shaped slider, three sets of elements are twisted together, making it possible to go beyond the” flat “dimension and bind fabrics “three dimensionally.” In a single space, three compartments can be simultaneously separated or connected together.”

04: Zipper to seamlessly fasten around

“Originally zippers have a “start point” and an “end point” but by connecting the two, 360 degrees accessibility from any direction was achieved. Moreover, it became possible to successively add circular parts one after the other.”

05: Zipper with a rotating motion

“While pulling a slider with one hand, the other hand should hold the bottom of the material so that the zipper stretches linearly making it open and close smoothly. This may be “stressful” to some people, and resolved it by replacing the “linear motion” with a “rotating motion”. When the disc-like slider is rotated, the internal gear clamps the elements and they open and close simultaneously with the movement.

This enabled the zipper to be operated with one hand, without needing to hold the material. In this way, since it was made up of five different approaches and products, the project name is not “Zipper” with 2 “p’s,” but instead we presumed to spell it with “5”, as “Zippppper”.”