4 Nordic brand founders share the intimate, outrageous stories of their first gigs in retail

While every founder of a fashion brand takes their own route to success, many of those roads start at the same place: on the shop floor. Our most beloved Nordic designers are no different, slinging blue jeans at Acne Studios or boards at a skate shop before they set out to build their own brands. It seems working retail is a rite of passage.

It may not be the most glamorous gig, but designers look at their first in-store jobs with a certain sense of pride and nostalgia. It’s often, after all, their first toe-dip into the fashion world. Long hours, moody customers and the endless folding take on a certain importance when viewed in hindsight – stepping stones on the way to eventually seeing their own garments hung on perfectly spaced hangers.

Below, we invite some of the most celebrated designers of the Nordics to take a walk down memory lane and divulge their retail history.

Where was the gig: Leah Maria, a boutique in Charlottenlund stocking the likes of Isabel Marant, Marni and Proenza Schouler

Age at the time: 17, just out of high school

You’re hired: “I was interning at Heartmade at the time and had always been in love with the craftsmanship behind fashion. One day the phone rang and it was a girl working at Leah Maria, one of the coolest stores a little outside of Copenhagen, asking for some garments. I was looking for a full-time retail job so I asked them if they needed any help in the store and they were like, ‘Oh my god, yes, we actually do, can you come out here and have a meeting?’. 

Vibe check: “It was such a fun and exciting job to have at that age.”

Employee of the month: “I really enjoyed talking with customers and giving them a good experience. I tried to find out what they needed and what they liked and propose things that went with their style. I’m probably a little bit of a perfectionist when it comes to the way things are merchandised and making sure things are hanging nicely, so it suited me well.” 

Strange encounters: “Barbara and I were slowly starting up Saks Potts and I was still working at the store because we didn’t have any salary yet. Leah Maria actually carried our first pieces, which was amazing because it was such a cool store – the owner´, Vicky Fogel, did us a favour because she didn’t know if it was going to sell, but she really believed in us, which we are still to this day grateful for. The products had been there one or two days when the singer Medina came in. I was the only girl in the store, so I asked her if I could help her with anything. She walked right up to a Saks Potts coat and was very quick in saying, ‘I just want this Saks Potts coat’. I was a little bit nervous, like, should I tell her who I am? But I was so excited the first customer who ever bought the coat was this famous female artist.” 

Moving on: “I worked there a couple of years, but at some point Saks Potts was taking off and we had to spend a lot of time on the business. We could eventually also get a little salary. But I love to go visit the store, it’s been more than 10 years since I worked there – time flies. They still carry Saks Potts.” 

Takeaways: “I think working in retail gives you such a great understanding of work ethic and how to actually sell products first hand. Retail people often possess a great drive, outgoingness and comfortability talking with new people all the time. I think it's such a plus if a future Saks Potts employee has retail experience on their resume." 

What was the gig: Working afternoons and weekends in the first ever Acne Studios store, which was then called Acne Action Jeans. “It was a tiny store in a quite unglamorous mall in Stockholm”.

Age at the time: Still in high school

You’re hired: “The position was served to me on a silver platter by my boss who also happened to be my big brother.” (Editor’s Note: Schiller’s brother is Acne Studios executive chairman and co-owner Mikael Schiller)

Vibe check: “I enjoyed it a lot. I was passionate about the brand and the product and the challenge to convince people to wear skinny jeans, a trend that had just barely started in 2003. The best things about the job were the friends I made among my colleagues, some who are still my closest friends to this day.”

Employee of the month: “The fact that I was hired on nepotism made me want to prove myself and always go the extra mile. Maybe because whenever I didn’t perform I would get yelled at during family dinners.”

Strange encounters: A famous actor and playwright came in to get an outfit for a TV morning show. He was high as a kite and spent over two hours in the store only wearing tiny lace panties. I got him looking great in skinny jeans, a deep v-neck t-shirt and a tiny blazer with slim lapels.”

Moving on: “I got promoted to a full-time position for the company in Paris.”

Takeaways: “The confidence to challenge a current silhouette and the ability to tell a person’s jeans size in a millisecond.”

Where was the gig: A now-defunct skate and snowboard shop located “a little outside of Copenhagen on a bougie corner” called Ski Shop (“there were two locations – the other one sold ski equipment”)

Age at the time: 16 or 17

You’re hired: “I had worked as a warehouse helper before, at the skateboard distribution company, so then I went to the shop. All of a sudden I was just working there. It was extremely unstructured – I for sure didn’t have a contract. On the first day, the manager showed me how to get a little bit of cash out for lunch.”

Vibe check: “It was the best time, just showing up hungover to work every day. I loved it.”

Employee of the month: “All of these rich moms would take their kids there. This was the first era of extremely bulky skate shoes, like DC and eS, and I was so f***ing good at selling that shit to these rich parents buying for their kids who just came in and had no clue.

"In the winter we sold snowboard gear. The week before everyone was going on their ski vacation, people were standing in a line outside the store and we would sell them all the professional stuff for their first ski vacation. I know a bit about snowboarding but I don’t know a lot, so I was just bullshitting. I was extremely good at my job – it’s probably been the job I had that I was the best at.”

Strange encounters: “I had this drug dealer from Christiana that came in – all the guys from Christiana would go on this ski trip every year so they would come in two days before and the rich moms would come the same day. He spent, like, 20,000 DKK on clothing and snowboards and whatever, and he said, ‘I really like you, this is the best service I’ve ever had, thanks a lot’. And then he put maybe five grams of hash in my hand and said, ‘This is an extra bonus because you were so nice to me’. We were standing right next to the wife of one of Denmark’s most famous composers.”

Moving on: “This was the same time that I launched Soulland. I stopped working there when I hurt my knee really bad and had to have surgery. At the time, I was really skating a lot and I got a little bit depressed from hurting my knee because it took, like, a year and a half to get over it. I didn’t want to still work in a skateboard shop when I couldn’t skate.

"So then I got the chance to work in the Wood Wood shop – at the time I was starting to become more interested in what was going on in the fashion world. This was maybe 2003, where the bridge between skateboarding and fashion and New York streetwear was happening and that was so interesting to me. It was an amazing opportunity to work in a store that was in that scene.”
Editor’s Note: Wood Wood soon began selling Soulland in their store.

Takeaways: “This comes from skateboarding in general, but when you work with something where it’s a passion, buying into brands and products is a passion. There’s a culture around it and it creates a really strong bond between the brand and the consumer. I learned about being close to the consumer very early on. For me, being passionate about what I do is not an option, it’s the only way that I am able to function.”

Where was the gig: An H&M 'summer shop'

Age at the time: Around 18

You’re hired: “I got the job in retail through a direct meeting with the store manager. He liked me, I liked him, and I got the job.”

Vibe check: “I like having a job and a salary. I liked the colleagues and to finally live a bit more grown up, but I understood very quickly that I wanted to work more hands on. I saw the visual merchandisers working in the store that summer and applied to both Ikea and H&M to become a trainee in that – I think I used a portfolio from my art class in school. I got a yes from H&M first so there started my career in fashion.”

Strange encounters: “I actually saw a guy hunting another guy with a knife outside the store and I had to report it to the police.”

Employee of the month: “I must say, I was very good. I enjoyed it and I took it very seriously.”

Moving on: “After a very short time, I thought, ‘This is not enough’.”