How this label slid into DMs to become one of Sweden's most buzziest jewellery brands
Attend any well-curated dinner, store event or vernissage in Stockholm and you are bound to notice something silver and shiny on the wrists, necks, ears and fingers of one or several well-dressed guests. In the 12 years since it was founded by pals Fredrik Nathorst and Jacob Skragge, Swedish jewellery brand All Blues has become as ubiquitous among a certain set as Byredo perfume. This is certainly due to design – understated, slick and endlessly wearable – but also that special sauce, known less sexily as ‘branding’.
If you want to discover how All Blues grew from a jewellery upstart founded by two guys who “didn’t know anything about anything,” to a powerhouse with a standalone store on Stockholm’s prestigious Birger Jarlsgatan retail row (directly across the street from Tiffany and Co.), look no further than its founders. Breezy and charming, Skragge has settled neatly into the role of CEO, while Nathorst, whom he met in high school, acts as creative director. I ask the latter via email what drew him to Skragge in the first place and he responds, quite simply: "He seemed like a very outgoing person and we happened to share interests and ambitions.”
Photo: Isak Asia
Photo: Isak Asia
“Fredrik and I had a really strong connection over music, fashion – everything that you care about when you’re 18,” Skragge confirms. We’re settled into a booth at Riche, the beloved bar and restaurant located two doors down from the All Blues flagship. “We were talking about how fun it would be to do something together – to create our own brand.” They had no familial connections to the fashion industry and no money, but rather than get bogged down in the “practical aspects,” they wanted to approach things from an “emotional perspective”.
On a trip to New York the summer after high school, Skragge noticed that there were no jewellery brands that he felt “connected to or interested in”. When he returned to Stockholm, he and Nathorst set out to create what they felt was missing. “We ended up making a few bracelets by ourselves using ropes, pearls and braided leather, and even made the boxes ourselves,” says Nathorst, who had borrowed 20,000 SEK from his mother to get started. As for the name? “We spent a lot of time in this kitchen in Fredrik’s mom’s apartment, listening to a lot of blues and jazz,” says Skragge. “It’s actually an old Miles Davis song, called ‘All Blues’.”
All Blues CEO Jacob Skragge.
The All Blues aesthetic as we know it today is far from that initial offering of crafty pieces (though there was an audience for those, too; they were instantly picked up by NK’s Paul & Friends shop-in-shop). The duo adopted an understated minimalism – silver and gold items that beg to be worn every day – shortly thereafter. Producing locally from recycled materials, Skragge and Nathorst have developed a straightforward aesthetic that fits comfortably into just about every wardrobe. Nathorst describes the look as “subtle confidence”. Today, the brand has found fans in industry insiders and of-the-moment Scandi notables like actor Gustav Lindh and rapper Silvana Imam, a longtime friend of the brand.
In the case of All Blues, that phrase “friend of the brand” can be handily swapped for “friend of Jacob Skragge”. Skragge is the sort of founder who lives his work. All Blues dinners double as intimate social gatherings, the store operates as a meeting space where Skragge hosts casual breakfasts for other creatives and media types. I ask him how this impossibly cool All Blues community came to be and he casts his mind back to the brand’s very first showroom in Paris. “I remember being in this bar and I saw a few of those buyers that I’ve seen on Instagram, or whatever, and they were speaking with some other people that I knew from other brands, and I realised, like, they’re friends. They’re actually friends,” Skragge recalls. “So I started to reach out to people, and I also made the decision that I’m only going to be myself. Some people you have a great vibe with and those people I try to engage with and get to know more.”
Photo: Isak Asia
Photo: Isak Asia
What often starts with a DM leads to years-long friendships, collaborations (they’ve done capsules with both Acne Studios and Our Legacy) and forever fans of the brand’s quiet confidence. As All Blues grows, Skragge brings on like-minded employees – pop by the shop and you’re greeted with warm hellos and, if you’re a frequent customer, hugs. Both Skragge and Nathorst dream of opening more retail spaces. Soon they will venture into home objects as well; items sure to pop up on the mantles, tables and Instagram feeds of the brand’s many friends. Exactly what those objects will be remains to be seen, but Skragge assures me they will be very much within the established All Blues universe.
I ask Skragge if, during this expansion, it will be challenging to maintain that DM-driven personal touch, but he’s steadfast in his vision. “Even if a company is big, the person at the top might be the most humble person ever,” he says. So does he still check his inbox? “I answer every DM.”
Photo: Isak Asia