British interior designer Tom Dixon didn’t walk the usual path towards a career in design. Completely self-taught, he created his first pieces with his welding skills, often using found objects. By the late 1980s, he was working for Italian brand Cappellini. Now, he heads up his eponymous brand Tom Dixon as well as interior design and architecture arm Design Research Studio, putting out eye-catching, unconventional designs that have become instantly recognisable. The firms create spaces for restaurants, residential and commercial design clients across the globe – including Jamie Oliver’s Barbecoa restaurant in London and Hong Kong’s recently opened bar and grill Alto.

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The Wingback chair and Melt pendant light in brass 

We are committing more and more to Asia in general, with our expanded office in Hong Kong, new partnerships in Korea and a store in Japan. We are thrilled by the speed at which projects get decided upon and built in Asia.

In my experience, everybody is different and needs different levels of stimuli. I learnt a lot from other creative businesses I was involved in and was able to transfer that experience into design. I think doing it on your own can be a useful way of having a unique point of view, which in the modern world is an increasingly important quality.‭ ‬

I try to put myself in unexpected situations so that I can refresh myself. One of these is working as a perfumier for our range of scents, which was a thrilling adventure that would have had a completely different outcome if I had been conventionally trained.

See more: Tom Dixon launches new autumn/winter 2016 collection

Curve lamps

Form teapot

Fade pendant lamp

The interiors of the Mondrian Hotel in London

Bar and grill Alto in Hong Kong

I think the brand’s development over the last 10 years has probably been a bit more complicated than I anticipated. So many different categories – chairs and chandeliers, tableware and paper clips, scents and textiles, glass and plastic – all from different countries of origin, and then all going off to 65 different countries. But, with any luck, now that we have established great relationships with our manufacturers and a growing recognition of our brand, I hope things will become easier.

In recent years, I’ve noticed more interest in design from a wider demographic. From Mumbai and Tehran to Senegal and Vancouver, we have people interested in what we do. There are more trade fairs, more publications and more designers than ever before.

Lately, there’s been a huge amount of retro design inspired by the 1980s – geometrical shapes, pastel colours and a definite nod to post-modernism. This been very refreshing, but it’s in danger of being a fad because so many people jumped on it.

I would love to do more transport and electronics. I would also like to do more architecture and master-planning. 

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