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Marimekko est une grande entreprise finlandaise de design dans le secteur de l’habillement et des textiles. Elle conçoit, fabrique et commercialise, en Finlande comme à l’étranger, des vêtements, de la décoration d’intérieur sur textile, des sacs et d’autres accessoires. La notoriété de la marque s’est fait grâce à son style : un ensemble de motifs simples et de couleurs très puissantes.
Marimekko fut fondée en 1951 par Armi et Viljo Ratia. La marque s’est fait connaître dans le domaine de l’habillement dès les années 1960. Kirsti Paakkanen est sa propriétaire et directrice générale depuis 1991.
La marque est connue mondialement. Il existe 25 magasins de détail en Finlande et un à Stockholm en Suède, des filiales en Suède et en Allemagne, des agents commerciaux et des importateurs dans douze pays. Les principaux acheteurs sont la Suède, les États-Unis, l’Allemagne, le Japon, la Russie et la Norvège. Marimekko a environ 800 revendeurs un peu partout dans le monde.
(Source: Wikipedia)
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Marimekko Oyj on suomalainen tekstiili- ja vaatetusalan pörssiyhtiö, jonka perustivat Armi ja Viljo Ratia vuonna 1951.
Marimekon osake-enemmistö siirtyi vuonna 1991 Kirsti Paakkasen omistamalle Workidea Oy:lle, jonka omistus nykyään on 10 %. 31. lokakuuta 2007 Paakkanen ilmoitti luopuvansa asteittain Marimekon omistuksesta Mika Ihamuotilalle, josta tulee yhtiön uusi toimitusjohtaja ja suurin omistaja.[2]
Ennen Paakkasen johtajuutta Marimekko oli ajautunut 1960- ja 1970-lukujen menestyksestä huonoon tilaan. Vain Euroopassa.
1990-luvulla Marimekko koki renessanssin, kun Maija Isolan 1960-luvulla suunnittelema Unikko-kuosi otettiin uustuotantoon. Kuosin muokkasi aikaan sopivaksi Maija Isolan tytär Kristina Isola. Unikosta tuli Marimekon vuosituhannen vaihteen myydyin kuosi ja sitä on yhdistettynä uudella tavalla erilaisissa materiaaleissa tekstiileistä televisionkuoriin ja saappaisiin. Maailmanlaajuisen suosion näkee siinäkin, että muiden yritysten Unikonkaltaiset kuosit ovat selvästi yleistyneet. Marimekon tuotteisiin kuuluvat muun muassa pyyhkeet, pussilakanat, muoviastiat, posliiniastiat, kankaat, vaatteet, kengät, tunnetut Jokapoika-paidat, Mariskooli, sukat, laukut ja servetit. Marimekolta sai myös pieniä, kangaskantisia muistikirjoja, joiden myynti loppui 1990-luvun alussa.
( Wikipediasta)
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Marimekko is a Finnish company based in Helsinki that has made important contributions to fashion, especially in the 1960s and 1970s. They are particularly noted for brightly-colored printed fabrics and simple styles.
Marimekko was founded in 1951 by Armi and Viljo Ratia, when Armi asked some artist friends to apply their graphic designs to textiles. In order to show how the fabric could be used, the company then designed and sold a line of simple dresses using their fabric. Viljo had been involved in an unsuccessful oilcloth factory, which they converted into a clothing-fabric factory.
Marimekko was first introduced to the United States by the architect Benjamin C. Thompson, who featured them heavily in his Design Research stores. They were made famous in the United States by Jacqueline Kennedy, who bought eight Marimekko dresses which she wore throughout the 1960 US Presidential campaign.
By 1965, the company employed over 400, and the company was in every aspect of fine design, from fabrics to toys, dinnerware, even completely equipped small houses. Marimekko was more than just a fashion brand, it was a lifestyle and point of view. That year, Armi Ratia told Pan Am’s Clipper magazine that she was “against success–it is a sick word. Too many side effects.” In the interview by R.E. Smallman, she also said that she did not like “hats, corsets. There is almost no more bra or even pants–no elegant woman will wear stockings, perhaps even no shoes. The world changes quickly, and this is expression of the new society.”
Armi Ratia died in 1979, which was the beginning of difficult times in Marimekko. In 1985, the company was sold to Amer-yhtymä.
In the beginning of the 1990s, Marimekko was in a bad financial condition and was considered ready for bankruptcy. It was then bought from Amer by Kirsti Paakkanen, who introduced new business methods in the company and is generally seen as having saved Marimekko. In 2005, Marimekko’s revenue had been quadrupled and its net income grown 200-fold. Kirsti Paakkanen is the current CEO of Marimekko and owns 20 % of the company via her business Workidea. In 2007, Paakkanen announced she would gradually hand over her ownership to Mika Ihamuotila, who will be the new CEO and biggest owner of the company.
In 2007, Marimekko began opening individually-owned Marimekko Concept Stores in the United States. Currently there are stores located in Cambridge, Massachusetts; Oxford, Mississippi; Miami Beach, Florida; and the Washington, DC region (Silver Spring, Maryland).
(Source: Wikipedia)
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