Formica Corporation has announced the winners of its 2025 FORM Student Innovation Competition, now in its eighth year. The annual contest celebrates the creativity and vision of emerging interior designers, architects, and furniture designers. Open to students across the United States, Canada, and Mexico, the competition challenged participants to design innovative furniture pieces using Formica Brand products.
Students were challenged to design furniture interpreting the theme of “Designing for Wellbeing.” Students’ 194 submitted designs demonstrated how color, sound, and patterns can positively impact how people live in and experience a space. The designs had to incorporate three or more Formica Brand or FENIX products.
The first, second, and third-place winners received cash prizes. This year, two designs tied for third place, meaning that students behind the four winning designs received cash prizes. The grand prizewinner also will see their design come to life at NeoCon 2025—one of the most important events in commercial design and the premier gathering place for design professionals and end users. Formica Corporation will fabricate the winning design as part of the company’s presence at the show.
“It was exciting to see how applicants interpreted this year’s theme and used various surfaces, colors, and textures to really enhance functionality and promote a sense of wellbeing,” said Meghan Howell, North American design and creative director of Formica Corporation. “Judging this competition and witnessing students’ innovation is so inspiring every year, and makes me excited about the next generation of designers. The future of the industry is in good hands.”
Grand prize: Leah-Marie Boake from the New Jersey Institute of Technology is the grand prize winner for her entry “Playce.” An indoor children’s playhouse and desk combination, Playce is designed to encourage imaginative play in children, which is important for cognitive growth, social skills, emotional development, and stress relief.
“The Playce project outlines deeply connected wellness initiatives critical to enhancing childhood development,” said Jon Otis, competition judge and professor of interior design at Pratt Institute. “All of this is accomplished with a functional and playful form that utilizes Formica Laminate in creative and colorful ways. And it’s fun.”
Second-place prize: Stacy-Ann Matthews and Tara Hunt from Yorkville University in Ontario, Canada, received the second-place prize for their piece “Noyes Balance.” The dynamic, multi-functional piece is designed to enhance well-being in home workspaces by promoting organization and disguising clutter.
Third-place prize: Andrea Vidal Alvarez from Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla in Puebla, Mexico, and Grace Luong from the University of Waterloo in Ontario, Canada, tied for the third-place prize.
Vidal Alvarez’ piece, “SereniTea Hub,” is a practical and aesthetic multifunctional cabinet designed to help users pause for small moments of wellbeing in their daily routines. Luong’s piece, “Solarium,” is a floor lamp designed to mimic the warm essence of sunbeams and connect users to nature, evoking a feeling of wellness.
Honorable mentions: The other top 10 finishers—in no particular order—include:
- Sabrina Landry from Cégep de Trois-Rivières
- Mathilde Johnson from Cégep de Trois-Rivières
- Takeshi Harada from New Jersey Institute of Technology
- Zaida Vanessa Manzano Rivera and Adriana Munguía Chirino from Universidad Nacional Autonoma de México
- Ava Cannedy from Purdue University
- Eduardo Regis Vázquez Carrasco and María Fernanda Castolo Aguilar from Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla
