We, as the Designer Interviews ("DI") had the distinct pleasure and opportunity to interview award-winning, most creative and innovative La Jato del Gato ("LJDG").
"La Jato del Gato" is a Peruvian start-up of cat products design. They design multifunctional and eco friendly products that helps the daily lives of cats and their owners. Vanessa Briceño and Brian Geiser are the creators and designers of "La Jato del Gato". Both are architects from the "Universidad de Lima" in Peru.
La Jato del Gato Designs
We are pleased to share with you original and innovative design work by La Jato del Gato.
La Jato del Gato Design - Mocats Multifunctional Cat Furniture
Designer Interview of La Jato del Gato:
DI: Could you please tell us more about your art and design background? What made you become an artist/designer? Have you always wanted to be a designer?
LJDG : Since I was little, I was always in contact with craft and manual work —my dad used to make wooden toys, and at school I also learned to work with wood. I grew up surrounded by pre-Columbian art and crafts, which shaped the way I see objects, meaning, and symbolism. At 16, I discovered magic, and that opened a whole new world for me —it gave me confidence, helped me shine despite being shy, and taught me how to create experiences that spark emotions. Design felt like a natural way to bring all that together —another branch of the same path.
DI: Can you tell us more about your company / design studio?
LJDG : I co-founded La Jato del Gato with my wife, Vanessa. It’s a startup dedicated to designing and making sustainable, functional, and playful furniture and toys for cats and their humans. It started as a very personal project with our own cat, and today it’s a growing business with a clear mission: improving coexistence through better design and helping people observe and understand their cats better.
DI: What is "design" for you?
LJDG : Design, for me, is making people feel free —free to be themselves, to enjoy their surroundings with less stress and more connection. It’s also about communicating —creating something that tells a story and evokes emotions without words. Good design feels almost invisible because it flows and simply feels right.
DI: What kinds of works do you like designing most?
LJDG : I love creating spaces and objects that become channels of communication —between humans and cats, or between people themselves. Things that invite interaction, play, emotion. I also enjoy designing little details that might seem unimportant —like a doorknob— but actually tie everything together.
DI: What is your most favorite design, could you please tell more about it?
LJDG : My favorite is definitely MoCats, the multifunctional modular cat furniture we created and presented for the A’ Design Award. It represents everything we believe in —a thoughtful balance of functionality, sustainability, and playfulness. It’s modular so it adapts to different spaces and needs, it’s fun for cats, and it gives humans the chance to assemble and leave their own scent, strengthening their bond with their pet. Its ability to transform and evolve over time —both for the user and for me as a designer— is what makes it perfect to me.
DI: What was the first thing you designed for a company?
LJDG : The very first was our modular cardboard house for cats, which became the seed of our entire business.
DI: What is your favorite material / platform / technology?
LJDG : Digital fabrication. I love how it allows you to imagine something and then bring it to life almost instantly. Being able to prototype, test, and refine ideas with such precision and speed feels like magic to me —it completely changed the way I approach design. I also love working with cardboard and plywood —they’re accessible, easy to shape, and incredibly versatile.
DI: When do you feel the most creative?
LJDG : When I’m in a new place, surrounded by unfamiliar details and mechanisms. I’m always observing how things work, and that sparks ideas —I start thinking about where I could apply what I see and how to adapt it to the needs I’m working on. I also feel creative when I’m playing —games, magic, cooking— because they help me see things differently.
DI: Which aspects of a design do you focus more during designing?
LJDG : The emotional and sensory experience of the user —how it feels, sounds, looks, smells— and how it flows functionally. Everything must have a reason to be there, and everything must feel intentional.
DI: What kind of emotions do you feel when you design?
LJDG : Excitement, joy, and curiosity. It feels like solving a beautiful puzzle. And I enjoy knowing that optimizing something now means more time later to do what I love —cooking, magic, playing, creating.
DI: What kind of emotions do you feel when your designs are realized?
LJDG : It’s magical —seeing something that was just an idea in my head now being used and enjoyed is incredibly satisfying. It’s even more special when someone tells me it changed how they feel about their home or their relationship with their pet.
DI: What makes a design successful?
LJDG : When it solves a real need while making life feel freer, lighter, and more enjoyable. When people can’t help but want to tell the story of the object —that’s when I know it worked.
