Maria Nilsdotter's new “Gothic Cathedral” is well-worth the visit

"I have always wanted this exact location," says eponymous designer and jewellery visionary Maria Nilsdotter of her new store at Nordiska Kompaniet in Stockholm. For the Swede, these words carry particular weight. It was here, at NK, that Nilsdotter first began to sell her jewellery through a retailer in 2008, just one year after founding her namesake brand. From there, a space on one of the department store's balconies emerged, followed by a smaller permanent store and a pop-up.

Now, nearly two decades later, Nilsdotter has arrived at the spot she has been eyeing since the beginning. "We started with our first space of our own on the first floor and have slowly worked our way here, so it feels very full circle to come back to the exact place that started it all for us at NK," she says. "I remember looking at this space even back then and thinking it was the dream spot."

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The new permanent store sits in Ljusgården, by NK's main entrance, replacing both Nilsdotter's previous pop-up and the smaller store the brand has been operating at the department store since 2019. At 50 square meters, more space means more room for more jewellery, naturally, but also for something that has become increasingly integral to the Maria Nilsdotter experience: the world surrounding it.

Since founding her brand in 2007, Nilsdotter has populated her jewellery with a cast of creatures, symbols and references drawn from Nordic nature, mysticism, folklore, and mythology. For the new space, she and longtime collaborator, architect Daniel Östman, began imagining where those creatures might actually live. "Daniel knows me really well at this point – he knows I want it dark," Nilsdotter explains. "The pop-up was more about the Nordic nature side of the brand, but with this new store, we wanted to explore the architectural side of the world that exists within the jewellery – the castles, halls and imagined spaces the creatures might inhabit."

The folkloric concept also builds on the brand's previous NK store, which took inspiration from the Mountain King's hall found in Swedish mythology. This time, however, Nilsdotter and Östman pushed the fantasy further. "It became like a castle or cathedral for the creatures," she says. "For the first time, I found myself asking Daniel, 'It won't be too dark, right?'"

The result is what the pair have dubbed their "little Gothic cathedral": a shadowy, intricately considered space where architecture, materials, and objects establish a sense of mystery whilst the jewellery remains at its centre. Among these objects is a specially commissioned sculpture by artist Klara Kristalova.

The collaboration feels particularly apt. Kristalova's strange, dreamlike figures appear as though they could have wandered directly into Nilsdotter's own mythology, something the designer herself has recognised for years. "Klara Kristalova's art has spoken to me for a long time. I've always felt there's a kinship between our creative worlds," says Nilsdotter. "I love her dark, strange, fairytale-like figures – they feel as though they could belong to the same Nordic tale." "I've wanted to do something together for years," she adds, "so I was very happy that it finally worked out for this store."

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The opening comes during a significant period of physical expansion for the brand. Within the past year, Maria Nilsdotter has opened at Steen & Strøm in Oslo and NK Gothenburg, with the new Stockholm location marking its latest move. Yet Nilsdotter is quick to distinguish this growth from expansion for expansion's sake. "For me, the expansion is really about making the world of Maria Nilsdotter more tangible," she says. "Jewellery is at the heart of the brand, but the universe and the narratives surrounding each piece have been just as important."

It is here that physical retail offers something a screen never quite can. "With a physical store, you can invite people into that world and let them experience it with all their senses – through the atmosphere, the craftsmanship, the materials and the stories behind the jewellery," she explains. "The ambition isn't simply to open more stores, but to create spaces where you can really step into the universe of Maria Nilsdotter."

For now, though, there is something immensely satisfying about this latest chapter beginning precisely where an earlier one did. "The store feels like a continuation of everything we've built over the years," Nilsdotter says, "but at the same time it's a completely new chapter for us."

Maria Nilsdotter’s new store opens at Nordiska Kompaniet Stockholm, Hamngatan 18–20, on 3 September.