The Experience Gap
- May 7
- 5 min read
Updated: May 11
Milan Design Week 2026 and the performance of experience design.
An insider critique on experience design and commercial behaviour at Milan Design Week 2026.
Let’s see, Milan Design Week 26, the dust has settled, and the business cards are being discarded. There have been many transactions and interactions, entertainment and some genuine connections. It’s all a massive designer's paradise, or not, depending on how your experience went.
Yes, the experience. For a moment here, let’s talk about the experience, that overused cringe zeitgeist word that everyone splashes around, but not many understand. How did that go? Let’s look at the “quintessential Coachella of the design world” through the lens of experience design and execution.
What is old, but not gold? What still holds? What was done well?
The Arrival Anxiety
The overstimulation, gatekeeping, and first impressions at Milan Design Week.
You did your research, you have your wishlist, targets, and unacknowledged expectations, you saved all the spots to visit this year, and spoke to colleagues about all THE events to attend.
And then you arrive, and the hurdles arrive with you. There is an overwhelming number of people who have the same itinerary, the endless hunger to collect your email address, as if it’s not just an unsubscribe away, the gatekeepers whose soul authority shimmers every time they utter “this is a private event”, and in the mix of all of that, there is inspiration, innovation, and also a lot of terrible experience design.
The Experience Theatre
When experience design becomes performance, marketing strategy, and commercial spectacle.
In the design world or elsewhere, contemporary consumers are increasingly demanding a well-curated experience as a baseline. The interior and product design world has caught the scent of the hype, but how well it’s executed remains the dealbreaker. Parallel worlds coexist across galleries, events, exhibitions, and presentation formats.
There are clear categories of business views and execution styles.
Firstly, some present their new product the old way: a good address, a bouncer at the door, and champagne flowing among influential buyers and friends. A short-lived business strategy that will vanish when this generation of professionals retires, or when market demands force the hand before then.
In the same category, but targeting the masses, are businesses that open their doors to the public and collect email addresses because their marketing departments have convinced them that digital-world hype will translate into sales. Hate to break it to you, this approach is far more niche than most CEOs assume, and shrinking by the day.
Secondly, those who try and fail at designing experiences. Whether well-established brands or independent presenters, this category is playing a “broken telephone” game of understanding how memorable experiences and brand loyalty are built and converted into sales.
Yes, there are elements of experience design, projections, sound design, and a few hints of popular but scientifically incorrect displays of neuroaesthetics, gifts or exchanges. However, and here is the free advice: if you need to talk about how this is an experience you should feel through your senses, you have already failed.
Lastly, the corporate machine that executed all the steps correctly but still failed, and became memorable for “how not to do it”. The recipe is correct: an important address, welcoming etiquette, a renowned designer presenting a unique installation, and a specific emotion captured. Where all the effort fails is the commercial mindset of instant monetisation paraded at the exit in the form of a gift shop. That’s it, the value just vanished into thin air.
They forget the fundamental idea: memorabilia is built around gifting, not 5 euro keychains. The scent of inauthenticity is in the air, big brands sponsoring for visibility, it’s all a bit passé, I dare to say. The danger here is the belief that neuroaesthetic tricks can simply be inserted into commercial goals without following the ground rules of clear and authentic intent.
The Art of Making People Immerse Into The Experience
The standout installations, immersive spaces, and sensory experiences that got it right at Milan Design Week 2026
Dior Maison x Noé Duchaufour-Lawrance Studio presented the new Corolle lamps, an absolute masterclass in how to launch a product, showcase exceptional craftsmanship, and integrate the heritage trend of the year. Curating an inspiring and memorable installation is a form of scientific art, and here it was executed with welcoming warmth, architectural know-how, intricately woven Kyoto bamboo, soothing audio track and lighting.
Arte x Sagarminaga Atelier presented “Echoes of Memphis”, another example of a beautiful installation with impeccable execution. Handcrafted woven sculptural elements against a backdrop of textured, soft wallcoverings, lit intimately and arranged in a colour gradient. A soothing, well-designed experience that sets an example for how to present products in 2026.
"Sounds of Design", curated by Golden Side x Level Shoes, showcased the works of different designers. The unexpected element here was the curious audio installation during a week of visual overstimulation. In collaboration with Neuf Voix, an audio track was created from the sounds of making the products presented in the space. Unexpected, meditative, memorable.
Ferrero Legno x Elena Martucci presented “Doorways to Live”, a well-executed example of ambience architecture, lighting design know-how, and one small detail, “the leaf”, that transported you outdoors.
Presenting sliding doors became intimate and dreamy, while setting a very clear example of how to get people to experience and feel without ever talking about it.
"Shape of Belonging" curated by Oliwia Maria Studio for Isola Design Week, touches on well-being, craftsmanship, and heritage. Yes, there was the beautiful architectural space, tasteful product presentation and soothing overall experience, but the trophy here went to the scent curation, a collaboration between Curator Bureau & Bondi Wash, encompassing the visual experience through the intangible.
The Real Divide
The growing gap between performative experience design and emotionally intelligent environments.
Perhaps the most interesting shift happening in the design world is that beautiful products alone are no longer enough. We have long moved into an era of design where real-time neurofeedback is essential, and how the space alters perception, mood, behaviour, and memory.
And yet, much of the industry is still trying to engineer memorability through formulas, sensory overload, or performative “experience design” language. The installations that truly stayed with people this year shared something much simpler: clarity of intention. There was restraint, emotional precision, ambience, and an understanding of human perception beyond trend forecasting and commercial theatre.
Experience design is not limited to projections, scented corridors, or ambient playlists inserted into a space to increase engagement metrics. At its core, it is the ability to shape emotional response, however that is achieved.
And perhaps that is the real divide that’s emerging in contemporary design, between those who decorate spaces with the aesthetic tricks and those who genuinely understand how to shape environments that resonate and connect with people.
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Vanine Najaryan is a Berlin-based experience and interior designer and founder of STUDIOVN, working at the intersection of interior architecture, experience design, and human perception.
With over 14 years of international experience across hospitality, retail, and immersive environments, her work explores how atmosphere, sensory design, and spatial narrative shape emotional response and behaviour. She is a founding member of the World Experience Organization (WXO)
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