StateOfDesign1 - Oslo

Privum was on an exploratory trip to Norway, to see what the interior design landscape was like there. We learned a lot of new things and got to see how things were over there. 

We visited at about peak summer, the weather was hot and the leaves on the trees were all shining a nice emerald green. We talked with interior designers, and other furniture sellers to put together a cohesive understanding of what it is like.

Below are the questions we asked ourselves to help us—and you—understand how design moves over there, what to watch for, and interesting observations. 

 

 

 

Q1: What was the shopping experience like in Norway and what was it like compared to Finland, what was the customer service like?

The shopping experience felt like a mix of Rodeo Drive in America and Helsinki. In where the stores were reminiscent of Rodeo drive but the people and feeling was clearly more Nordic. The atmosphere was much more luxurious than in Finland, but the number of furniture and design stores there was surprisingly not greater than in Finland.

Entering a store there brought a different feeling with it than Finland, possibly from the outside atmosphere. It was not from the level of customer service, as the customer service could be pretty much compared to Finland.

 

Q2: What unique design trends did you observe in Norway that stand out in the current global furniture and décor market?

The offerings in Oslo were not too diverse or plentiful, the most prominent shops are probably Bolia.com and Illums Bolighus. What we saw were that the design trends found in Oslo were very modern and featured mainly the same type of simple Nordic design.

Q3: What did we learn from our interactions with Norwegian designers and suppliers that will influence our offerings?

We visited a new friend in Oslo, Eske interior, Karina was kind enough to show us around her shop. She told about her story in her 20 year career of having the shop, and explained her story and challenges.

The biggest lesson that we would like to share with you is, that design is a lifestyle and is not for everybody. Karina has had Eske in 20 years, and it requires full commitment, not only for selling design furniture, but also owning design furniture. It is a commitment you make, to own pieces like these, they are passed through generations.

 

Q4: What did we feel was missing in the central Norway design market's offerings

We would have liked to see more diverse offerings in what types of design and furniture exist in Norway. We were also surprised in that we thought there would have been more stores of all kinds.

 

Q5: How popular were furniture stores, and what type of people visited?

We visited basically at peak summer, when there are the most amount of people outside, enjoying the weather. However, this did not mean that the stores were at all full, more that the big stores were quite empty, with the odd visitor here and there.

 

 

 

Thank you for reading, that was SoD1 Oslo, we hope you found something interesting or educational, that might help you in the future. We still have a lot of ideas and experiences to share about Oslo, which might deserve another blog for them.

What you should stay tuned for is the second part of this series, SoD2 Copenhagen, where we visited the capital of Nordic design. COMING SOON.