Jess Covi is an Austrian-born industrial designer renowned for her expertise in experiential and holistic product design. After completing her master's studies at the University of Applied Arts in Vienna and gaining professional experience in Zurich, Switzerland, Jess relocated to New York City. There, she joined frog design as an industrial designer and expanded her influence by teaching at the School of Visual Arts (SVA), New York University (NYU), and Google's 30weeks startup incubator. Her dedication to innovation earned her a position as an artist in residence at Pitch, a product innovation space.
Jess served as a design consultant and creative director, collaborating with high-profile clients such as Google, Hyundai, Unilever, and Anheuser-Busch InBev. Her work spanned various industries, including hospitality, architecture, consumer goods, and retail, where she provided creative vision and leadership for multidisciplinary teams. Her projects are characterized by a transformative approach, bringing ideas to life at the intersection of design, culture, and product realization.
At BMW Group Design, Jess leads a department that celebrates design in all its facets. Her responsibilities encompass working with the concept car team, creation of publications of design and its mindset, designing for the BMW Museum, exhibiting at Salone del Mobile, and fostering the design foresight practice. Her work addresses the profound impact design has on culture, products, people, and the environment.
Jess Covi’s philosophy is that while aesthetics are fundamental to design, it also transcends aesthetics. She firmly believes that design can solve problems, unite people and cultures, and contribute to a better life.
Over a decade of travel and work abroad, I have become particularly attached to the treasures that remind me of my home in Austria, of the mountains, of the alps. I have struggled to find quality products with lasting designs that can find themselves useful and eye catching in a contemporary household like my own. So I took it into my own hands and created Grete Kraft Atelier: a homewares line celebrating traditional Alpine craftsmanship. It’s the end of kitschy tshatshkes, manufactured in China, and the beginning of minimal accessories, crafted by locals using regionally sourced materials.
Austrian Design has a grand legacy; it’s a rare combination of ornamental design language and high functionality. I have witnessed the pride Alpine craftsmanship carries with it and the artisans themselves who hone their trade to perfection. The decades and centuries of knowledge, passion, and heritage they have built deserve to be celebrated. This is my mission for Grete Kraft Atelier.
Various design cultures and industries exist devoid of worthy references to traditional Alpine design; their products linger around the house- irrelevant to a contemporary audience. Grete Kraft Atelier selects honest artisans, local to the European Alps, to collaborate on a line of authentic products reworked to incorporate the clean design language relevant to your home and lifestyle.
The first of many events, Holding Heimat | The Tirol Edition is a provocative weekend investigation into food, music, nature and making to uncover the spirit of Heimat (a German word that expresses a sense of home or place of belonging).
The desire for Heimat today is more profound as we see many longing for home once they find themselves a new place trying to embrace the local heritage while also keeping some of their own. We know and have talked to many others who share our feelings so we want to create an inspiring weekend to uncover what this means and how we can collectively create home in a new place while also becoming advocates of hospitality.