Prior to becoming a designer, Dixon was the
bass guitarist for the band
Funkapolitan, "who toured with Rita and Ziggy Marley, the Clash and Simple Minds", and appeared on
Top of the Pops. In 1981 the band supported
The Clash on their US Tour. A series of motorbike accidents and a broken arm led Dixon to experiment with welding and designing welded products. Dixon became increasingly well known in the mid-1980s and was described as "the talented untrained designer with a line in welded salvage furniture". In 1994, Dixon established his own shop, 'Space'. It became a creative think-tank for Dixon and other young designers such as
Michael Young,
Thomas Heatherwick, and , who worked with Dixon during this period. By the late 1980s, he was collaborating with Italian design impresario
Giulio Cappellini, whose company manufactures and distributes designs such as Dixon's
S-Chair. In 1996, Dixon launched a new product line, Eurolounge In 1993 he was part of "In the Swim. Eine Ausstellung kreativen Designs der British European Design Group", organized by
Helmut Diez in
Bremerhaven, Germany. The show was described in
Der Spiegel as the "greatest exhibition of British furniture design of the 20th century". Dixon became head of design at
Habitat in 1998 and later became Creative Director. He credits Habitat with enabling him to learn the business side of design. He publicly represented a collective team responsible for rejuvenating the Habitat brand. In 2002 Dixon established his personal brand, "Tom Dixon", basing the company in
Kings Cross, London. In 2004 Dixon worked with Proventus, a Swedish private investment company, to create Design Research, a holding company for design and product development. Tom Dixon brand collections of lighting and furniture have been launched regularly at the
Milan Furniture Fair and at the
London Design Festival. In 2012 the company launched its first accessories range at
Maison et Objet, Paris. The company's products are sold internationally in 65 countries. In 2007 Dixon expanded his West London Studio by creating the Design Research Studio for interior and architectural design. Design Research Studio has designed high-end restaurants such as
Jamie Oliver’s London restaurant, Barbecoa and Restaurant at The Royal Academy in London. – Paint and Abstract. Her sets were urban-inspired, with bright colors and varying textures. A third set, Geo, used hand and machine embroidery to create the impression of layered rocks and sediment. In 2025, Dixon was among 35 UK designers to sign a letter to the
Department for Science, Innovation and Technology secretary
Peter Kyle urging the government to reconsider its plans to allow
artificial intelligence companies to train their models on copyrighted works without permission. He opened a shop in New York's
SoHo in 2026. Dixon's work is included in collections such as the Victoria and Albert Museum in London and the
National Museums Liverpool in the UK; the
Vitra Design Museum in Germany,
M+ in Hong Kong; and the
San Francisco Museum of Modern Art and New York's Museum of Modern Art in the US. ==Awards==