Peter Van Riet graduated in 1994 as master product designer from the Henri Van de Velde Institute in Antwerp. In 2005 he obtained a master degree in innovation and entrepreneurship at the Vlerick Management School.
Since 1994 he has been involved in numerous projects for several companies, receiving several nominations and awards in competitions like the ‘Koning Boudewijn foundation’, ‘Enterprize’ and ‘Bizidee’ business plan competitions, the ‘Henri van de Velde prize’, l’oberveur design’. He has given lectures on various occasions and was several times visiting lecturer at the Henri Van de Velde Institute for product development. He operates out of Product Projects, the design bureau he established nine years ago.
In 1996 he was co-founder of Prime magazine, the first Belgium snowboard magazine, which reached an edition of 10.000 copies. In 1997 he started another project ‘beyondsnow™’ for the development of a new kind of snowboard binding.
Most of his designs can be found in three domains: furniture and lighting, sports and fashion, and electronics. These products and projects are mainly within Peter’s personal areas of interests: snowboarding, music, interior design and fashion are keeping him busy for years now. But he has also created several products outside these particular interest areas.
Peter Van Riet’s work is based upon methodology. His designs are the result of a process in which a product’s technological, economical and human aspects are combined with the framework offered to him. This is why he strongly values interaction with his customers.
Still, he does not think methodology to be the only creative force. The emotional language of products tends to gain more and more importance. More and more the merely functional characteristics of an object must also be accompanied by an emotional element. In addition, designing has become a much broader activity. Companies increasingly lose interest in separate products. Each and every product is subject to the company’s total image and strategy.

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