The new VIBAe Helsinki Store is OPEN!
We are so happy to be selling shoes again! Although it was fun scraping the floors on our knees to find this original tile from... we don´t know! All we know that it was buried under vinyl flooring and a more modern tile. We love it, holes and all!
The style of the store could be called "industrial chic" or "industrial minimalist" or "Minna´s vision", since she is The Absolute Queen of Style and designed the store from top to bottom. So let´s ask her a few questions!
What was the BEST thing about the renovation, Minna?
Can I say everything? We used to flip houses, so renovation doesn't intimidate me. To me, it's always an exciting project, where I can be as daring and creative as I want. I knew that I wanted to focus on the VIBE (obviously) of the store, through soft lighting and perfect surfaces, so when we discovered the old tile flooring, I jumped for joy!
The imperfect, yet perfect flooring really transcends you to a South European vibe, a bit of Portugal to go with our shoes, you know? Covering the walls and ceiling with a simple cement plaster was the perfect backsplash for our shoes. Some say grey is a depressing colour, but come visit the store and tell me you don´t instantly let out a deep sigh of relaxation and ease... and then say... WOW!
What were the highlights?
The devil is the details, so I loved finding little statement pieces, like this working old school phone. The brass faucets are my favorites, we searched high and low for them! I also ordered massive amounts of flowers to fill up the huge rustic vases. My husband jokingly asked me if we were a florist or a shoe store? It´s all about the vibes, I answered, so that shut him up! :)
There is so much more room for you now, our valued customers! We really did outgrow our last store in terms of space. If you live in Finland or are planning on visiting Finland, please stop by! You can find us in the city centre, at Fredrikinkatu 22. The atmosphere in the store is very calming and you can try our super comfortable shoes on the Togo Vintage couch.
We want to give a big thank you to everyone who helped make the renovation and the opening party such a success. Stefan from Decorative Oy did a superb job renovating the space from top to bottom with the help of Adnan and his team. The moody, calming lighting was designed by the folks at Helsinki Lighting Company.
A huge shout out to all of our wonderful collaborators:
Team work makes the dream work!
