Dieter Rams is a German industrial designer born in 1932. For most of his career, Rams worked as the head of design at the international consumer goods company Braun. During his tenure, Rams inserted his functionalist design aesthetic into many Braun products, most famously the SK-4 record player, the D-series slide projector, and numerous small appliances. He also designed furniture for Vitsoe. He is known for articulating ten principles of "good design," most of which defined the simplicity of his approach: usefulness, honest, long-lasting, minimal, and thorough. Rams retired from his post at Braun, in 1995, after three decades with the company.

Dieter Van Den Storm is a freelance writer based in Brussels, Belgium.