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Marimekko Global Expansion – New Stores in the Nordics and Asia

Katja Presnal — Wed, 15 Nov 2023 14:45:33 +0000

Marimekko is one of the best-known Finnish brands around the world. Marimekko was founded in 1951, and for example, Marimekko products have been sold in the USA since 1959. Marimekko has done several collaborations that you might know of, with Crate and Barrel, Target, and Adidas. Did you know that Skimbaco was founded in 2006 and for a brief two years, Skimbaco was an upscale online store? During those years, we also sold Marimekko products in the USA. North America is one of their key markets, but Asia-Pacific and Nordics seem to be more important. Globally, there are roughly 150 Marimekko stores, and the online store serves customers in 35 countries. As part of its 2023–2027 strategy, Marimekko focuses on scaling its business and growth, particularly in international markets. Northern Europe, including key cities like Copenhagen, remains a focal point for Marimekko as it strives to enhance brand awareness and expand its presence in alignment with the overall growth strategy.

New Marimekko Store Openings

This year Marimekko has opened multiple new stores, the latest opening is the new flagship store in Copenhagen. Nestled in one of the city’s fashion districts at Pilestraede 29, this new experiential retail space stands as the vibrant hub of Marimekko in Copenhagen, housing a design team studio on its upper floor. The Copenhagen flagship store mirrors the dynamic retail concept introduced by Marimekko in New York in late 2022 and echoes the redesigned flagship store in Stockholm.

Marimekko Store in Copenhagen

Paying homage to Marimekko’s globally acclaimed art of printmaking, the unique design of the space embodies the brand’s optimistic and creative lifestyle philosophy. The store boasts a carefully curated selection of Marimekko’s lifestyle products, including fashion, bags, and accessories, offering customers ever-evolving visual experiences, community events, and activations, as well as personalized and expert services—a hallmark of Marimekko since its inception.

Marimekko has a long history in Denmark and with the new flagship store we are able to showcase both our existing and new customers our updated, modern take on the joyful Marimekko lifestyle brand. The new flagship is designed to be the heart of the Marimekko brand culture in Copenhagen, increasing awareness, deepening the customer experience, and bolstering omnichannel sales in Scandinavia. With Copenhagen representing one of the key cities in the global fashion and design industry, the store will support building brand awareness and positioning also more widely in Europe in line with our growth strategy. Noora Laurila, Senior Vice President, Sales, Region West at Marimekko.

Stockholm Store

Marimekko opened its revamped Stockholm flagship store at Norrmalmstorg 4 on September, 2023. Located in the central shopping hub of Östermalm, the redesigned space reflects Marimekko’s dynamic store concept, inspired by its textile printing factory in Helsinki.

Marimekko store in Stockholm

Serving as a creative hub and platform for visual activations, the store offers a curated selection of fashion, bags, accessories, and home décor.

Marimekko’s Expansion in Asia

Asia is the most important geographical area for Marimekko’s international growth, and the company sees growing demand for its brand in the region. They opened their first store in Singapore in September 2023. In Vietnam, Marimekko stores will be opened in the Lotte Mall Westlake in Hanoi and in the Takashimaya mall in Ho Chi Minh City later this year. The first Marimekko stores in Malaysia will be located in Kuala Lumpur: one in the KLCC mall at the world’s highest twin towers and another in The Exchange TRX mall.

Marimekko’s Growth

The recent store openings tell a story of huge global success, but let’s look at some financial numbers.

According to Marimekko’s financial guidance for 2023 (Interim Report 1–9/2023, 8 November 2023), Marimekko Group’s net sales for 2023 are expected to grow from the previous year (2022: EUR 166.5 million).

What I find as an absolutely insane number and fact: Marimekko’s most important market is the domestic market, Finland, and traditionally it represents about half of the company’s net sales.

This is kind of shocking. Finland is a very small country with a population of 5.5 million. It’s of course great that it has a loyal customer base in Finland, but there is potential for so much more, globally. Marimekko is a front-runner in Finland in so many ways, but its growth has also been very moderate considering what a legacy brand it is. My guess is that Marimekko lacks what most Finnish companies lack: investment funding for growth. Even if you are a well-known, loved brand, you still need to invest in growth and marketing. Marimekko, like many others at the moment, faces diverse risks spanning economic and political environments, retail dynamics, supply chain disruptions, sustainability challenges, climate change impacts, compliance issues, intellectual property concerns, information security risks, and personnel-related challenges. One of the risks and opportunities lies with Marimekko’s sustainability work and targets. For example, they need to continuously evolve their sustainability practices in their product and value chain to meet the demands of values-based customers and new regulations. Sustainability and responsible business practices combined with increased investments in marketing efforts most likely will be the winning combination. Read more about Marimekko’s sustainability efforts.

