Are you sitting comfortably? Then I’ll begin.
It’s fair to say that the Danish have a pretty good track record when it comes to story telling, but the rise of a sustainable, quirky homewares brand now targeting the U.K. is no fairy tale.
Because to Hans Christian Andersen we can add Anna and Clara, two sisters upon whom Søstrene Grene’s married founders dedicated a concept that has gone from the Scandinavian backwaters to rapid European expansion.
Danish retail chain Søstrene Grene has just announced its intentions to open 100 new stores across the U.K. before 2030 after the family-owned homewares brand confirmed that it is looking to add a further five to 10 locations to its existing retail estate this year as part of an ambitious expansion drive.
Set up in 1973 on a concept of sisters Anna and Clara, the retailer offers responsibly-sourced Scandinavian inspired home accessories and has become a household name in Europe, with nearly 270 stores.
Announcing its growth plans, chief executive and co-owner Mikkel Grene said: “Having a strong presence in some of the largest countries in Europe, such as France with 35 stores and Germany with soon-to-be 70 stores, gives us great confidence to continue expanding in the U.K.
“We have already received a warm welcome from customers in the U.K. and are excited to expand Anna and Clara’s wonderful world to even more cities and people across the country.”
Søstrene Grene Founded In Denmark
The words Søstrene Grene are Danish and mean the Grene sisters, based on the two hosts, sisters Anna and Clara, who represent the company and concept, and were inspired by Mikkel Grene’s mother’s (and co-founder’s) two aunts.
Søstrene Grene describes Anna as the creative sister with a highly developed sense of aesthetics, Clara as the more practical and orderly.
Mikkel Grene’s parents launched their first store with a self-service concept in Aarhus, Denmark in 1973 and established a quirky and distinct store approach including classical music, dark walls and imaginative product staging, plus cosy lighting.
To keep costs low, the store displays were originally built from reclaimed wooden boxes that had been used to deliver dates and figs to the store. These boxes have since become the inspiration for the raw wooden boxes central to the interiors of all Søstrene Grene shops.
The retailer is now accelerating the expansion of its stores, having attracted 60 million visitors through its doors last year. Grene says that its U.K. goal is to expand from 14 to 60 shops by 2027. In addition, it expects to be available online across five additional European markets within the next 12 months and to double its ecommerce sales over the next two years.
Rapid Expansion Over Last Decade
When Mikkel Grene took over as chief executive 11 years ago the company only had stores in Denmark, Norway and Iceland. Today it has around 270 stores across 16 countries.
New products drop every week, inspiring the sense of a ‘treasure hunt’ and repeat visits. In addition, all Søstrene Grene stores include storytelling about Anna and Clara.
Grene says of its new focus on the U.K.: “We are eager to expand both in the larger cities and in smaller corners of the country. Due to our presence in some of the largest markets in Europe, such as France and Germany, it gives us great confidence to continue this expansion in the U.K.
It’s a bold move from a little-known store chain in Britain and on that will hopefully have a happy ending.
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