Interview with Marimekko’s CFO Elina Anckar

For someone who hasn’t heard about Marimekko before – how would you describe the company, your core business, and the markets you serve?

Marimekko is a Finnish lifestyle design house founded in 1951 and is considered one of the first true lifestyle brands globally. Our business is centered around three product lines: fashion, bags & accessories, and home products. Today, Marimekko stores and online channels serve customers in 38 countries. In 2024, our net sales reached €183 million, with a comparable EBIT margin of 17.5%.

Which regions do you view as the strongest growth areas going forward?

We have identified Northern Europe, North America, and the Asia-Pacific region as our key markets. Among these, Asia stands out as the most important growth contributor. In Asia, we operate primarily through a loose franchise model, except for China where we manage e-commerce directly. This model allows us to scale with lower risk and investment.

How is Marimekko approaching e-commerce, and what recent developments have you made in this area?

Omnichannel retail, including e-commerce, is core to our distribution strategy. In 2024, we rolled out a new digital commerce platform, first piloted in the U.S., and now live across our markets. The platform enhances personalization, improves user experience and speed, while enabling faster deployment of new channels, languages, and features. Our online sales continued to grow in Q4 2024. The new platform will help scale our online sales.

How have you handled recent inflationary pressures and fluctuating production costs?

Since the pandemic, we’ve become more agile, running simulations and mitigation actions to adapt quickly to global challenges. The key is maintaining brand and product desirability. We continuously evaluate product’s perceived value for the customers and apply smart pricing rather than simply passing on cost increases. Our wide product range helps us cater to different customer budgets.

Sustainability is an important factor for modern brands. What initiatives have you launched recently?

Sustainability is at Marimekko’s core. Our products are timeless and often used for decades, which is why we also operate a resale platform. In 2024, we expanded the use of less emission intensive materials and launched our denim line designed following the principles of circularity, Maridenim. In the same year, we achieved a 21% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions per kilogram of textile materials sourced and a 76% reduction in water scarcity score compared to 2019. Our science-based climate targets were approved in early 2025, consisting of near-term goals aligned with the UN Paris Agreement. These include continued reductions in emissions across the value chain, driven by a rigorous material strategy and the integration of circular design principles from the product development phase onward.

How do you balance maintaining brand heritage with innovation and appealing to new customer segments?

We build on our heritage while staying relevant. Our print archives allow us to reuse iconic designs in new products, helping us bridge tradition and innovation. We don’t segment customers by age; instead, we focus on broadening our appeal globally, especially among younger consumers.

What are Marimekko’s key strategic priorities for 2025 and beyond?

2025 marks the third year of our “Scale” strategy (2023–2027), focused on growth with sustained profitability.

• Sustainability: Continue our journey to execute our strong sustainability strategy.
• Creative vision: Continue to reinforce our sharpened creative vision, with distinct design language and ready-to-wear as a communicational spearhead.
• Asia: Focus on Asia as the most important geographical area for international growth.
• Love: Grow and strengthen our community by connecting through value-based unique brand story.
• End-to-end digitalization: Accelerate digital transformation across the value chain to boost omnichannel growth and efficiency.

Finally, can you share why Marimekko is an attractive investment today?

Marimekko offers the opportunity to scale a global lifestyle brand with low risk and capital intensity, our loose-franchise model supports growth with minimal CAPEX.

Our strong brand, stable financials, and proven business model offer resilience even in uncertain times. We have a healthy balance sheet, growing customer base, and long-term commitment to sustainability and innovation.