The Story of New Works: A Scandinavian Design Success
New Works is a Copenhagen-based design house, that aims to create pieces of work at the intersection of design craft and art. Co-founded by Nicolai, the commercial lead, and Knut, he creative director, the company has earned a reputation for creating high-quality, customizable furniture.
In just ten years, they have become one of Denmark's most exciting design companies. They bring together Scandinavian design traditions with a spirit of collaboration, working hand-in-hand with both established names and fresh new talent.
The Product
One of Knut's first big successes at New Works is the company's signature shelving system. Designed to effortlessly blend into a variety of spaces, this simple shelving system continues New Works’ ongoing quest of creating elevated basics.
With its flexibility and clean design, it quickly became a customer favourite and one of the fastest-growing product categories in their assortment.
"We are moving a lot more into configurable products, and our shelving system is one of the fastest growing collections in our assortment other than lighting"- Oliver, International Sales & eCommerce at New Works
The Challenge
As demand for the shelving system grew, New Works faced a challenge: the product was difficult for clients to visualize and time-consuming to design.
Architects, interior designers, and clients often had to manually draw each configuration, which could take up to 30 minutes per project.
"The shelving system is highly configurable, and our clients had a lot of issues with visualizing it and having to sit and draw it out by hand. We had architects and designers drawing this out manually." – Oliver, International Sales & eCommerce at New Works
The manual process made the design slow and complicated, creating frustration for both clients and the team. Mistakes were common - missing shelves, incorrect dimensions, and overlooked components.
"When drawing by hand, it was time-consuming and inconvenient: you had to erase, remember all the components, building logic and manually adjust everything, which often led to design and production errors." – Oliver, nternational Sales & eCommerce at New Works
New Works needed a smarter solution. Something that could make the process faster, more accurate, and easier for clients to visualize.
The Solution
At 3daysofdesign (3DD), a leading furniture design festival for professionals, New Works met the team from VividWorks. Looking for a simpler way to handle their highly configurable shelving system, they explored different options and quickly saw how the VividWorks 3D Product Configurator could help.
The goal was straightforward: make it easy for everyone - clients, designers, and architects to visualize and configure the shelving system without spending hours on manual drawings.
The Tool: New Works Shelving System Configurator
To give customers direct control over their shelving design, New Works launched a shelving system configurator, powered by VividWorks.
Here's how it works:
- Tailor your design: Add modules, adjust proportions, and choose materials and finishes to match your space and style.
- Explore variations: Experiment with different shelf combinations and details to find the perfect look.
- Visualize in AR: See how your shelving could look in your home using Augmented Reality.
- Measure precisely: Check exact dimensions of your custom configuration.
- Finalize and order: Add your design directly to the cart or contact New Works team for guidance.
With the configurator, New Works simplifies the design process, makes it easier for customers to experiment and plan, and ensures accurate results every time.
The Results
On the very first day the configurator went live, a client placed an $8,000 order.
"Now it's a lot easier with a system where you can actually draw the solution out and visualize it in realtime." – Oliver, International Sales & eCommerce at New Works
Clients quickly embraced the tool:
- Visualize and configure shelving in 3D
- Swap components easily (straight shelves, slanted shelves, magazine shelves, or cabinets)
- Get accurate results instantly
"The most important part is being able to visualize the shelving and place it as a 3D model in a room to see how it fits. Now, it's very easy to swap out components while you're designing. Clients no longer have to think too much about what to include - the system ensures everything is correct." - Oliver, International Sales & eCommerce at New Works
The usability feedback has been positive too:
"The end user really understands the tool and knows how to use it. The feedback has been that it's nice and easy, and a huge help especially for interior designers and architects working closely with clients." – Oliver, International Sales & eCommerce at New Works
For the sales team, the configurator was just as transformative:
- Reduces manual design work
- Generates quotes and order summaries automatically
- Fewer errors thanks to automated assembly
- Saves time - sessions drop from 30 minutes to just 5 minutes
"Before, when we sat with a client, we could easily use half an hour. Now it's just five minutes instead." – Oliver, International Sales & eCommerce at New Works
Working with VividWorks
The implementation process went smoothly, with extra care taken to ensure that the New Works brand DNA was reflected throughout the configurator.
"Overall, the process was really nice. It took a bit longer than expected, but that was because we needed to make sure our brand DNA came through. VividWorks quickly understood that, which was very important to us." – Oliver
A key factor in the project’s success was having a single dedicated project lead at VividWorks. This person became deeply familiar with the New Works shelving system and its components, making the process far more efficient.
"Having one dedicated person who really took the time to understand our product made a huge difference. Now he's basically the master of the New Works shelving system, and he knows how the components fit together, which made the process so much easier." – Oliver
The project also created opportunities for the in-house design team to expand their knowledge of 3D workflows. By working closely with VividWorks, the team gained valuable insights into 3D files and the level of detail needed for online display skills that continue to benefit their work today.
"The project helped our in-house design team understand 3D files better - things like pixel density, file sizes, and the level of detail needed for online display. That knowledge has been very valuable for us going forward." – Oliver.
Looking Ahead
With the VividWorks Configurator, New Works has turned a slow, error-prone manual process into a fast, intuitive, and reliable experience.
The configurator is more than just a sales tool - it's helping New Works scale internationally, stay competitive, and continue its journey as one of Scandinavia's most innovative design companies. Want to see how 3D could work for your business? Let's chat!