Pikachu has appeared on a lot of things over the past 30 years — Alfredo Häberli’s Origo tableware wasn’t exactly the obvious next stop. Finnish design brand Iittala has reimagined its beloved Origo tableware collection in collaboration with Pokémon, marking 30 years of the Japanese media giant with a trio of pieces that feel both nostalgic and entirely fresh. A mug, a plate, and a bowl — each one a small study in restraint meeting playfulness.
Origo is no stranger to cult status. Originally designed by Alfredo Häberli in 1999, the striped tableware has long been a fixture in Finnish homes, celebrated for its simple geometry and quiet charm. For this collaboration, Häberli returned to his own work, subtly shifting the collection’s signature stripes into a warm palette of yellow, red, and brown — tones drawn directly from Pikachu, Pokémon’s most recognisable character. The result doesn’t shout. It earns its second glance.
Designer: Iittala & Pokémon
That restraint extends to how Pikachu appears across the pieces. Black and white illustrations are tucked onto the insides of the mug, plate, and bowl, as well as their bases — small discoveries rather than declarations. “Pikachu is almost ‘adventuring’ across the collection, adding a layer of surprise and charm,” said Janni Vepsäläinen, Iittala’s creative director, who joined the brand in 2023 after a tenure at JW Anderson.
Vepsäläinen was candid about the unexpected nature of the pairing. “At first glance, Iittala and Pokémon might seem like an unlikely match, two worlds that don’t obviously touch,” she said. “But that quiet friction is exactly what drew us in.” It’s the kind of creative logic that tends to produce the most interesting work — not two brands that naturally overlap, but two identities whose contrast makes the collaboration worth paying attention to.
The emotional hook is the 1990s. Both Origo and Pokémon were born in that decade, and the collaboration leans into that shared origin with intention. “Design culture from that era continues to feel relevant today — timeless products that still spark joy,” Vepsäläinen noted. It’s a sentiment that holds. There’s a reason Origo never left Finnish kitchen tables, and a reason Pikachu never needed a rebrand.
What Iittala has done here is resist the temptation to over-design the moment. The Pikachu Origo collection doesn’t try to be a statement. It simply invites a little joy into the everyday — a flash of yellow on the breakfast table, a small illustration at the bottom of your coffee cup. As Vepsäläinen put it, “Pikachu brings happiness across generations.” On the evidence of these pieces, it’s hard to argue otherwise.