Focus areas of strategy 2023-2027: Scaling the Marimekko business and growth, especially in international markets

Marimekko has defined the following five strategic success factors to scale the growth of the Marimekko business during the next strategy period: S: Determined sustainability efforts strongly support Marimekko’s long-term success C: Sharpened creative vision to speak to a wider global audience A: Accelerating growth in Asia L: Love for Marimekko life E: End-to-end digitality to boost omnichannel growth and efficiency I look forward seeing the next steps in Marimekko’s global expansion.

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Naava Green Walls Let You Breathe Fresh Air

Isabella Presnal — Tue, 24 Nov 2020 12:57:23 +0000

My Naava Story

In 2018, when I was volunteering at a startup conference Arctic15 the first time I came across these green walls from Naava whilst walking around in an astronaut suit (that’s another story!). From what I could hear through the helmet (it’s very difficult to hear what’s happening around you in the helmet) was that this green wall was smarter than any green wall I’d seen before. Later that year, I was able to get a better understanding of what Naava is and does at the largest startup event of the Nordics, Slush. I learned about Naava’s mission to bring fresh air indoors using plants that have been rigorously tested to be the best at purifying the air through the microbes in the roots. Today, I work at Naava as a videographer and wanted to tell you a bit about their products.

Indoor Air Quality Matters

We spend 90% of our time indoors, breathing in 10,000 liters of indoor air, even though indoor air is rarely optimal for our health. The human body is not made for the synthetic indoor air that consists of evaporated chemicals, emissions, air pollutants, and street dust particles that flow through mechanical ventilation. These spaces stop you from performing your best, draining your happiness, health, and productivity. At Naava they are reconnecting humanity with nature by bringing nature indoors, to create healthier and happier workplaces. Naava’s green walls are fully automated products combining natural innovation with future technology and Scandinavian design to bring nature and fresh air indoors, making them the smartest green walls on the planet.

The new N-series

Best made better. The new N-Series updates the entire product line, advancing the design to reach Naava’s standards of quality and sustainable values. The minimalistic design is inspired by nature with colors and shapes of Nordic nature, while the technology hidden inside the frame is smarter and user-friendlier. Naava’s increased standards for sustainability are at every step of the product lifecycle, starting from manufacturing. The new N-series uses:

45% less raw materials
49% less aluminum
45% less plastic
48% less electronic material

With Naava you never have to worry about killing your plants because it’s easy to communicate with them using the Naava Application to monitor the Naava wall in real-time. Over-the-air updates keep your Naava smart and ready. In the new year 2021 the new N-series will be shipping in Finland, then Scandinavia and Europe, and shipping elsewhere later in 2021. Naava at home! The new series launch also brings news that Naava will soon be available for your home office!

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Springtime with Marimekko

Katja Presnal — Wed, 01 May 2019 17:52:35 +0000

Marimekko’s Spring is Green

Green! Finally it’s green outside! And so is Marimekko’s spring: all about green. I visited Milan Design Week to check out Marimekko’s shoppable home concept, and found the cutest small glass vase: the Mini from Marimekko’s home collection. Scroll down the photos what else Marimekko’s design week installation had.

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Isabella attended Finnish movie awards, Jussi Gaala, as a videographer, and wore her favorite piece from Marimekko’s spring collection: the Seikkailulle jumpsuit in Iso Vikuri print. Scroll down to see some more photos from a photoshoot in Helsinki.

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Marimekko Milan Shoppable Home

Marimekko created a shoppable home installation for Milan Design Week 2019. The installation was set like a normal apartment, with Artek furniture and Marimekko products, but in each room you’d find a QR code that took you to a webstore where you could find each product used in the apartment. As an example: QR code on the wall of the open closet took you directly to shopping page where you could easily order the items you wanted. Note: I had hard time getting the website to actually work in other languages than Finnish, especially on mobile, and it was only geared towards the European shoppers. You might be able to view it in English here. The Milan Design Week concept perfected comfortable Finnish home. Rooms had Artek’s classics from tables to armchairs to lamps. The small apartment had a dining room area, living room, bedroom and bathroom, which were all divided in smaller “shoppable” areas.

