The Scandi Menswear Brand You’re Seeing Everywhere

The brand started out with T-shirts, why did you diversify into other items?
“Soulland has always been a reflection of Jacob (Co-founder & CEO) and I’s way of life. As we grew up, gained knowledge within different crafts, so did Soulland. It happened very organically. For a clothing company to evolve and to grow you must diversify and challenge your current ideas. A fashion label is never a finished product, it is in constant growth and evolution which makes the industry such an interesting one. We are constantly searching for the next right step in Soulland’s evolution which for 2020 is the introduction of our womenswear line!”

How do you feel about your pieces being called ‘luxury’?
“I don’t see Soulland as being necessarily defined within one genre of clothing. We roam between different styles in my opinion. But of course the designs, fabrics sourced and cuts of some of the styles we make can be set in that genre of clothing. It feels very good to know that we are able to appeal to different audiences with the clothing we make.”

What sets your designs apart?
“What I value most about our designs is the process. Our focus lies in sourcing the right fabrics and adapting all cuts to the direction of the collection. We work very closely with our production facilities and have done so for the past ten years, in assuring that the end-product is as good as it can be. Of course, one of the Soulland “staple” pieces is the all-over printed silks and shirts which have enabled us to tell stories within our collections over the years.”

You say the brand is ‘rooted in traditional craftsmanship’...
“The idea is that each collection builds its roots on classic silhouettes, with subtle details that add contrast to the styles. Each style has a craftsmanship story, meaning that the process of designing that styles originates from a specific way of creating clothing – it can be innovative ways of thinking that fuel the design of a product, such as our technical clothing, or very traditional ways of producing clothing. A priority was to dive deeply into each product and bring out the beauty in details, functionalities and twists.”

What steps are you taking towards becoming more sustainable?
“The focus of a design process is always on the products and what story and message we wish to convey. More and more, we are integrating sustainability into our design process and that has been one of our main focuses over the past few seasons. Sustainability has of course become a huge talking point for our industry and many companies have started to change their discourse regarding the environment. Our goal is to focus on implementing sustainability into the design and production process and let our product do the talking. 
So Soulland’s design process is structured by one challenge: how do we constantly evolve what we are doing now from what we have done up to this point?”

Why is it important to you to manufacture in Portugal?
“We try to keep our production very close to our country of origin, Denmark, as we wish to keep very close relationships with our manufacturers and have found through experience that it is much easier to do so when the geographic distance is smaller. Also, as I pointed out above, our focus has more and more become to be responsible in our production process and Portugal offers many possibilities in terms of sustainable production.”

What are you listening to, reading, watching that’s inspired you lately?
Blood Orange – Angel’s Pulse
Always Wu-Tang Clan
Reading: Let My People Go Surfing by Yvonne Chouinard

Collaboration is a Soulland trademark - what’s the importance and how do you decide who to work with?
“A collaboration is a great way to make two universes meet over a common story. We have one rule: we only work with people we like and genuinely enjoy spending time with.”

If we only buy one piece from the collection, what should it be?
Depends what the customer is looking for of course, but I would go for a LOGIC basic hoodie or AW19 shirting, those are my favorites.

Do you see similarities between Aus & NZ style and Denmark’s? 
“Obviously both styles are quite focused on functionality and simplicity. However the seasonal difference of course does affect the way people dress and in Denmark the long and cold winters means that style has involved in a direction that perhaps isn’t as relevant over on your side of the pond due to the differences in seasons. The differences in temperatures and season has affected the way antipodean countries perceive and apply European style to their homeland.”

Are there any other cities that spark ideas and inspiration?
“New York and Paris are two cities that inspire me every time I am there!”

What’s the most unusual thing that’s ever inspired you?
“Children’s books.”

What’s your favourite thing to do off duty?
“Go skateboarding with my oldest son.”

What would you want the legacy of the brand to be?
“I want Soulland to be known for constantly challenging the current state of things, internally in the company and externally the industry as a whole.”