Acclaimed Swedish designer Gustaf Westman has hit the road for a European pop-up tour, bringing along his most covetable chunky designs – all hosted in real apartments. Below, he gives us a sneak peek at his next destination, Paris, where he’s holding a pop-up this weekend
Buzzy Swedish designer Gustaf Westman has kicked off his summer travels – in the form of an intimate, apartment-to-apartment European pop-up tour that brings his eponymous brand’s chunky, candy-coloured universe to major cities like Copenhagen, Madrid, Berlin, Amsterdam and Paris. Partnering with Kindred, a global home-swapping community, the tour shakes up the traditional pop-up format by hosting each event in a real home, carefully selected by Westman himself.
“I feel like I want to add a personal touch to everything I do, and I just don’t like normal pop-up locations – they are often so stiff and non-personal. My dream has always been to invite people to my home for a shop so we thought why not make the pop-ups in real homes,” Westman explains. “All the homes are Kindred homes and I always save some of the furniture from the real person who lives there to make it feel like a real home.”
The tour began in Berlin in mid-June, then moved through Copenhagen during 3DaysofDesign. Next up, this weekend, is Paris, where the designer takes over an apartment nestled in the northern part of Le Marais. “I love Paris so I’m excited,” he muses. “I always get creative and drunk here, which are two things I love.”
The home in question, Westman says, is “like my dream apartment with an amazing floor, high ceiling and big windows with great lighting”. For each stop on the tour, he aims to find a space that reflects the “stereotypical features for each city – like the roughness in Berlin and the typical floor-to-ceiling windows in Paris”.
As for what was on offer? A curated selection of the brand’s most-loved, playful handmade pieces, including the cult-favourite ‘Chunky’ tableware, ‘Curvy’ mirrors and ‘Spiral’ stands – alongside special city-specific surprises. While Berlin’s pop-up-goers were treated to a black ‘Chunky’ mug punctuated with piercings, the Paris crowd can revel in a swirly design crafted to cradle the city’s favourite baked delight: the baguette. The ‘Baguette Holder’, as Westman has dubbed the piece, will be available made-to-order at the pop-up, along with other special items like extra-large flower pots.
But for Westman, the heart of the tour is about connecting with his thriving community. “It’s just so fun to meet all the people,” he says. “So I’m enjoying every second of it!”