Oiva 10 years old

The Milan Shoppable Home highlighted the Oiva tableware. Oiva is a contemporary classic at the heart of Marimekko’s tabletop collection designed by Sami Ruotsalainen in 2009. For Oiva’s 10th anniversary Marimekko introduced a limited-edition collection of oversized Oiva cups and bowls. The collection includes a total of 300 numbered collectibles, and it is available online and in the Marimekko flagship stores. Oiva is also available with Marimekko patterns such as Unikko or Räsymatto, and the Oiva collection includes dishes from coffee and tea cups, mugs, plates and bowls to items like teapots, jugs and pitchers.

Spring is in Helsinki

Finnish spring is typically what most people in the world would call a winter. But spring in Helsinki feels like an actual spring at the moment, and it’s getting greener each day. Helsinki based photographer Omar El Mrabt had a fun spring photoshoot with Isabella in her Marimekko jumpsuit, enjoying a nice spring afternoon by the shore. Check out Omar’s blog, he did another colorful Marimekko shoot with a local influencer Joonas Pesonen. Photos from Milan Shoppable Home: Katja Presnal, follow me on Instagram as @skimbaco. Photos of Isabella: Omar El Mrabt, follow him on Instagram @omarelmrabt.

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6 Most Expensive Houses for Sale in Finland

Katja Presnal — Thu, 28 Mar 2019 20:41:25 +0000

Helsinki Real Estate Obsession

I read an article in a local website that real estate websites get more traffic than porn sites in Helsinki, Finland, and that checking out new houses for sale (or rent) can become an obsession due the current market situation. I don’t remember where I read it, and I don’t know if it is true, but we’ve had our share of real estate obsession already. We lived on an island close to downtown Helsinki at first, but moved to neighboring Espoo just before Christmas. We are still only 15 minutes from downtown Helsinki, and although not on an island, we now live even closer to water. Like anywhere it’s always about the location when it comes to real estate, but in Finland, and the capital area especially it’s all about the sea view. Just for the kicks, here are the most expensive houses for sale in Finland. Most of them are in the capital area, but also the most expensive log house in Lapland included.

1. Lauttasaari glass house with own boat dock and pool

590.3 m², 7 200 000 € / 6354 sqft, $8,079,480 The most expensive house for sale in Finland is actually really close where we first lived when we moved to Finland almost two years ago on Lauttasaari island in Western Helsinki. This house comes with a beach, swimming pool and a boat dock. And helluva lot more. (I also lived on the same island when I went to college, so don’t let this fact make you think our small rental apartment in Lauttasaari was anything like this.) See it at Etuovi.

2. Brand new modern glass palace in Kulosaari with a spa

411.0 m², 6 200 000 € / 4424 sqft $6,957,330 This dream house truly is a dream you can make your own – it’s still being built so you can still decide on materials. Kulosaari is an island in the Eastern Helsinki, and you can look outside the window and admire the skyline of Helsinki and the beautiful sea. See it at Etuovi.

3. Kulosaari glass house with the sea view

347.0 m², 5 000 000 € / 3735 sqft $5,610,750 Another Kulosaari dream. Are you already seeing a pattern? Glass-walled houses with sea views, also gorgeous during winter time. This is my favorite so far, and close to perfection. See all of the photos at Etuovi.

4. Kaskisaari modern classic

375.0 m², 4 480 000 / 4036 sqft $5,027,232 I’m not as big of a fan of the interior of this house, although this kitchen is nice. But it’s on another island, called Kaskisaari, and well, the location is just perfect. Who wouldn’t want to live on an island? See all of the photos at Etuovi.

5.Penthouse in a historic building downtown Helsinki

421.0 m², 4 300 000 € / 4531 sqft $4,825,245 This is a gorgeous historic penthouse apartment – more precisely the entire top floor – of a building was built in 1885. It’s located close to president’s castle, the famous cathedrals, and has a view to the market place and the most famous landmark’s of Helsinki. And yes, the sea. See all of the photos at Etuovi.

6. Mega Log House in Lapland

686.0 m², 3 690 000 € / 7384 sqft $4,140,733 This house takes us all the way above Arctic Circle in Lapland. Mega log house with everything you can imagine. Perfect if you want space, lots of space, inside and outside the house. See all of the pictures at Etuovi.

