Springtime ideas

Spring is upon us with gradually rising temperatures and longer and brighter days. There are many ways to welcome the much-anticipated change of season and the new beginnings it typically brings. Below are five of them.

UPDATE YOUR HOME: FINNISH DESIGN SHOP

Spring is just right for giving your home a new look and a fresh start. Finnish Design Shop is at your service. Founded in 2004, this world’s largest online shop specialised in Nordic design can provide you a lot of ideas on how to enhance the beauty and function of your home with a Nordic twist.

The shop picks the best lifestyle design products from both iconic and less-known brands and spreads them across the globe to over 180 countries. For inspiration, have a gander at Design Stories, Finnish Design Shop’s own online magazine.

“Nordic values, like equality and closeness to nature, resonate everywhere,” said CEO Teemu Kiiski. “The Nordic nations are famously some of the happiest in the world, so our mission is to share pieces of this happiness.”

DECLUTTER YOUR CLOSET: EMMY

Spring is the perfect time to prioritise and declutter wardrobes. But what next? Throwing away unwanted clothing is far from ideal, as it has serious repercussions for the environment. Make room for Emmy.

Launched in 2015 with just around 500 items in its selection, Emmy has grown into a leading Nordic online marketplace for pre-owned premium clothing. Housed in Emmy’s headquarters in Lohja, all the products are hand-inspected and authenticity-checked before they are made available for purchase online.

“We focus on high quality and want to partner with sustainably and ethically aware companies,” co-founder Hanna Autio told us in 2019. “In our four years of existence, we’ve really seen that the industry is taking steps in a better direction, with brands becoming increasingly interested in the resale value of their products and consumers considering it as part of their purchase decision.”

START GARDENING: FISKARS

Gardening is the ultimate symbol of spring, and having proper garden tools at hand makes all the difference. Fiskars, one of Finland’s most iconic and respected brands with origins going back to 1649, provides global consumers functional and timeless tools for nearly any task around the house or garden.

Designed with a distinctive Nordic touch and manufactured with sustainable and long-lasting materials, Fiskars’ products have been applauded by the design industry’s top professionals. The innovative approach can also be seen in the brand’s foray into the world of fashion. In collaboration with fashion and textile designer Maria Korkeila, Fiskars launched a capsule clothing and accessory collection, targeting gardening and streetwear enthusiasts alike.

“Ever since Fiskars was founded, we have stayed true to our strong heritage and DNA while being bold and innovative,” said chief design officer Petteri Masalin. “To us, it’s always about staying curious about the world while being loyal to our roots.”

EAT HEALTHIER: ODDLYGOOD

A change of season is the perfect time to rethink old eating habits and start making the right choices. Oddlygood’s plant-based dairy alternatives are not targeted solely at vegans, vegetarians and flexitarians, but at everyone who’d like to make their diets more balanced and try new exciting flavours.

Consumers in Finland and a handful of other markets have been enthusiastically trying Oddlygood’s oat drinks, cheese, yogurts, desserts and products used in cooking and baking. Backed by Finland’s biggest food exporter Valio and capital market company Mandatum Asset Management, Oddlygood acquired the Nordic brand Planti in 2023 , thus becoming the market leader in plant-based dairy alternative spoonable snacks in Sweden and dairy alternative cooking products in Finland.

“Interest in plant-based products is growing exponentially worldwide, which we can also see in a significant increase in our sales,” said Niko Vuorenmaa, CEO of Oddlygood. “However, consumers will only change their day-to-day consumption habits if they find dairy alternatives that both taste good and fit their lifestyle.”

PAMPER YOUR SKIN: SOIL OF BEAUTY

Winter can be tough on our skin, and so, what better time than spring to pamper ourselves? With its holistic approach to beauty, the artisan cosmetics brand Soil of Beauty offers a selection of organic skin care products made using high-quality ingredients, such as plant extracts, essential oils and minerals.

Soil of Beauty’s passion for creating effective skin care solutions, combined with dedication to ethical and sustainable practices, has resonated well with both consumers and industry professionals. Made in Finland, the brand’s products were among the winners at the Beauty Shortlist Awards 2022 and Nordic Natural Beauty Awards 2021.

“I founded Soil of Beauty because I wanted to create a holistic line of products that were sustainable and environmentally responsible from the ground up,” explained eco-cosmetologist and business owner Henna Uusikallio. “I believe that beauty should be nurtured responsibly.”