ARNO Design has been synonymous with standout brand and trade show presentations and event architecture ever since its foundation in 1994. The company’s experienced teams bring widely diverse characters and skills together. The office on the southern perimeter of Theresienwiese in Munich is a sea of waves. Tape art created by Berlin-based KlebeBande flows across the walls and ceilings as spatial graphics alongside huge sound-absorbing plants of black fabric from Rotterdam company Wandschappen; curtains and glass partitions mark out individual zones, and a long table invites visitors to take a seat, relax, and open themselves to new experiences.
An image video of the company is playing in the conference room, featuring pulsing rhythms, gliding camera shots, and people in animated discussion. “It’s no easy task to bring everything and everyone together,” admits Creative Director and CEO Claus Neuleib. “But of course, we know our strengths and how to play to them.” What about weaknesses? “Well,” laughs Neuleib, “we have to accept them—and turn them to productive use.” After all, adds CEO and strategic project development expert Mirka Nassiri, the goal is always to achieve the best possible result for the customer. She believes that the key is to assemble the right team, the “powerful task force” that can find the answers amid the constantly evolving trade fair landscape. Outstanding exhibition booth design has long been insufficient; concepts are needed that are not only integrated, but also—naturally—sustainable. Such as more modular designs that can be modified and used again and again.
The team is the winner
Nassiri explains, “When we onboard new members, I strive to build a personal relationship with them. It’s important to us that everyone feels comfortable here.” Around two dozen specialists, spanning architects, interior designers, product designers, logistics experts, technicians, and developers, are spread over two floors. Many have known each other for years and are perfectly attuned to working together. The art is to constantly challenge oneself and others, whether that involves new hospitality concepts or spaces for virtual encounters. ARNO Design values face-to-face communication, a mood board crammed with ideas, a chat around the coffee machine. The kitchen leads to a south-facing terrace where chairs are always ready. But nobody is forced to be sociable. “People decide for themselves how much they want to be involved or whether to prioritize, say, their family,” says Nassiri. Perhaps that is the hardest part for any successful company: leaving the well-trodden paths of familiarity to take the next step, embracing personal development, networking, opening up to new ideas.
Passion for design
“We’re all connected by an enthusiasm for design,” affirms Peter Haberlander, CEO and Creative Director. He compares it to being a fan of a particular band or football team, believing that good design builds connections. The image film currently playing on a loop portrays how exactly it works: transcending formal boundaries to make brands shine. After all, one of ARNO Design’s key slogans runs: “Your success is our mission.” As a tour of the creative agency convincingly demonstrates, that mission is no mere tick-box exercise. It is tackled with verve and a light, playful touch. Sabrina Brückner, Head of Marketing & Communication, chimes in that design has no limits. “Our goal is to awaken inspiration and enthusiasm, and to create themed spaces that are ripe for encounter.” She views every trade fair where people meet, engage, and go home with a head full of new ideas as a test bed: from ExpoReal to IAA and BAU, from custom design to sustainable and flexible pre-built modular systems, from hospitality zones to focus areas, at physical locations or as virtual events. ARNO Design’s expert knowledge of creating impact with spaces is by no means confined to trade fairs, but is incorporated in the agency’s commissions to design stores, showrooms, and outdoor areas. For the team at ARNO Design, the only limits are the limits of the imagination. And their imagination seems to know no bounds.
The article on ARNO also appears in mcbw magazine 2025.