Extra: 7. Most Expensive Neighbor’s House

320.0 m², 2 050 000 € / 3444 sqft $2,300,407 And just for the kicks… since I started with the most expensive house in our old neighborhood, let’s end it with the most expensive house in the neighborhood where we live now, in Nuottaniemi in Espoo. I think you can actually see our house roof in the upper corner of this photo. If not, at least it’s very close. Want to become our neighbor? See all of the pictures at Etuovi. So… which one is your favorite?

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IKEA and Neste Collaborate to Create Renewable, Bio-based Polypropylene Plastic

Katja Presnal — Mon, 10 Sep 2018 23:25:39 +0000

At first sight IKEA might seem as the opposite of sustainability as it always seems to tempt you buying the pretty things you don’t really need, but can’t resist. But the shopping experience of seeing what compact space living can look like has hopefully given you also ideas how to live with less, and perhaps the Scandi-minimalism has won you over. Good news is that there is much more to love about IKEA than just the furniture that anyone can afford. In fact, seems like IKEA is becoming one of the global retailers that will fully embrace the space lifestyle in the future. IKEA is on its way to make a real difference in multiple ways, for example by working to start using recycled and/or renewable materials in all of their plastic products and stopping using single-use plastic products. IKEA’s sustainability report lists multiple ways IKEA is working towards more sustainable living, from their more sustainable products to using renewable energy to sourcing from sustainable sources. But what is important to notice in IKEA’s case — it is not just what they can do as a company, but they can set the bar for other companies in the industry as well. When you look at the global numbers of IKEA and the billions of global shoppers who shop at IKEA store in 49 different countries, the changes IKEA makes can hopefully start a ripple effect to other home furnishing companies as well.

“We have only one planet with limited resources. Pressure on forests, fisheries and agriculture, loss of biodiversity and wildlife, ocean pollution, erosion of soil and increasing levels of air and fresh water pollution affect the lives and livelihoods of millions of people around the world. The global resource scarcity is already impacting the IKEA business and, more important, the lives of people throughout the IKEA value chain. To be people and planet positive in the future we must further develop responsible sourcing programs, continue to improve resource utilization and dramatically reduce greenhouse gases in absolute terms, independent of how much we grow the IKEA business.”

First large-scale production of renewable, bio-based polypropylene plastic globally

IKEA wants to have a positive impact on people and planet, which includes taking a lead in turning waste into resources, developing reverse material flows for waste materials and ensuring key parts of IKEA’s products are easily recycled. IKEA’s long-term ambition has been to figure out how the plastic material used in their home furnishing products could be made of renewable or recycled material. They have sought out to find new partners with unique perspectives and insights to support them in finding these solutions, and they teamed up with Finnish Neste in 2016 to tackle the solution for bio-based plastic. Neste has developed a way to produce renewable plastics identical to the conventional fossil plastics – and right on time. Plastics production grew 20-fold between years 1964 and 2014, and it is expected to double again over the next 20 years. By 2050, the plastics sector will account for 20% of total oil consumption and 15% of the global annual carbon budget. If actions are not taken, it is expected that by 2050 there will be more plastics than fish in the ocean by weight. IKEA and Neste are now able to utilize renewable residue and waste raw materials, such as used cooking oil, as well as sustainably-produced vegetable oils and turning them into polypropylene (PP) and polyethylene (PE) plastic. PP and PE plastic are some of the most commonly used plastic. The pilot at commercial scale starts during fall 2018. It will be the first large-scale production of renewable, bio-based polypropylene plastic globally. IKEA will use the new plastic in products that are part of the current product range, such as plastic storage boxes, starting with a limited number of products. As capacities improve, more products will follow. IKEA is working to change all of the plastic used in IKEA products to plastic based on recycled and/or renewable materials by 2030.

“This new material represents a significant step towards a fossil free future. No one has ever before been able to produce PP plastic from a fossil-free raw material other than on a laboratory scale. Together with Neste, we are ensuring that there is an opportunity to scale up the production of this material” says Erik Ljungblad, Category Manager Plastic Products at IKEA of Sweden.

“The production of bio-based plastics at a commercial scale is a major achievement in the cooperation between Neste and IKEA, while it also marks a significant milestone in Neste’s strategy. IKEA is the first company to benefit from the developed supply capability that helps companies and brand owners towards replacing fossil-based raw materials with sustainable bio-based raw materials,” says Senior Vice President Tuomas Hyyryläinen from Neste’s Emerging Businesses business unit.

