Acne Studios' Monumental HQ in Stockholm

Celebrating 20 years of business, Swedish fashion house Acne Studios have a new Stockholm HQ in a 1972 Brutalist building. Named after its street address, Floragatan 13 is set within the former Czechoslovakian embassy, originally built by Czech architect Jan Bočan. The new iteration is the result of a transformation by Johannes Norlander Arkitektur with the brand’s in-house design team and Creative Director Jonny Johansson, who looked to the original ACNE acronym for inspiration: Ambition to Create Novel Expressions.

The architects were mindful to preserve the building’s archetypal brutalist bones, with bush hammered concrete facades and glass infills, using contemporary elements to add layered character. Aiming to create a ‘fashion school’ atmosphere with endless creative inspiration, the headquarters spans 10 floors, each with social and collaborative space at the core.

A ground floor library hosts art and fashion books for employees to flip through, with Helmut Lang sculptures, tubular red sofas and pink glass pendant lamps by Benoit Lalloz throughout. In the lobby, custom furnishings by Max Lamb include a silver table and chairs carved from irregular blocks of stone. Interspersed are select items of Acne clothing, displayed as if in a gallery. An outdoor seating area is also welcome to members of the public.

The canteen is housed within the embassy’s former cinema, featuring red tiled floors and round communal timber tables. Floor to ceiling wall hangings by London-based artist Daniel Silver are comprised of offcuts from Acne Studios fabric. At the heart of the building are four floors dedicated to design and production, including a fabric store, design studio, atelier and fitting room.

The sixth floor boardroom is accessed via a secret lift, opening into an area that was once the private residence of the Czechoslovakian ambassador. Contrasting stark straight lines and angular eaves, homely touches that reference its former life include a sunken seating area and fireplace.

See more Acne retail interiors on Yellowtrace here.