Kids Design Association

What Kids Design Association does

Kids Design Association operates the Kids Design Award (キッズデザイン賞), Japan's leading annual recognition program for products, services, spaces, activities, and research designed from a child's perspective. Established in 2007 by the Kids Design Protocol Council (キッズデザイン協議会), a Japan-based non-profit industry body headquartered in Tokyo, the program is currently in its 20th edition (2026), with 286 winning works recognized across four departments: children's safety and security, creativity and future development, child-rearing support, and children's participation and engagement. Applicants range from large enterprises (e.g., Daiwa House, JR East, YKK AP, Otsuka Pharmaceutical) to SMEs, NPOs, and local governments, with multiple ministerial awards granted by Japanese government bodies including the Prime Minister's Office, METI, Consumer Affairs Agency, Children and Families Agency, and Gender Equality Bureau.

The underlying technology is a web-based award platform built around a My Page applicant portal for submission management, a public searchable database of all past award-winning works (filterable by department, category, year, and prefecture), and supporting digital assets for winners. No proprietary AI/ML technology is developed; the association evaluates externally produced designs rather than building intelligent systems. Complementary products include the Kids Design Mark (a registered certification trademark licensed post-award), trophies and certificates, and PR tool licensing.

Revenue is generated through three primary streams: per-application review fees (66,000 yen including tax), Kids Design Mark licensing fees tiered by applicant size (large enterprises 55,000 yen+, SMEs 33,000 yen, local governments free), and trophy/certificate sales (24,200–34,100 yen). Distribution is direct via the official website (kidsdesignaward.jp), with PR and marketing executed through press releases, social media (YouTube, Facebook, X, Instagram), and an annual awards ceremony and symposium. Strategic positioning includes a 2026 partnership with iF DESIGN AWARD for international cross-recognition and a Tokyo Metropolitan Government subsidy program covering SME application fees.

Name

Kids Design Association

Legal name

Kids Design Protocol Council (キッズデザイン協議会)

Website

https://kidsdesignaward.jp

Company type

Private

Founded year

2007

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Kids Design Association runs the Kids Design Award, Japan's annual recognition program for child-centered products, services, spaces, activities, and research, serving Japanese enterprises, SMEs, NPOs, and local governments through award evaluation, certification mark licensing, and PR tools.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Design Awards and Certification

akta.pro primary industry

Early Childhood Learning Standards Authorities (EDADAEAF)

Keywords

• Design awards program
• Child-centered design
• Certification mark licensing
• Design recognition system
• Product safety awards

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Award Application Fees: Review/examination fee of 66,000 yen (including tax) per application submitted to the Kids Design Award program
2. Kids Design Mark Licensing: Licensing fees for award winners to use the Kids Design Mark on products, packaging, websites, and promotional materials. Fees vary by company size: large enterprises 55,000 yen+, small/medium enterprises 33,000 yen (including tax), local government bodies free of charge
3. PR Tools and Trophies: Sales of trophies (24,200-34,100 yen depending on size/rank) and additional certificate copies for award winners

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Kids Design Association runs the annual Kids Design Award, Japan's only comprehensive recognition system for products, services, spaces, activities, and research designed with consideration for children's safety, development, and child-rearing. Award winners receive the registered Kids Design Mark certification, which they can license for use on products, packaging, and marketing materials, along with trophies, certificates, and access to a public searchable database of past award-winning works.