Looking forward following the development of the renewable, bio-based polypropylene plastic, and how the IKEA & Neste partnership will also impact other global players. After all, there is no other planet Earth, and oceans belong to fish, not plastic waste.

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From Forest to Fashion – Textile Technology Makes Trees into Tees

Katja Presnal — Thu, 14 Jun 2018 11:34:05 +0000

Knowing how to reuse and recycle is not enough in order to save the mothership Earth. Climate change is a severe threat, and we need to stop over-consuming natural resources and learn to use them more efficiently by designing materials for products that can have second or even third life. Industries need to come closer together to find solutions that benefit humanity as a whole, and sometimes the solutions can come from industries or companies that can surprise us. Let’s look at an example in the fashion industry. Many current ways to produce textile fibers come with huge cost for the environment – and frankly are hazardous to us too. Some ways fast fashion is bad for our health – like the use of chemicals in clothing – can be self-evident, and we all feel bad about filling up the landfills. But for example did you know that you might be eating fast fashion … in your sushi? When your polyester sweater is piling and small microfibers are shed they wash down from your laundry water back to waterways and can end up in oceans. Planktons eat the plastic fibers from our waste, and fish eat planktons and we eat fish. This is not the circle of life I want! Thankfully there are many companies seeking for more sustainable alternatives, and finding materials that are made from renewable resources, that also can be reused and recycled. And when we talk about this kind of solutions, one company can rarely do it all from the sourcing to manufacturing to giving a new life to the product after it isn’t needed anymore. This is why the solutions need to be part of the bigger picture: part of circular economy. And even when it comes to fashion, there is a big surprise: many companies creating solutions for the fashion industry are not even in the fashion industry! And solutions arise in places with genuinely renewable materials – places like Finland. Forests cover 80% of Finland’s total area, and the forests are used in a genuinely sustainable manner: the forests grow faster than they are harvested.

Fashion from Forest

One of the companies working to find new materials for products is Finnish Metsä Group (fun fact: “metsä” means forest) – a forest industry group whose core business consists of tissue and cooking papers, paperboard, pulp, wood products, and wood supply and forest services. Metsä Group is owned by more than 100,000 Finnish forest owners, and they take good care of the valuable raw material. Metsä Group established an innovation company Metsä Spring, and plans to build a demo plant in Finland for the production of textile fibers.

“Our welfare society is a great achievement, and it has been driven by the fossil economy. However, this culture of disposability has come to its end. The bioeconomy offers a solution to these global issues. It enables us to replace fossil materials with sustainable alternatives and stop climate change – if we act smartly. We make use of this sustainably grown wood raw material in increasingly valuable ways, and we manufacture products with genuinely lower impact on the environment, that are replacing fossil raw materials,” says Niklas von Weymarn, CEO of Metsä Spring, Metsä Group’s new innovation company.

Wood is suitable for nearly anything that can be made from fossil raw materials. Pulp-based textile fibers can be a real solution for more sustainable textiles. They have the potential to offer an alternative to cotton with a lower impact on the environment, as the production of cotton can no longer be increased because of environmental issues. Wood-based textile fibers are already being used to replace cotton as a raw material for yarn, and they offer great potential for resolving shortages of raw materials in the textile industry. Pulp can be used to produce strong textile fibers for clothes and technical textiles. Metsä Spring is developing a direct-dissolution method for the production of textile fibre. The method makes use of entirely new types of pulp-dissolving compounds. It has lower impact on the environment than the current production options. Now… fashion designers needed. Who will be the fashion designers who will be taking the world by storm by bringing fashion straight out of forest?

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Biltmore Estate’s Real Christmas Tree Tradition in North Carolina

Leigh Powell Hines — Wed, 21 Dec 2016 13:07:04 +0000

The iconic and beautiful decorated evergreen tree is a holiday staple in many households during the month of December. The Christmas tree tradition dates back to 1510 in Riga, Latvia. In the early years, it was decorated with paper, sweets and food. Tree decorations have certainly evolved through the centuries, but the tradition of a home displaying a tree has remained strong. According the National Christmas Tree Association, the first Christmas tree was brought to Colonial America in 1777 by Hessian soldiers fighting for Britain during the American Revolution. But the Christmas tree custom really didn’t catch on and grow by leaps and bounds in the new world until German immigrant Charles Minnigerode, a professor at William and Mary, introduced the custom to high society in Colonial Williamsburg in 1842. By 1851, the first Christmas tree lot opened in New York City. Five years later, the 14th President, Franklin Pierce, brought the first tree into the White House. By 1895, George Vanderbilt was searching for the perfect live tree for his banquet hall at the Biltmore Estate in Asheville, North Carolina, for his first Christmas eve in his new magnificent home in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Year after year, the hunt for the perfect evergreen tree during the holiday season is a thrill for many families. Choosing live trees for your home supports farmers and sustainability.

