In conversation with Mikkel Grene, CEO of Søstrene Grene

Can you tell us about your career leading up to becoming CEO of the family business? 

My parents founded Søstrene Grene only one year after I was born, so Søstrene Grene has always been part of my life. In my younger years, I was not sure whether I wanted to pursue a career in the family business. I considered becoming a journalist and later a scientist. However, when I had finished school, I started working in the store. It should only have been for a while before I would begin my studies at the university, but I realised that my future was here – since there were so many great opportunities in this company with a magnificent concept and a strong culture.

How has the company changed in the last 10 years?

Ever since I became CEO in late 2011, a lot has happened. We went from a few stores outside of Denmark to accelerating our international expansion to 16 markets. In 2020, we started our digital transformation with the launch of our Danish webshop, and we now have webshops in 14 different markets. All this could not have happened without our skilled Sisters in the stores and in the offices, as well as our close business partners who run our stores on a daily basis.

As the company became more popular across Europe, how have you juggled expanding and maintaining a family business feel?

I would say it all comes down to the people and the culture and to being very clear and vocal about your culture and values. We have so many amazing Sisters in Søstrene Grene. We call each other Sisters because we are like a big family. We have a fantastic organisation and I’m very proud of all our Sisters. We name our culture ‘Sister Spirit’ and it is thriving across markets, stores and offices. 

It’s amazing to travel to a city where you have never been to visit a store there which just has that special Søstrene Grene atmosphere. It makes me proud to see that the Wonderful world of Anna and Clara has proven to be so international and strong that it actually works out in 16 different countries. And every time I visit a new store, I’m amazed to experience the dedication and passion of every Sister. This is very unique and something which makes me very proud.

What do you think makes the UK perfect for an expansion of Søstrene Grene?

We have been very well received by the UK customers in our current stores and the same goes for our recently launched webshop. It seems that the aesthetic and affordable Scandi living appeals to people in the UK. This warm welcome creates huge potential to expand our store concept to more areas to an even broader audience so we can invite even more customers to immerse themselves in Anna and Clara’s wonderful, aesthetically pleasing world. 

We are eager to expand both in the larger cities and in smaller corners of the UK, and due to our presence in some of the largest markets in Europe such as France and Germany, it gives us great confidence to continue this expansion in the UK as well.

What has most surprised you about retailing in the UK, and why?

We have opened stores in smaller cities and in places where other retailers have closed stores. This is quite atypical, but we have been very well received by the customers in these cities. Another surprising fact is perhaps that we are selling a lot of tea in the UK; in fact, it has surpassed our expectations. I guess this is comparable to selling sand in the Sahara Desert or ice cubes in Greenland.

In what ways has the company become more sustainable in recent years?

At Søstrene Grene, we continue to invest heavily in the sustainability agenda. We have phased out several single-use plastic products and will also phase out products in the future, if they do not fit our strategy to secure more circularity in our product range. 

We also have a goal to use as little product packaging as possible with Søstrene Grene’s products. We are continuously working product by product to reduce the product packaging. 

We are also working on mapping our CO2 footprint in the entire value chain, so we can see where we can create the biggest reduction, and have set some ambitious reduction targets towards 2030. In general, we are step-by-step working towards creating a product range with as little climate impact as possible.

Can you tell us a little bit about the flagship store on Tottenham Court Road?

The Tottenham Court Road store will be the largest Søstrene Grene store in the UK. It is strategically located in a 5,000 sq ft unit on Tottenham Court Walk, just steps away from the renowned Tottenham Court Road. This flagship store, spanning two floors, marks Søstrene Grene’s debut in Central London. So of course, we are delighted about this first Central London store.

It is a pivotal moment for our brand as we continue to expand the world of Søstrene Grene in the UK. Moreover, the store will hold an experience room as the very first Søstrene Grene store in the UK. The concept behind the room is to offer an extraordinary experience for the customers. The intention is that the customers should experience something different, something unexpected, and something exciting when entering the room.

What’s next for Søstrene Grene?

We will continue to develop Søstrene Grene while preserving everything that is unique to our history and our brand. We will continue to invest in the sustainability agenda where we have set some ambitious reduction targets towards 2030. Moreover, we will continue our expansion of physical stores to bring Anna and Clara’s wonderful world to more people. Our great attention markets are currently Germany and the UK where we expect to grow year by year. By 2030 we expect to have around 100 stores in the UK. We will also continue our digital transformation focusing on how we can inspire and help create wonderful moments for our millions of customers across markets.