Introducing Marianne Arnberg Taylor – Swedish trends

 

UK companies with a flair for fashion ?

When you think of the words Company tie, boring invariably springs to mind. The norm would be to think of a plain tie with a logo placed in the predictable right hand corner and that is how it has always been.

Some larger organisations have made efforts to employ designers only to spoil the ‘look’ by using materials which are less than the quality of the fashion ties you would normally see on the high street. Things are a little different with our Skandinavian cousins however. The tendency over in Sweden is to have a specialist designer create a pattern which not only reflects a companies corporate image & personality but also shows a dedicated flair for current trends coupled with inventive and pleasing contemporary materials. The designer has the need to fully understand and translate the companies personality into a piece of fashion textile.

The Swedes use corporate fashion accessories as an effective public relations tool and have realised the cost effectiveness of the product many years ago. As well as ties, scarves are also produced using the same base from the original design, the same goes for winter scarves and handkerchieves.

Tie and handkerchief for Leif Malaco AB (producers of confectionary)

The wearer of these corporate fashion textiles gets the added advantage and ‘street cred’ of knowing that they are a limited edition and totally unique.

The Swedes have a famed low tolerance for poor-quality products and therefore it is rare to see company fashion textiles produced in anything but the finest Silk thread, except of course where Acrylic is more effective as a secondary or back up lining [sic: Winterscarves are produced using silk with an acylic back]. With the onset of the new digital production technique of printing onto silks (and other materials) the possibilities for exact product marketing using corporate textiles is a new and refreshing opportunity.

MAD tie and handkerchief

Winterscarf. Created for Rexam plc

And in these days of far eastern textile domination of the textile industry it is particulary pleasing knowing that here in the UK an enlighted few small companies are finding the design niche of quality corporate fashion. One such company is Marianne Arnberg Design Limited.

 

Rexam. Tie & Scaves

Their fashion label is ‘MAD exclusive’ and they have developed a solid export market to Sweden. The chief designer is a Swedish National, Marianne Arnberg. She works from the companies studios in Southern Sweden with her english asistant designer and artist husband Denis Taylor. This year MAD exclusive shall be attempting an entry into the UK corporate marketplace. Lets hope that some of the good habits of the fashionable Swedish companies will inspire the UK business leaders to see how contemporary fashion design can help them become fashionably and consequently more profitable.

By Marianne Arnberg Taylor