At WELCOME in Stockholm, December 2011. | Photo by Tony Cederteg
WELCOME is our retail space in Stockholm we run together with Our Legacy. If you paid the store a visit a few times you know it never looks the same and is always full of surprises. The reason why this is possible is a guy with a unique sense for details and probably the best hair in Stockholm. Meet our store manager Martin Litzén.
TRÈS BIEN: Hi Martin, how’s it going?
MARTIN: All good up here, thank you! Just gonna crisp things up a bit in-store with some freshly added Visvim and Margiela.
TRÈS BIEN: You’ve been working in a large department store for many years (NK in Gothenburg) and are now managing a rather small independent shop. What has changed in the retail game over the years and what are the biggest differences between shops like NK / WELCOME?
MARTIN: Correct, I did nine years at NK Men’s Trend.. Nine years.. I actually did a little bit of everything there so on that end it’s a bit similar. My impression is that fashion maybe was stronger a few years back. The customer today focuses more on the product itself. He wants the heaviest denim, the best cordovan derby, the most technical Cabourn parka etc. Plus the fact that everyone knows where the product is being made nowadays. We’ll just see where it all ends. Probably, and hopefully, with fashion again though!
TRÈS BIEN: So are there any differences between the Gothenburg shopper and the Östermalm/Stockholm shopper?
MARTIN: It’s maybe a bit tricky to compare the customer at a department store like NK with the customer at a smaller neighborhood shop like WELCOME. Almost impossible actually. NK is, according to me, probably the best platform for distribution in Sweden. And WELCOME is a 70sqm shop on a off-retail street which is mainly trying to communicate some sort of feeling.
TRÈS BIEN: You recently moved to Stockholm. Pros/Cons?
MARTIN: It’s really exciting to move to a new city of course. And Stockholm is such a great place with lots of new streets to wander. The down sides are the obvious ones, like moving away from friends and family etc. But overall excited for sure!
TRÈS BIEN: Speaking of exciting, what are you excited to sell?
MARTIN: It’s not so much what we actually sell. It’s more that it’s interesting to see if the whole concept works. To offer New Balance runners and American cordovan long wings under the same roof is quite unique in my opinion.
TRÈS BIEN: The shop has been open for a year now, what are the best sellers so far?
MARTIN: It varies a lot to be honest. People can stumble into the shop and walk out with pretty much anything. One might think that a pair of New Standard A.P.C. jeans would be an easier sell than a pair of Visvim lo-cuts, but that’s not always the case. That’s what I like the most about WELCOME.. But of course, we do well with the shirting and the sweats from Our Legacy also!
TRÈS BIEN: And what are you buying for yourself?
MARTIN: I’m always looking for the kind of things you can use everyday with everything. A pair of raw denim which is the A.P.C. Petit Standard at the moment. They’ll be my daily companion until I’ve sucked the last trace of life out of them. Right now I’m also a bit obsessed with American made New Balance runners.. 991’s, 992’s and 993’s. Love them all!
TRÈS BIEN: Last but not least, the word on the streets is that you might have the best hair in Stockholm. Any comments, and what’s your secret?
MARTIN: Haha, that I wouldn’t know about, but I take it as a compliment!