Swedish brand Asket brings its timeless, permanent wardrobe essentials to London with a pleasingly minimal new concept store in the heart of Soho. Step inside the opening event
Earlier this week, a gaggle of effortlessly well-dressed Swedish and British creatives gathered in one pleasingly minimal space: Asket’s brand new London store. Located on an attractive stretch of Soho, the space, designed by Swedish architecture firm Profan (the cabinets and displays were manufactured in a workshop just outside of Stockholm), brings the brand’s sustainable ethos and no-fuss forever pieces to a fashion Mecca. The second Asket retail location (the first being in Stockholm’s Norrmalmstorg, natch), the store opens just in time for Asket’s 10-year anniversary, signifying that the brand’s unwavering vision for a permanent wardrobe of well-considered day-to-day essentials is as resonant as ever.
According to Asket founders August Bard Bringéus and Jakob Sazon Dworsky, setting down roots in London was a natural next step for the brand, and not just because the city has fashion capital status. “For some time now London has been home to our biggest community in terms of customers and followers – bigger than Stockholm even,” says Bringéus. “Rooted in tailoring, I believe there’s an appreciation for clothing in London that goes beyond the superficial. My sense is that there is an interest both in the timeless style and the dedication to craftsmanship and genuine materials that Asket represents.”
Photo: Asket
Asket founders August Bard Bringéus and Jakob Sazon Dworsky. Photo: Asket
Still, this milestone didn’t come overnight. The Asket team travelled to London “intensely” (Dworsky’s word) to find the ideal location for the brand’s forever home. After settling on Soho, Dworksy and Bringéus considered the neighbouring galleries, restaurants and retail stores and narrowed their search to just five streets. “On top of that, we were looking for a space with a generous volume, open with a high ceiling,” adds Dworsky. After two years of searching, a place that checked all their boxes popped up: a 140 square metre, gallery-like storefront location with soaring five-metre-tall ceilings on Brewer Street; nestled away from the main foot traffic but still very much in Soho. “It was the perfect blank canvas for our new retail concept,” says Dworsky.
A refined iteration of the concept introduced at the Norrmalmstorg flagship, Asket’s London store is, as Bringéus puts it, made for “conversations, not transactions”. Drawing inspiration from art galleries, archives and traditional tailors, the minimal space is centred around a massive oakwood credenza, on which garments can be laid out and discussed. Elsewhere, cabinets house single items and curated materials housed in little glass jars, telling the story of each piece from raw material to final garment. Racks are sparsely filled, each piece given space to breathe and be appreciated. From the street, it doesn’t look like a store at all, but rather an intriguing gallery, marked only by understated signage.
The scene at the opening event, including snacks made on-site by Swedish restaurant Persona. Photo: Asket
Photo: Asket
To fete the opening, Asket curated an evening that brought together the best of Swedish and British culture. The team from renowned Stockholm restaurant Persona flew in to serve exquisite hors d’oeuvres and London-based Swedish DJ Ida Bell spun vibe-heavy tunes. Beverages, meanwhile, came from local independent breweries. “Just like with our garments, we’re careful to respect history and environments that have influenced the end product, while bringing in our disciplined aesthetic and focus on the essential,” says Dworsky.
Just one thing was notably absent from the opening event: Bringéus. “Having worked on the London store for two years, I’m personally grounded in Stockholm and not attending – but for good reason: My wife and I are expecting our second child,” he says. Instead, he and the Asket Stockholm team were celebrating at a local pub, after which he went out for dinner with his family. “Unthinkable a few years ago, but on a personal level a sign of maturity that I’m able to let go and let our passionate and talented team land the project without myself meddling in-between,” he says. The sentiment goes hand-in-hand with the opening of Asket London, solidifying that the idealistic Swedish brand is maturing into something more established, with the same sort of permanence as its garments.
See all the photos from the opening event below.