“There is just something unique and special about the Christmas tree hunt. Consumers who purchase live trees are supporting farmers. Each tree is unique with its own fragrance. Nothing is cookie-cutter, and everyone’s experience is different based on the type of tree they choose.”

stated Marsha Gray, Director of Communications for the National Christmas Tree Association. North Carolina, where the tourism attraction Biltmore Estate is located, is one of the top five Christmas tree-producing states in the U.S. The holidays on the Biltmore Estate are grand, and the estate sees over 300,000 visitors during its holiday season, which starts at the beginning of November and runs until the first week of the new year. The main attraction is a 35-foot-tall Fraser Fir that floral designers have had growing by a father-and-son tree farming team in Avery County for at least 35 years. George and Gregg Andrews have been growing and nurturing Biltmore’s banquet hall trees since 1975. They have a dedicated section of their mountain nursery exclusive to Biltmore. They grow the banquet hall trees, and then they help source the front lawn’s Norway spruce yearly.

“The Andrews have been working with our floral displays manager, Cathy Barnhardt, for over 30 years. Cathy has a very particular look she is going for when she curates the banquet hall tree. In 1895, the Vanderbilts would have gone to a hillside and got a tree off the mountain. This is the tradition that she keeps with this spectacular tree.”

stated LeeAnn Donnelly, Senior Public Relations Director at Biltmore. And Biltmore needs not just one, but two of these large Christmas trees during its holiday tourism season. Because the holiday season is stretched out over two months, Biltmore elves replace the tree mid-season when the house is closed. The first tree enters the home with visitor awe. “The raising of our banquet hall Christmas tree is a crowd favorite. We do this a few days before we open for the holiday season,” remarked Donnelly. “The tree comes in on a horse-drawn carriage with Santa and a trumpet fanfare.” The huge tree is paraded around the lawn then is parked at the front entrance. Forty to fifty employees then put poles under the tree and they begin to pole-raise, lift and move the 3,500-pound tree.

“It’s like a very well-choreographed dance by many of our staff as they navigate this tree inside the banquet hall.”

Each holiday season, Biltmore decorates with a new holiday theme. This year’s theme is “Hearth and Home.” The House sparkles with 30,000 twinkling lights, hundreds of candles reflecting in thousands of ornaments, while miles of garland accent every corner. Outside, 300 hand-lit luminaries adorn Biltmore House’s front lawn and draw attention to the lighted 55-foot Norway spruce draped with 45,000+ lights. Biltmore’s banquet hall tree is much larger than the tree typically presented to the First Lady at the White House for the Blue room each year. This year’s White House tree will be a 19-foot Balsam-Veitch fir from Oconto, Wisconsin. The tree’s farmers, Dave and Mary Vander Velden, won the 2015 National Christmas Tree Contest, taking the title of Grand Champion.

“It’s a very big honor. In order to present a tree (to the White House), you have to win the national championship. It’s like winning the Super Bowl or a gold medal at the Olympics. It doesn’t get better than that,”

commented Dave Vander Velden of Whispering Pines Tree Farm.

“I started experimenting with these types of trees years ago, trying to find the goose that lays the golden egg. They are a group of very nice trees. They grow well and have what it takes to be a good tree.”

Dave Vander Velden said. A National Christmas Tree Association member has presented the official White House Christmas Tree since 1966. What about you – do you have a real Christmas tree this year? Share yours on Instagram and use #skimbaco so we can see it! Happy Holidays! This article originally appeared in our digital magazine.

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Finnish Marimekko is Target’s Newest Design Partner

Katja Presnal — Wed, 02 Mar 2016 18:53:36 +0000

Finnish Design coming to Target near you

Target announced their new designer partnership, and it is Marimekko from Finland. I have mixed feelings about this… On one hand I could not be more excited, and I want every single piece of the collection with the Kaivo-print, and I am excited that more people will be exposed to Marimekko, but on one hand I know Target’s bad quality and I hate to see yet another great designer product turned into a poor-quality product that doesn’t even compare to the original.

