No one could have asked for more from Daniel Heckscher, the new director of the Stockholm Furniture Fair and Stockholm Design Week, both of which, as of this year, now fall under his organizational jurisdiction. Approximately 20,000 attendees turned up to what he himself calls a "last-minute" edition. Built in a mere five months which is undeniably no short feat, the aim behind it all is to implement a strategy capable of reversing the fortunes of a trade fair that very much fell behind due to the pandemic. "When I took on the role, there were about 55 confirmed exhibitors for the fair; at the opening however they were 250. In the city, there were 20 planned events around Christmas, and over 100 at the inauguration," signs of life that Heckscher rightly values.
"The economic situation in Sweden is extremely difficult right now, both for exhibiting companies and for architects. Our trade fair system [owned by the city of Stockholm] was unable to adapt to the market demands that emerged with COVID," Heckscher explains. "The management of commercial platforms should not be outsourced to local administrations; it’s not a good mix”. This is why the acquisition agreement for the entire platform—rumoured to have been signed by a European partner—is seen as a great opportunity for revitalization.
Many of the most interesting showcases this year reflected Sweden’s already widespread eco-consciousness. Material Dialogue, the crossover project by designer Emma Olbers and chef Paul Svensson, demonstrated how eliminating fossil fuels, adopting a circular business model, and building a healthy food system are the key principles of ecological transition. MANUFRACTURE, a manifesto-exhibition by Faye Toogood (Stockholm Furniture Fair's Guest of Honour) that only included prototypes from her personal archives, championed reuse as an opportunity to mend the "fracture" of the arts within the traditional production system, all the while restoring human ingenuity as an important component of to its central role.
This year, Greenhouse, the Fair's platform for up-and-coming designers, showcased a dedication to ancient crafts albeit reinterpreted in a contemporary way. One of the most radical research efforts, in an extreme setup that still feels raw eve now was the Arkansas School’s focus on light in the shape of 3D-printed glass lamps (providing a deep dive into reducing energy consumption), the small Side Lamps with metal shades by design duo Massimo Scheidegger & Bruno Pauli Caldas (a diploma project from ECAL in Lausanne), and Sumo and Spin Lamps by Tok Studio.
This selection expanded outward, embracing the global spectrum of multidisciplinary innovation while delving deeply into the core of industrial production. From local to global, Heckscher’s vision offered both companies and visitors a comprehensive, immersive experience that bridges diverse fields and scales.
"The Stockholm Furniture Fair has changed; it is smaller and struggling, but not finished," says Mårten Claesson, founder of Claesson Koivisto Rune Architects. "Fewer international brands overall. More of a national/regional fair. But perhaps, on the contrary, a more culturally interesting event?" A fair question, but "people come to the fair to do business, not like in Copenhagen where "three days of design” exclusively benefiting Danish companies are exhibited but at prohibitive prices,“ Heckscher points out, without criticism. "In Stockholm, as in Milan and Paris, high calibre Swedish companies such as Kinnarps and Lammhults have cancelled their exhibition stands. Some will return next year; others have set up showrooms in their cities. Here, as in the rest of the world, collective platforms are essential," he warns. "If the Swedish furniture industry is not strongly represented at the fairs, how can we convince foreign exhibitors to invest in us?"
The impression, wandering through the aisles, was that the entire Swedish furniture industry has lost some of its polish—except for certain standout pieces: the HidaHida armchair by Kengo Kuma for Garsnas, the Soft Edge furniture system by Form Us With Love for Dalform, the Circulus sofa by Mario Ferrarini for Offecct, the PYR chair by David Ericsson for Blå Station, and the lights from startup Attilli—undoubtedly remarkable, highly industrial products. "Only a few new innovations and few interesting collaborations," Heckscher admits. "Even I can’t help but be critical. The Swedish design system has the resources, but I think we are playing it safe—we need to level up."
The city, however, showed a little more vibrancy, revealing some intriguing surprises: the Aiiro exhibition and the Geometry glass collection—two highly sophisticated explorations of Swedish identity by architects Claesson Koivisto Rune, the former curated in collaboration with Jackson Design and the latter designed for Orrefors—the Special Effect collection by Sweden-based Scottish designer David Taylor presented by auction house Bukowskis, which explored the creative possibilities of aluminium. the Gio lamps by Luca Nichetto for &Tradition, and pieces by Axel Wannberg, Sami Kallio and design studio Front at NO GA's showroom, curated by Hanna-Nova Beatrice were also notable.
Newly appointed director Daniel Heckscher's program for the Stockholm Furniture Fair is a call to action aimed at companies, designers, and the city itself. The goal? To build a new exhibition model and revive the design system beyond the crisis.
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2025, 22.02
