Tatler Singapore sits down with the design house to discuss its launch in Singapore, sustainability in fashion, and what’s trending
Renowned for its original prints and colours, Marimekko’s portfolio ranges from high-quality clothing, bags and accessories to home decor. The Finnish brand’s latest enterprise is its first lifestyle concept store at Ion Orchard, which sees a cafe located within the retail space. The flagship store sets out to redefine the retail experience by introducing a unique blend of fashion, home decor and cafe culture under one roof. The space was conceptualised as part-retail and part-gallery, and seamlessly integrates Marimekko’s ready-to-wear collection with a cafe that showcases the brand’s vibrant home furnishing offerings.
The launch of the Marimekko lifestyle concept in Singapore is a strategic move for the brand, as it focuses on scaling its business in the Asia-Pacific region. Tatler Singapore sat down with Marimekko president and chief executive officer, Tiina Alahuhta-Kasko, and Rebekka Bay, the brand’s creative director to find out more.
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What is the allure of Asia, particularly Singapore, for Marimekko?
Alahuhta-Kasko: We’re very excited to expand our brand phenomenon around the world. We’re very much focusing on strategy to expand internationally to scale up our international growth, and Asia is an important geographical region. Singapore being a key hub in Southeast Asia has a very important strategic role for us. We see a lot of opportunity here, but we also know that our presence here will have a echo impact to the wider region. So we’re very excited to bring the colours and prints of Marimekko to the local customers in Singapore.
What is the brand doing to capture the hearts of Asian customers?
Alahuhta-Kasko: We’re very passionate about understanding [what Asian consumers want], so it shows in everything that we do from the collection work to customer experience to brand development work. We try to learn more about the local market and consumer, so that we can build a global a coherent brand, one that is locally relevant. For example here we have been able to introduce the Marimekko Cafe, it’s such a beautiful way to invite our customers to interact with the brand and its philosophy.