“When it comes to our partnerships, we travel far and wide to find designers and brands we think our guests will love. For our spring collaboration, that brought us all the way to Finland! We’ve had our eye on Marimekko for quite some time, and can’t wait for guests to have a chance to shop this limited-edition collection in just a few short weeks.”

said Julie Guggemos, senior vice president, product design and development, Target. According to Target, their design team spent time in Helsinki, where Marimekko is rooted, and was struck by one observation in particular. Finland has four distinct seasons, and once the cold and dark of winter fade away, the Finns couldn’t be happier to get outside with friends and family to enjoy some much-deserved sunshine. The nightless summer nights and long days of summer gave birth to the idea behind the Marimekko for Target collaboration: Two iconic brands joining forces to create the feeling of an eternal summer and carefree outdoor living by offering items that bring people together and encourage them to play!

“Target pioneered the concept of design partnerships and continues to raise the bar with each new collaboration. The Marimekko brand was created to bring color and happiness into people’s everyday lives. There are so many special pieces in this collection, and we are excited to share our storied prints and patterns with Target’s guests across the United States.”

said Tiina Alahuhta-Kasko, president, Marimekko. Marimekko for Target features more than 200 playful, print-centric pieces that span outdoor décor, furniture and entertaining essentials, as well as beach and swimwear for women and girls. Standout items include the paddle board, inflatables, hammocks and swimsuits. The collection also features a number of firsts for Marimekko, including the bocce ball sets and parachutes. The collection will be available in stores and online on April 17th! I WANT THIS BIKE!!!!

Shop Marimekko now

Don’t wait for Marimekko goodness, but head to marimekko.com to shop for original designs with original high quality (and original high prices…). Here are some new arrivals for spring 2016. Read more about Marimekko’s spring 2016 collection here.

Post by Katja Presnal

“My mission is to inspire you to live life to the fullest and find your own “skimbaco,” how you enjoy life where ever you are in the moment. For ideas for travel, home, food and fashion, subscribe to weekly Skimbaco Lifestyle feed on Mondays and I hope you get my newsletter that I send out sometimes on Fridays.” Katja Presnal, editor-in-chief and the owner of Skimbaco Lifestyle. Let’s connect! Visit Skimbaco Lifestyle (Skimbacolifestyle.com)’s profile on Pinterest.

The post Finnish Marimekko is Target’s Newest Design Partner first appeared on Skimbaco Lifestyle | Nordic lifestyle magazine.

Louis Poulsen Artichoke Light Fixtures Shine in this Aarhus Penthouse

Katja Presnal — Mon, 09 Nov 2015 17:27:53 +0000

Louis Poulsen’s PH Artichoke steals the show

Aarhus in Denmark received a new landmark: a tall black tower has added its profile to the city skyline, the Aarhus City Tower. The developer, Hans Lorenzen, who prefers the title ‘bricklayer’, has gone to great lengths to get the perfect view over the city. He would appear to have succeeded: From his newly furnished 7,300-square-feet, two-story penthouse apartment, he can enjoy undisrupted views of the city. The 300-foot-tall Aarhus City Tower on Værkmestergade, not far from the Bruun’s Galleri shopping centre houses the Comwell hotel, among other tenants. Photo: Arkitema Architects The new landmark in Aarhus is impressive in the city’s skyline, and so is the penthouse apartment of Hans Lorenzen. He designed the apartment interior himself in cooperation with Arkitema Architects, and I am swooning over the Louis Poulsen light fixtures through out the apartment, they really take the center stage in this production. The lighting and light design was done in close cooperation with Louis Poulsen, whose Custom Design department developed and made the custom solutions such as the hoist, mounting brackets and ceiling canopies. The apartment has numerous windows around the perimeter providing an amazing experience of light and space. Daylight plays a major role in the apartment, and the PH Artichoke lamps look stunning design elements during the daytime. The first thing visitors encounter is the large central atrium with a 40-foot ceiling. In the middle of this impressive room, a polished brass PH Artichoke, 47.2 inches in diameter, has pride of place. Despite its size and strong presence, the light blends harmoniously into the room. Importantly, the fixture is equipped with an electric hoist, allowing it to be cleaned without scaffolding. 22 PH Artichokes with varying diameters are also used as general lighting throughout much of the apartment. The PH Artichokes are literally built into the ceiling, with specially designed brackets mounted in the concrete structure. The ceiling canopy is very simple and integrated into the ceiling, allowing access to the driver, concealed in the ceiling space. The apartment features quite a mix of styles. Each room has its own atmosphere and furnishings. In addition to the PH Artichokes throughout, variegated lighting is used which highlights the individuality of each room. The bathrooms feature polished marble and gold and brass fixtures. The lighting is indirect and supplemented by a brass chandelier or PH Artichoke, which helps create a comfortable atmosphere in the relatively large rooms. The bath in one of the bathrooms is set close to the window, where one can enjoy views over Aarhus, undisturbed by any neighbors. In addition to Hans Lorenzen’s private apartment, Aarhus City Tower is home to a hotel and offices. Tenants include Bech-Bruun, Deloitte and the Comwell hotel chain, which has 240 rooms and conference facilities for 1,000 people. While you can’t quite get Mr. Lorenzen’s style in the Comwell hotel, you can still enjoy modern Danish atmosphere. Comwell hotel in Aarhus Tower. Story and photos via Louis Poulsen

