Store of the month March 2022: Butik Tegel

In the heart of beautiful Åre you will find Butik Tegel, an esteemed store with a cozy atmosphere, which has now also been named store of the year in March 2022 by us at Stockholm Fashion District. We asked some curious questions to the owner Elina about how it all started there 12 years ago, what their customers seem to appreciate the most and how they think about the assortment they offer.

Tell us about Tegel, how did it all start?
The room where Tegel lives became vacant in the spring of 2010, at the same time, my motivation to continue studying began to cool. A nice clothing store where I worked part-time for a couple of years closed. I think it was these different coincidences that led me to, from one day to the next, decide to start my own store. I was 24 years old, had the energy to work around the clock, and only saw opportunities. Twelve years later, we are now an established store in the heart of Åre that is open 365 days a year.

What type of products do you sell?
We mainly sell women’s and men’s clothing but also shoes and furnishings as well as some children’s clothing and accessories.

What would you say your customers appreciate most when they visit you?
The cozy atmosphere in the room. We hear that many people appreciate our mix of different brands and that the range is so well selected, without being super exclusive.

What strategy do you have when it comes to the assortment you buy in?
We work actively with news and love to jump on trends. We consistently try to buy styles with good fits in comfortable qualities. As we are located in such a small town and Åre’s guests are of all ages, we try to keep an interesting range for a wider target group.

The issue of sustainability is high on the agenda these days, how is it in your industry and how do you work at Tegel with sustainability?
Tegel’s sustainability focus is that what we buy must be sold, worn, and appreciated for many years by our customers. We choose to buy more and more products from recycled and more environmentally friendly materials, this also applies to input products.

We always have a dialogue with our suppliers and in a way assume that they gradually meet the requirements that the market places on us as an industry. For us, social sustainability is also a great driving force and something we are passionate about.

Which would you say is your biggest asset? And what would you say is your biggest challenge?
An invaluable asset is that we have a lot of regulars from Åre and the surrounding area, which is not so obvious in a tourist resort. We are a great team with a common drive forward, however, it is challenging to be able to offer employees an attractive job as a small workplace.

What is your best tip for inspiring the customer?
To always keep the store interesting by signposting and rearranging often. This also applies during the quieter periods, when each customer is even more important.

Last but not least, we are curious about the name Butik Tegel, where does it come from and does it have any special meaning?
Finding a name for the store was a bit tricky, we had many ideas that I am so happy today that we did not choose. I wanted a name that was not associated with just clothes or fashion because, from the start, we had the ambition to offer more than just that. I also wanted it to appeal to both men and women and be easy to pronounce for an international guest. The store is located in a brick house, so we landed in Tegel (which means brick in Swedish) in the end, which I never regretted.

Photo to the left: The owner Elina and Sara who are a permanent employee
Photo in text: The nice shop 

Butik Tegel on sociala media
Instagram: @butik_tegel
Facebook: @butiktegel