Toud has been a member of EPDA – European Brand & Packaging Design Association since 2026

It’s all about people: Alexandru Grigorescu

Meet Us series is designed to introduce members of the EPDA community — both to other members and to design professionals interested in the association. In this edition, we share a short interview with Alexandru Grigorescu, Co-Fondator and Head of Design at Toud.

1. Why have you become a member of EPDA?

EPDA was something magical — it simply happened.

We found it on Google, almost by chance, and were immediately drawn to the simplicity and meaning behind the community. After meeting Claudia, there was an instant resonance. We quickly realised we share a great deal of the same values.

Honestly, we feel as though we’ve been part of this family for years, not weeks. And it was precisely that sense of belonging that gave us the confidence to ask Claudia for help finding a great printing house in Western Europe — trusting her the way you trust someone you’ve known for a long time. She responded quickly, with several solid options, and that meant a great deal to us.

EPDA is a large family built around shared values. We’re truly glad we found it — and glad it found us.

2. Who is your biggest reference or inspiration in design?

We are a branding and design agency that lives in a village on the Transfăgărășan, in Romania.

We left Bucharest looking for something more grounded, more deliberate, more profound. Our deepest inspiration isn’t a trend or a mood board — it’s the work of the Creator. Nature. And alongside it, the extraordinary cultural richness of the Romanian people: old houses with their worn beauty, hand-woven textiles, carved wood that once adorned every household, rituals and celebrations still alive in communities, Sunday liturgies, and a sincere, unbroken connection to something greater.

When we think of people who shaped the way we see, two names come to mind — knowing we’re doing an injustice to countless others. Brâncuși, for his ability to see beyond form. Sir Norman Foster, for elegance.

This is who we are. This is the place we create from.

3. What is your “can’t live without it – thing” when it comes to design?

I’ve worked with the Adobe suite for decades. But Figma is something else entirely — it helps me express what I feel more freely, with more courage.

4. Share a fun fact about yourself that most people don’t know.

I like extreme sports. Despite having a beautiful family with three children, I occasionally chase adrenaline — skiing down the highest peaks in Romania, riding fast on mountain bikes, or running through rocky terrain. I’d love to throw myself into kitesurfing with more enthusiasm, but honestly I spend more time struggling on the beach than actually riding the water.

5. What are some of your favorite hobbies or interests outside of design?

I’d also add philosophy, but I confess here that I sincerely hope that in the life after, the one after death, I will receive the time needed to read all the books I haven’t read until now and won’t have read by the moment of passing.

6. What is your favourite colour combination and why?

Green because it is pure… I know, it’s a nonsense what I said, it’s an innate sensitivity for green. And next to it I love to place the blue of the sky and navy blue — and from there something is born that gives me both hope and strength.