Karina Mencke and Marcus Vagnby met on the industrial design programme at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts. They now run the mencke&vagnby design studio together, and have designed a number of Zone Denmark products – including a range of exclusive wine accessories.

Karina Mencke and Marcus Vagnby both grew up in creative families as children of parents who ran their own businesses, they both graduated as industrial designers, they are both deeply passionate about food – and they are also a couple in their personal life.

Many of the design duo’s ideas therefore take shape in the kitchen, where they love cooking and also mixing cocktails. ‘Consciously or unconsciously, we pay a lot of attention to the equipment or utensils we use – always,’ says Karina Mencke. ‘After all, if something isn’t doing the job it’s supposed to do, we can design a new and better solution.’