Product overview

Kids Design Association operates the Kids Design Award, Japan's premier recognition system for products, services, spaces, activities, and research designed with consideration for children and child-rearing. The award program encompasses the annual Kids Design Award evaluation across four departments (Safety/Security, Creativity/Future, Child-rearing Support, and Children's Participation), the Kids Design Mark certification system allowing winners to display child-safety credentials, and associated trophy/certificate services. The organization also provides a searchable database of past award winners and maintains PR tool licensing for commercial use of the award mark.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Kids Design Award (キッズデザイン賞) Annual award program recognizing excellent products, services, spaces, activities, and research designed with consideration for children and child-rearing. Companies and organizations submit entries which are evaluated by a panel of judges across four design departments. The 20th edition in 2026 received 286 winning works.
• Kids Design Mark (キッズデザインマーク) Official registered trademark certification mark granted to award winners, allowing them to display the KDA mark on products and promotional materials to signal child-safety and child-rearing consideration. Available with or without award year. Licensing fees vary by company size: large enterprises 55,000+ yen, SMEs 33,000 yen, local government free.
• Trophy (トロフィー) Physical trophy awarded to winners in four sizes corresponding to award level: Super Large (Grand Prize) at 34,100 yen, Large (Excellence Award) at 30,800 yen, Medium (Encouragement/Special Award) at 27,500 yen, and Small (Kids Design Award) at 24,200 yen, all tax included.
• Certificate (表彰状) Official certificate of award recognition. Additional certificates available for order after announcement. Special awards (Grand Prize, Excellence Award, Tokyo Governor's Award, TEPIA Special Award) cannot be reissued due to official seal requirements.
• PR Tools (PRツール) Marketing and promotional materials available to award winners including mark data files for use in catalogs, websites, and advertisements. Usage fees vary by media type and company size with SME pricing available.
• Award Winner Search Site (受賞作品検索サイト) Online searchable database of all past award-winning works from 2007 to present. Users can filter by department, category, award type, year, and prefecture to find specific products and services.
• My Page (マイページ) Online portal for registered applicant companies to submit award entries, track application status, upload presentation materials and images, and manage communications with the award secretariat.

Quantifiable outcome

• 286 winning works recognized in 2026 (20th edition)
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers12 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• iF DESIGN AWARDcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 13 March 2026Partnership integration between Kids Design Award and iF DESIGN AWARD 2027. This collaboration provides mutual promotion and cross-recognition opportunities between the two prestigious design awards. Winners of Kids Design Award may receive enhanced visibility in the international design community through iF's global platform.
• Users and ApplicantscoreOthersThe organization collects personal information from applicants who voluntarily register on the website, using it for award-related communications and protocol activities. The organization manages application information under strict confidentiality obligations.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Good Design Award: Operated by the Japan Institute of Design Promotion, the Good Design Award is Japan's flagship annual design recognition program covering products, services, and systems. It is the closest direct peer — also Japan-based, also annual, also featuring a certification mark (G Mark) with licensing fees, and competing for the same pool of Japanese design applicants as Kids Design Award.
• iF Design Award: Run by iF International Forum Design in Germany, the iF Design Award is a globally recognized annual industrial design competition. It is both a direct peer (similar awards-program model, application fees, certification mark) and an active strategic partner of Kids Design Award under their 2026-announced partnership.
• Red Dot Design Award: Germany-based Red Dot is a major international product and communication design competition with annual application fees, jury-driven evaluation, and a Red Dot branding mark licensed to winners. It competes for the same global and Japanese design-recognition budget as Kids Design Award, especially in consumer-products categories.
• A' Design Award: Italy-based A' Design Award is an annual international design competition with a broad category coverage and tiered recognition system (Bronze/Silver/Gold/Platinum). It overlaps with Kids Design Award as a fee-based design recognition program and competes for international and Japanese applicants seeking credible certification marks.
• IDEA Award (International Design Excellence Awards): Run by the Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA), IDEA is one of the longest-running international industrial design awards. It is directly comparable as an annual, jury-selected design recognition program with award tiers and serves a similar function of conferring industry credibility to winning product designers.
• Core77 Design Awards: Core77 Design Awards is an annual international design recognition program with a multi-category structure (product, service, interaction, transportation, etc.). It is a direct peer as another annual, fee-based, jury-evaluated design awards program competing for the same pool of professional designers and brands.

Broad incumbents

• Japan Institute of Design Promotion: Parent operator of the Good Design Award and a broader Japanese design-promotion organization with deeper institutional backing and a more expansive category structure. It is comparable as the dominant Japan-based design-recognition body but operates at a larger scale across all design domains, not specialized in children.

Regional players

• Kidscreen Awards: Kidscreen Awards is a North America-based annual awards program recognizing excellence in children's content, media, and entertainment. It is comparable as an awards body with a child-focused mission and category structure, though it operates in a different content vertical (media) and geography from Kids Design Award's product/space focus in Japan.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/kidsdesignjp
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC5CUVJauDmZfhYz4qcpmavg
• Facebookfacebook.com/kidsdesignjp
• Instagraminstagram.com/kidsdesign0808

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Kids Design Association