The Ambassador of Finland Pekka Huhtaniemi officially opened Fiskars’ new UK showroom and offices in Birmingham on March 12, the manufacturer has announced.
Local business dignitaries, trade associations, industry leaders from the home and garden arena, and Fiskars employees witnessed Pekka Huhtaniemi cut the ribbon to mark the opening of the 17th floor of the Mclaren Building in the centre of Birmingham.
Fiskars south west Europe regional director John Grayson welcomed the guests, who were also addressed by Fiskars Europe president Thomas Enckell.
TV presenter, ethnobotanist, author, and new ambassador for Fiskars James Wong joined in the celebration, signing autographed copies of his new book ‘Grow For Flavour’.
The new office includes a specifically designed demonstration area and interactive product displays to showcase not just Fiskars garden and kitchen tools, but other global brands: Gerber, Iittala and Royal Copenhagen, the company says.
UK managing director and south west Europe regional director John Grayson said: “This is an exciting time to be part of one of the world’s oldest and yet most contemporary companies. We’ve been through an extensive development program in recent years and the opportunity to now re-position Fiskars UK into such an accessible location, within a welcoming and professional office environment that befits the quality of our brands and company values, is just tremendous.”
Thomas Enckell added: “There is more than age and history which makes Fiskars relevant today. We have a sincere aspiration to be even more relevant – socially relevant, relevant as an employer, business partner and to our end consumers.
“Fiskars will be strengthening our marketing position and expanding and the UK is one of the key markets in Europe. The UK is the most garden loving country in the world and London has the most number of garden loving residents in the world. This new facility shows our aspirations. It’s a great view, lots of open space and gives us room to grow.”
James Wong said: “One of the problems with horticulture in the UK is that is can be elitist and people feel that they’re not allowed into the club. With Fiskars, anyone can join. It’s totally democratic. We want to revolutionise how we talk to the public to get a whole new generation outdoors.”
