Wayne Hemingway MBE believes in the supremacy of design, whether in clothes or in buildings. At the height of his fame as a fashion designer, he sold his company Red or Dead and turned his attention to social housing. One of the most unique speakers of the circuit, Wayne is a highly engaging and interactive motivational speaker.
Red or Dead began as a market stall in Camden. The label went on to receive global acclaim for its distinctive footwear, clothing and accessory collections. It won the Fashion Council’s Street Style Designer of the Year award three years running. Wayne now specialises in affordable and social housing. Projects include a new settlement of 3000 homes in Lothian and apartments in Manchester’s Northern Quarter. His high profile development on Tyneside won a series of major awards including Building Magazine’s Best Housing-Led Regeneration.
Away from housing, Wayne’s company has designed digital radios, fold-up bikes and water-butts shaped like bottoms. He has also launched a series of Vintage festivals, served as a judge for the Stirling Prize and published Just Above The Mantelpiece and Mass Market Classics. Wayne is on the Design Council Trustee Board and the Design Council CABE Committee, and was awarded an MBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours list of 2006.
In presentations, Wayne Hemingway MBE argues that a flat economy still offers opportunities, especially in the UK’s £62bn creative sector. His own pop-up kiosks are a prime example, providing low-rent space to a new generation of designers.