DI: When judging a design as good or bad, which aspects do you consider first?
LJDG : First, functionality —if it truly meets a need and solves it properly. Then I look at the form, materials, joints, and details. At the same time, I listen to the proposal and the idea behind it —to see if what has been made really aligns with what the designer claims it does.
DI: From your point of view, what are the responsibilities of a designer for society and environment?
LJDG : To create responsibly —not just solving problems but also avoiding harm, reducing waste, and improving lives. We should stop creating things destined to fail quickly. Instead, we should design things that last and create complementary elements that add value without adding waste.
DI: How do you think the "design field" is evolving? What is the future of design?
LJDG : I believe technology and digital fabrication are bringing design closer to everyone. Designers can create and share ideas, and people will be able to fabricate them at home or locally. That makes design more accessible, more personal, and more sustainable —and gives us a chance to move away from planned obsolescence toward something more meaningful.
DI: When was your last exhibition and where was it? And when do you want to hold your next exhibition?
LJDG : This was actually our first exhibition, but already our second design award. It was a very special milestone, and I hope it’s just the beginning —I’d love to exhibit again soon, especially in spaces where I can connect with people who care about design, animals, and the environment.
DI: Where does the design inspiration for your works come from? How do you feed your creativity? What are your sources of inspirations?
LJDG : A big part of my inspiration comes from magical experiences —anime, video games, theater, books— all of which create atmospheres and emotions that stay with you. That’s what moves me: creating something that feels magical, brings happiness, and makes people feel something they want to share. Magic really transformed my life, and it taught me that design can do the same.
DI: How would you describe your design style? What made you explore more this style and what are the main characteristics of your style? What's your approach to design?
LJDG : Minimal yet playful, sensory, and environmentally conscious. I love designs where nothing is wasted, and every element is intentional. I approach each project as a way to create a moment, not just an object.
DI: Where do you live? Do you feel the cultural heritage of your country affects your designs? What are the pros and cons during designing as a result of living in your country?
LJDG : I live in Lima, Peru. I was lucky to grow up in a home surrounded by Peruvian culture —not everyone here has that privilege. Those creations and traditions were always within my reach. Seeing those details and imagining how they were made inspired me to create things that combine digital techniques with manual craft. The advantage is that if you look for inspiration, history, and references, you’ll find them everywhere. But the country doesn’t really promote art, design, or culture. It may be all around, but what good is it if no one is taught to value it? Design is not well recognized or appreciated in Peru. People often don’t believe design can really help improve their lives —and part of my work is proving to them that it can.
DI: How do you work with companies?
LJDG : I love working conceptually —taking the time to understand what they want to express, what they want others to feel, and helping them land that vision. Then we craft something unique that feels truly theirs.
DI: What are your suggestions to companies for working with a designer? How can companies select a good designer?
LJDG : Find someone who listens to you, asks questions, and truly cares about the outcome for the user. A good designer won’t just execute what you say —they’ll help you discover what you really need.
DI: Can you talk a little about your design process?
LJDG : I work as a team with Vane —she focuses more on the research and the big picture, and then I add the magical, emotional details. I also create many of the tools we use in the workshop to make our processes more efficient. We do a lot of prototyping to test functionality with the real user. Personally, I’m able to visualize the result very clearly in my head, almost exactly as it will be, and that helps me refine details as we go. Finally, we keep polishing certain details to make everything more precise and thoughtful —because it’s only when I can hold it in my hands and manipulate it that I start to see even more ways to improve it.
DI: What are 5 of your favorite design items at home?
LJDG : My Quimera Box magic set, our MoCats, my AeroPress coffee maker, the joinery samples from the brand Plywood.it, and a jacket with a pre-Columbian design made by my cousin, Stephany Geiser.
DI: Can you describe a day in your life?
LJDG : My day always starts with coffee —I can’t function without it. Vane and I are always together, at work and at home. Mornings are for the workshop —creating, producing, testing, and improving our tools and processes. Afternoons and evenings are for being at home with our cats, practicing magic, cooking, and of course, dreaming up more ideas. It’s a life full of creation, play, and connection.
DI: Could you please share some pearls of wisdom for young designers? What are your suggestions to young, up and coming designers?
