Interview: last week Italian lighting brand Flos was sold to a private equity fund. Dezeen spoke to Flos CEO Piero Gandini about the future of his company, of Italian design and of lighting (+ slideshow). More about Lighting has "passed from electricity into electronics" says Piero Gandini of Flos
News: design brands including Vitra, Artek and Flos have joined forces to attack the UK government for delaying the implementation of a law that would outlaw the sale of copies of their furniture and lighting products. More about Design brands attack UK government over copyright law delay
News: Flos, the Italian lighting brand that produces iconic products including the Castiglioni brothers' Arco light, is to be sold to a private equity fund for around €400 million. More about Piero Gandini to sell Italian lighting brand Flos to private equity fund
News: Chinese brand management conglomerate BlueFocus Communication Group is to acquire a majority stake in Fuseproject, the San Francisco industrial design studio headed by Yves Béhar. More about BlueFocus Communication Group to acquire Yves Béhar's Fuseproject design studio
News: American furniture manufacturer Herman Miller has announced plans to buy contemporary furniture retailer Design Within Reach as part of its ongoing efforts to become "a premier lifestyle brand". More about Herman Miller to buy contemporary furniture retailer Design Within Reach
News: one of the world's biggest architecture practices has split in two so it can focus on bringing Asian-style high-density urban design to Seattle, New York, LA and London (+ interview). More about Aedas dumps UK business to focus on "high-density urban high-rise"
News: following online retailer Fab's acquisition of Scandinavian design brand One Nordic, the two companies have announced the creation of a new furniture brand called Hem that will sell products by Form Us With Love. More about Fab and One Nordic announce new design brand Hem
News: furniture e-commerce company Fab has bought Finnish design brand One Nordic in a move to expand its catalogue of original designs and European business. More about Online furniture retailer Fab buys design-led manufacturer One Nordic
News: Finnish furniture brand Artek has appointed former Design Miami director Marianne Goebl as its new managing director. More about Artek appoints Marianne Goebl as managing director
News: design brands need to remain small to succeed and need "a romantic person" at the helm, according to Vitra owner and board director Rolf Fehlbaum (+ interview). More about "All the design companies together make 10% of what Ikea makes," says Vitra's Rolf Fehlbaum
News: Italy's design manufacturing capability is at risk of disappearing, according to Alberto Alessi, president of design brand Alessi. More about Italian design production "could disappear," says Alberto Alessi
News: US office furniture giant Haworth has acquired a majority stake in iconic Italian design brands including Cappellini, Cassina and Alias as part of its $270 million deal with Italian furniture group Poltrona Frau. More about Haworth buys Poltrona Frau to create global furniture brand
News: Finnish furniture brand Artek has acquired the production facilities that were used by its co-founder Modernist architect Alvar Aalto to develop his signature bent wood furniture. More about Artek buys factory where Alvar Aalto developed his furniture
News: online design retailer Fab has changed its strategy yet again, ending its relationship with external designers and brands across Europe and instead focusing on selling its own custom-designed furniture. More about Fab "taking a break" from selling designers' work in Europe
Interview: Bradford Shellhammer, founder and chief design officer of Fab, explains why the company dropped the "flash sales" model to become both a manufacturer and online retailer of design. In an interview with Dezeen he discusses how Fab is disrupting the industry, how it can help designers and how it "absolutely" wants to open physical stores. More about "Fab did rely too heavily on kitsch" says co-founder Bradford Shellhammer
News: Swiss design brand Vitra has acquired Artek, the Finnish furniture company co-founded by Modernist architect Alvar Aalto in 1935. More about Vitra acquires Artek
News: leading Italian furniture brand Driade has been rescued from bankruptcy by a private finance company. More about Driade to relaunch after financial rescue
News: Italian furniture brand Kartell has announced that it will launch 50 flagship stores across China in the next five years. More about Kartell to open 50 stores in China over the next five years
News: the new president of Milan's Salone Internazionale del Mobile has revealed plans to rebrand the fair, replace its "terrible" website and tackle hotel overpricing and transport chaos that are damaging its image (+ interview). More about New Salone del Mobile president to tackle issues that "damage Milan"
News: the deliberate copying of a design is set to become a criminal offence in the UK, in line with the law on breaching copyright and trademarks. More about UK to criminalise deliberate copying of design