Growth in Industrial Design Filings Highlights Emerging Economies, with a Sharp Rise in the Dominican Republic

By Guzmán Ariza, Attorneys at Law

Global activity in industrial design protection continued to expand in 2024, reflecting both steady demand in established markets and rapid growth in several emerging economies. According to data compiled by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), an estimated 1.22 million design applications were filed worldwide during the year, representing a 2.6% increase compared to 2023. Around 60% of national and regional intellectual property offices reported higher filing volumes than in the previous year, underscoring the broad-based nature of this growth.

In absolute terms, the largest increases in design applications were concentrated in major IP offices. India recorded the most significant rise, with 12,160 additional applications compared to 2023, reinforcing its growing role as a center for industrial and product design activity. The United States and the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) followed, with increases of 8,199 and 2,781 applications, respectively. These figures reflect continued demand for design protection in large consumer markets and manufacturing hubs.

To improve international comparability, WIPO also analyzes filings based on application design counts, which measure the number of individual designs contained within applications. This approach accounts for differences between jurisdictions that allow multiple designs per application and those that do not.

Using this metric, applications filed worldwide in 2024 contained approximately 1.56 million designs, a 2.2% increase year on year. While the number of designs in resident applications remained broadly stable, non-resident filings rose sharply by 12.5%, indicating stronger cross-border demand for design protection. Much of this growth was concentrated in the US and the EUIPO, which together received 13,297 additional non-resident designs. Other notable increases were observed in the United Kingdom, Brazil and France, suggesting renewed international design activity across multiple regions.

Dominican Republic Stands Out Among Emerging Economies

Beyond the largest IP offices, the data reveal striking growth rates in several low- and middle-income economies. Among offices outside the global top 20, the Dominican Republic recorded the fastest growth in design counts, with a 70.8% increase in 2024. Comparable, though slightly lower, growth rates were observed in Mongolia (68.6%), the Philippines (40.1%), and the Eurasian Patent Office (40%).

While these increases are measured from smaller absolute bases than those of major economies, they are nonetheless significant. In the case of the Dominican Republic, the sharp rise suggests increasing use of the design system, potentially linked to greater awareness of IP protection, diversification of manufacturing and creative industries, or increased engagement with international markets. Such growth also points to the gradual integration of smaller economies into global design and branding value chains, where product appearance and differentiation play an increasingly important role.

Sectoral Concentration Reflects Consumer and Industrial Demand

Design activity in 2024 remained concentrated in a limited number of sectors. Furniture and household goods and textiles and accessories each accounted for 16.7% of all designs filed globally, making them the two largest categories. These were followed by tools and machines (11.3%), ICT and audiovisual products (9.2%), and electricity and lighting (8.9%). Together, these five sectors represented 62.8% of all industrial design classes recorded worldwide.

This distribution reflects both traditional strengths—such as furniture and textiles—and the growing importance of technology-related products, where design increasingly contributes to usability, branding and market differentiation.