This month, Norrøna opened a flagship in Manhattan's SoHo neighborhood on Greene Street. This is the Norwegian outdoor brand's 24th brand retail store globally and the second one in the U.S. after the concept store in Boulder, Colorado – itself near the American subsidiary Norrøna established last year. Stacy Lockhart, an experienced retail sales specialist, was hired as the manager for the new store. According to Ludovic Daouze, sales manager for France and Italy, Norrøna has already achieved a measure of international recognition through its store in Chamonix, but New York adds global and urban dimensions. There are no new stores slated for Europe, but two stores did open under partnerships at the Swiss ski lodges of Saint Moritz and Zermatt in November. The company's sole Swiss outlet store, however, will be closing next year. The strategy in France remains “selective and qualitative” distribution to some 50 retailers. So far, says Daouze, this has allowed Norrøna to raise revenues by an annual 20 percent in France. Meanwhile, construction is wrapping up on the company's Lithuanian factory, where production should begin in March. Norrøna seeks to shift its production away from Asia and nearer to Italy, where it has two major partnerships for raw materials.

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