Competitive advantage in ensuring product design: An application from the Turkish furniture sector

Design is one of the most important elements in branding and growth. Companies are using design as a tool which expresses their product?s and service?s difference, functions and quality. They focused on growth through design. Companies, instead of trying to reduce costs, they now preferred to develop designer products for competition.The subject of this thesis is an analysis on product design in the perspective of competition. Product design is launching products to make profit and a concrete creative activity that determines the features of a product to present the product to market. The aim of this study is to analyse the level of direct or indirect effects of product design activity on the competitiveness of the enterprise.This study has been established on five chapters and the first chapter describes the historical development of the furniture design and the effects of the previous designs on the contemporary furniture making. In the second chapter the design concept, the fundamental features of design and the essential design strategies in the perception of design management are discussed. In the third chapter the concepts of competition and the power of competition are being examined and 3 foundations of competition strategy are being defined. In the fourth chapter the development of design making, strategic and tactical movements of Monolife, the company chosen for the research, were analysed. In the last chapter the results of the research was evaluated from Monolife?s point of view.Key World: 1) Design, 2)Design Strategies, 3) Competition4) Competition Strategies, 5) Furniture Sector