Stockholm’s Best Design Stores

It’s an almost universally accepted fact, Sweden gets a lot of things really right: healthcare, education, cinnamon buns, and undoubtedly, design. With that signature Scandinavian style conjuring images of white washed floors, smart design, and refined colour palettes with pops of colour, it makes for a good place to start planning your dream home in your non-messy, always stylish future life. Like most Aussie Expedia travellers, McKean Studio recently spent a long weekend in Stockholm, checking out the many design houses that have set up shot in Sweden’s capital city. Here are some of our favourite stores to visit next time you’re planning your own Scandinavian adventure!

Svenskt Tenn 

If you’re coming to Stockholm and are interested in design and interiors, then Svenskt Tenn is a non-negotiable, no-bones-about-it, do-not-miss spot. This classic Swedish design company has their flagship store on the boulevard across from the harbour – so it already makes for a picturesque place to shop! Founded in 1924, Svenkst Tenn has long been seen as a pinnacle of modernist design in Sweden, with notable architect and designer Josef Frank joining the team in the 1930’s. Today, Svenkst Tenn is home to textiles and furniture, homewares and accessories, in every colour, pattern and design under the sun. Lots of Frank’s work is available on items from wallpaper to cocktail napkins, so if your other half won’t let you decorate in an ornate wall to ceiling floral, you can always compromise with some dinner plates! Prices are on the high side, so go for the visual feast and not necessarily for suitcase filling! Strandvägen 5 , 114 51 Stockholm

DesignTorget 

Loosely translating to ‘Design Market’ in English, DesignTorget is the perfect place to pick up a quirky present for someone interested in design, or to find cool accessories for yourself. The store is full of clever and well-chosen pieces for the home, and fun, well priced bits and bobs you probably won’t see anywhere else (which in itself is no easy feat with the easy access of the Internet). With 13 stores all throughout Scandinavia (several in Stockholm, but also Gothenburg, Malmö, Oslo and even the airport at Stockholm Arlanda) this innovative store will have you popping inside every one you see, just to check if there was anything you missed from one of your previous visits. Kulturhuset, Stockholm, Sergelgången 29, 111 57 Stockholm 

Habitat 

Made up predominantly of homewares (and lots of kitchen pieces), Habitat has everything you would need to furnish your, um, habitat! Split over two giant levels, you’ll find everything you need for your house, from cushions and glassware, to wall decorations and some extra fun pieces from Danish brand RICE, along with paper goods from Rifle Paper Co. Habitat covers a lot of home staples that need to be more functional than fancy, (curtains, glassware etc) but also caters for those harder to find bits and pieces. SkrapanGötgatan 78 118 30 Stockholm

Cocktail

It’s unlikely that there’s a more colourful store in all of Stockholm than Cocktail. You’re welcomed by the signature neon pink bicycle out front and plastic birds with floral garlands hanging around the doorframe. Bondegatan 34 116 33 Stockholm

Being a small store, what Cocktail lacks in size is more than make up for in product – every surface is covered with bright homewares, toys and knick-knacks. We left with hand-painted miniature plastic animal figurines (no need to worry about luggage space when they measure less than 5mm high!) to display on the work desk back home and to keep us dreaming of holidays! Whether you love Mexican design, oil cloth fabrics, kitschy homewares, Miffy the rabbit, or something else altogether, there’s a good chance you’ll find it at Cocktail.

Grandpa

Right next door to the crazy, colourful Cocktail, is the much more subdued, very cool Grandpa. Full of mens fashion and strong, defined stationery and accessories, Grandpa is the best stop for the gent in your life. Hats, coats and shirts, pens, cool stationery and cleverly designed travel guides are at your fingertips. It’s a great place to find a gift for your fella at a variety of price points. The ladies aren’t left out; there’s jewellery and handbags as well, although these tend to lean more towards the utilitarian side of things. Södermannagatan 21 116 40 Stockholm

Swedish Hasbeens

After shopping at Grandpa and Cocktail, nip around the corner to the flagship store of famed clog brand ‘Swedish Hasbeens’ and treat your feet to a pair of the wood and leather shoes all modelled on original 70’s clog designs – ABBA eat your heart out! Mixing clogs and cobblestones is not for the faint hearted though, so tread carefully as you skip on over to your next stop! (One half of McKean Studio may have fallen face first on those beautiful cobblestoned streets – and wasn’t even wearing clogs at the time!) Nytorgsgatan 36A, 11640 Stockholm

Granit 

Watch out if you’re into kitchen accessories. Granit makes it hard to leave without something you didn’t know you needed, with plenty of glassware and crockery, storage and hampers, stationery and a whole host of other kitchen accessories. A little similar to Japan’s MUJI; offering sleek and well designed pieces under the one brand, and all in neutral colours (black, white, grey and natural), it’s a great spot to mix and match, and update as you go! Kungsgatan 42 111 35 Stockholm

Nordiska Galleriet 

Along with Scandinavian greats like Arne Jacobsen and Hans J. Wegner (you’ll never be hard pressed to find their pieces in Denmark or Sweden), Nordiska Galleriet is home to plenty of other design house heavyweights from around the globe; Vitra, Gubi, Hay, Muuto, Alessi and George Nelson just to name a few! If you’re looking for classic pieces from Eames, Girard, Tom Dixon, Grcic and more, this is the place you’ll likely find it. Located in the swanky shopping strip in Ostermalm, it’s all too easy to settle in and start shopping for your imaginary dream home (or apartment!) furnished with Le Corbusier and Panton. The third floor of Nordiska Galleriet is also home to the Fritz Hansen store – the best of both design worlds! Nybrogatan 11 SE-114 39 Stockholm

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