Milan — Italian appliance maker De’Longhi unveiled a new concept at Milan Design Week 2026 on Saturday, transforming its coffee machines into miniature cafés featuring façades of major cities. The installations include Parisian rooftops, Tokyo’s neon-lit streets, and other iconic urban skylines, integrated directly into the machines’ designs.
The project, presented under the theme ‘Place is not the point’, shifts focus from location to the machine itself. De’Longhi’s creative team collaborated with urban photographers to capture high-resolution images of cityscapes, which were then printed onto the surfaces of its espresso machines and bean-to-cup models. The result is a blend of kitchen appliance and urban art, targeting design enthusiasts attending the week-long event in Milan.
‘We wanted to challenge the idea that a coffee machine is just a functional object,’ said Luca De’Longhi, the company’s design director. ‘By embedding recognizable city elements, we’re turning everyday brewing into a visual experience.’ The prototypes will remain on display in De’Longhi’s booth at the Salone del Mobile until Sunday.
Visitors to the exhibition can interact with the machines, which retain full functionality while serving as portable art pieces. The company has not announced plans for commercial production but confirmed these designs are part of its experimental ‘Design Lab’ series, which has previously featured collaborations with architects and artists.
The Milan Design Week, running from April 14 to 19, draws over 300,000 visitors annually. De’Longhi’s installation is one of 1,200 exhibitions across the city, showcasing innovations in product design, sustainability, and smart home technology.