LJDG : Be patient. Don’t rush it —every detail matters, and good design takes time. Find something you love so much that it becomes part of you, and bring that feeling into everything you create. It’s not about pleasing everyone —but if you design with the intention to transmit something meaningful, people will feel it.
DI: From your perspective, what would you say are some positives and negatives of being a designer?
LJDG : The positive is that you start to see the world differently —you begin to understand the intention behind so many things around you, to find meaning and purpose in everyday objects like benches, streets, buildings. That perspective enriches you. The negative is that in any creative field, there will always be people who judge you —so you have to learn that criticism can also be good, and you have to learn to listen to it.
DI: What is your "golden rule" in design?
LJDG : Every detail matters. Nothing should feel arbitrary. And also —don’t be afraid if, at first, what you design feels like a monstrosity. Keep transforming those ideas and trust the process. And if you ever feel stuck, it’s okay to step away and create something else —sometimes, working on another project helps you solve what was missing in the first one.
DI: What skills are most important for a designer?
LJDG : I think one is learning to question certain processes —why things are done a certain way— and finding new paths to reach the same goals. And enjoying the process of finding those paths. Another is always keeping an open mind, because things can change in an instant and force you to rethink parts of your design. You have to be open to those possibilities.
DI: Which tools do you use during design? What is inside your toolbox? Such as software, application, hardware, books, sources of inspiration etc.?
LJDG : Paper, pencil, markers, and my inspiration gallery —a collection of references from websites, books, or photos I’ve taken myself. I also use digital tools like AutoCAD and Illustrator, laser cutters, CNC machines, cardboard, sketchbooks, and of course… my cats.
DI: Designing can sometimes be a really time consuming task, how do you manage your time?
LJDG : By setting priorities, breaking the work into steps, and focusing on the essence of what I want to transmit. That way, nothing essential gets lost in the details.
DI: How long does it take to design an object from beginning to end?
LJDG : It really depends on what kind of object I’m designing. If the goal is simply to satisfy a functional need, sometimes it can take just 10 minutes to solve the problem. But if I want that same design to also feel artistic, decorative, and meaningful, it can take me days to make it feel perfect.
DI: What is the most frequently asked question to you, as a designer?
LJDG : “Will my cat actually use it?” —and I’m proud to say yes, because it’s designed with them in mind.
DI: What was your most important job experience?
LJDG : I think being a magician. That brought me very close to seeing the reactions and sensations of the audience. It taught me to focus on the experience and the emotions people feel —and that’s something I carry into all my design work.
DI: Who are some of your clients?
LJDG : Pet owners, NGOs focused on animal adoption, specialty pet stores, and other artists who want custom pieces or collaborative designs.
DI: What type of design work do you enjoy the most and why?
LJDG : Prototyping —that’s when the idea starts becoming real and I can test, feel, and adjust it. It’s a moment of discovery. It reminds me of when a magic effect is nearly ready to be shown —everything is in place, and I can sense the emotion it’s going to create. That stage, where possibility meets precision, is where I feel most alive as a creator.
DI: What are your future plans? What is next for you?
LJDG : We want to expand our products internationally and explore new ideas for coexistence —including board games and sensory experiences that connect people to their pets and themselves.
DI: Do you work as a team, or do you develop your designs yourself?
LJDG : We’re a team. Vanessa and I complement each other perfectly —she handles the macro view and research, I obsess over details and emotional impact.
DI: Do you have any works-in-progress being designed that you would like to talk about?
LJDG : Yes —one project I find particularly interesting is a collaboration we’re working on with an artist. We’re creating installations for his projects, where the mounts or displays are not just stands, but pieces of art themselves that combine and dialogue with his work.
DI: How can people contact you?
LJDG : Through our website: www.lajatodelgato.com or Instagram: @lajatodelgato
DI: Any other things you would like to cover that have not been covered in these questions?
LJDG : Just a thank you for recognizing that thoughtful design —even small-scale— can have a big impact. I hope to keep growing and learning. I also believe design isn’t always something physical —it can also exist in more intangible forms: in music, in poetry, in stories, in the way people express themselves or present their ideas. We should also recognize those as design, because they shape us and inspire us too.