Post by Katja Presnal

The post Louis Poulsen Artichoke Light Fixtures Shine in this Aarhus Penthouse first appeared on Skimbaco Lifestyle | Nordic lifestyle magazine.

6 Top Fall Trends for Home Decor from Vallila Interior in Finland

Katja Presnal — Tue, 01 Sep 2015 21:49:32 +0000

Fall Inspiration from Finland

The weather still might feel like it’s summer, but September is a nice time to start welcoming fall into our lives. Kids are back in school, routines are back in the groove. It’s time to think about our fall home and how to enjoy life at home this fall. Changing your home’s look can be as simple as upgrading some textiles at home, and that’s why I wanted to share some fall home decoration trends from Scandinavia by Finnish Vallila Interior. Scandinavian design is all about function, high quality and often minimal but bold design. One of the leading Finnish design companies taking creative Finnish design across the world is Vallila Interior. Vallila Interior was founded by Swiss Otto Berner 80 years ago in 1935. The high value of the Finnish design process is represented in Vallila products by the ‘Design From Finland’ –symbol. Its values are also reflected in the company’s approach and work: every color and material is chosen to reflect the high quality principles. Vallila’s products are sold in several countries, find the retailer selling Vallila products closest to you here.

New Vallila Store Opening in Helsinki

Vallila has exciting news for our friends in Helsinki: they are opening their first store next week in Kluuvi (at Aleksanterinkatu 11). Read more how the first shoppers on Tuesday September 8th will even receive a free gift.

6 Fall and winter trends for home

1. Scenic Nature Views in Textiles

Nature theme continues being trendy for fall and especially for winter 2016. Abstract pictures of nature and scenic nature views are among the most popular trends in home textiles. I love this video by Vallila showcasing their “Huipulla” (On the top) collection and the nature inspiration behind it.

2. Flower prints

Flowers can bloom all year around in home textiles. Forget about your grandmother’s flower prints, the modern flower prints are bold and beautiful.

3. Dramatic colors and contrasts

While Scandinavian style has always been very minimal and natural, muted colors, are preferred in homes, there has always been love for bolder prints as well. This fall the minimal black and white design mixes with bold colors in prints that are partially black and white with bold pops of color.

4. Blue, orange and pink and the other hottest colors.

Seasonal color favorites for fall 2015 are blue, orange and pink, in several different hues. The jewel tones emerald green, amethyst purple, ruby red, topaz yellow, sapphire blue, tourmaline green, and turquoise blue, are also trendy this fall and winter. The pastel colors are still seen on this fall’s home decorating, but the lighter pastels are not being paired with darker colors.

5. Natural tones are always part of Scandinavian decor.

Soft colors and textures bring cozy feel to homes, and especially after summer of outdoor living people want to calm down and cozy up indoors. Home is a place for relaxing, calming down, resting and warmth with the people you love. The natural colors and hues of gray, beige, brown and white are always important part of Scandinavian decor.

6. Traditional with a new twist for Christmas.

Here is also already a look into Vallila’s new prints for Christmas 2015. I love the traditional straw goat print, can’t get anymore Scandinavian that this! Mix traditional and contemporary freely this Christmas. The traditional Christmas print mixes well with the more minimal and modern print, doesn’t it? Which fall and winter home trends are you the most excited about? Photos: Henna Soronen for Vallila Interior

Post by Katja Presnal

The post 6 Top Fall Trends for Home Decor from Vallila Interior in Finland first appeared on Skimbaco Lifestyle | Nordic lifestyle magazine.