Long a favored destination for the design hungry and architecturally curious, Copenhagen has added yet another aesthete’s delight to its inner city, with the opening of &Tradition’s sprawling new show-house, Home of a Collector.
Set inside a 1913 townhouse across from the King’s Garden in the city center, the new residence is composed of four stories, all boasting bleached timber flooring and gorgeous proportions, creating the ideal backdrop for the brand’s bevy of dynamic interior offerings.
Founded in 2010, &Tradition has quickly become a contemporary favorite, with its clever mix of vintage reissues – like the covetable Mayor Sofa, designed by Arne Jacobsen and Flemming Lassen in 1939 – and fresh, 21st-century output by young guns like Lex Pott and Studio Vit as well as more established names, including Jaime Hayon and Space Copenhagen.
Rooms throughout the townhouse.
Previously, &Tradition was based in a flexible warehouse space on Copenhagen’s industrial-cool Paper Island. The move into the city’s historic center arguably represents a coming-of-age for the brand, which has swiftly gone from ambitious start-up to a fully fledged player on the international design scene (helped by some serious investment after &Tradition sold a majority stake to fellow Danish design powerhouse HAY in 2016).
“We wanted to create a space where people would feel more involved in the experience,” says Lonnie Castle, &Tradition’s culture and concept manager. “Copenhagen doesn’t need another static showroom. Instead, we wanted to welcome people into a real-life space, where there is art on the walls, books on the shelves, atmosphere and life in every room. ”
The townhouse’s dramatic staircase.
A courtyard café – a local homage to Milan’s iconic 10 Corso Como concept store and restaurant – will allow customers to contemplate chair purchases over cappuccino. Later this summer, the café will partner with local chefs and offer takeaway picnic packs that can be enjoyed in the King’s Garden.
“We wanted locals and visitors alike to be able to take a little piece of the brand with them in a more informal way,” says Castle, “Even if they can’t buy the sofa they’re dreaming of today, they can participate in the brand universe in a nice way. ” A small on-site boutique also lets customers peruse or purchase a selection of &Tradition’s smaller products, including home accessories and lighting.
An office upstairs.
Though highlights of the collection are mainly displayed across the ground floor, visitors are invited to wander throughout the house. On the first floor, an impressive three-room gallery space will host a rotating display of exhibitions and collaborations, while the upper floors are dedicated to offices and an event space.
Next up for the brand is the opening of their first ever retail store in Aarhus, Denmark, and Castle notes, there may be a hotel concept on the cards, perhaps in Copenhagen or further afield. “The one thing you can’t do in the house as it is now, is stay the night,” says Castle, “We’d like to make that a possibility, somewhere. That you can come here to dream too. ”
