Skagen in Sync With MoMA

Skagen Designs, the Danish-American brand known for sleek Modernist watches, has made its first foray into arts sponsorship with the Museum of Modern Art’s new exhibit “Take your time: Olafur Eliasson.” While the title of the exhibit is appropriate for a company that makes timepieces, the sponsorship works on more than one level — and it is an example of a smart linkage between design and art.Founded in the late 1980s by a husband-and-wife team of Danish émigrés, Charlotte and Henrik Jorst, Skagen is a design-focused brand. Its slow and steady growth has been based on a consistent aesthetic shaped by Danish Modernism, the active lifestyle of its founders, and the natural landscape of the beach town of Skagen, Denmark.During a visit to New York, for the opening of the MoMA show, Ms. Jorst described the process that made the sponsorship the right move. First, there was a national connection: Though he was raised in Iceland, Mr. Eliasson is Danish-born. Second, the Jorsts saw in Mr. Eliasson’s work a design sensibility that paired with their own. “Light, nature, and modern design — the same things that inspire Olafur inspire us,” Ms. Jorst said. The Skagen emphasis on design — as opposed to fashion and trends — allows the Jorsts to create an identifiable product. Their signature style includes a thin, mesh band and a minimalist face. Though materials range from titanium and steel to Swarovski crystals and mother-of-pearl, there is no mistaking the simplicity of a Skagen watch. “This is how a brand can continue to exist. You have a look, and you stick with it,” Ms. Jorst said.But that’s a lesson learned after nearly two decades of gradually, quietly building a business — one that sort of fell into their laps. Though the Jorsts attended the same high school and business school, they didn’t meet until they were both working at the Danish headquarters of Carlsberg beer. He left for America, and she later followed, though her job was one that might cause some guys a little jealousy. A tall, striking blonde, she came to America as Miss Carlsberg 1987. “I would go to bars, wearing a banner, and promote Carlsberg,” she said.After hanging up her beer stein and banner, Ms. Jorst went on to represent a Danish manufacturer of watches that were custom-designed and branded for companies. A retailer noticed the watches and said that without the company logo, he could sell them easily in his store. The pair decided to launch their own company — with watches of their own simple, bold design — and quickly met with success. “We knew we were onto something,” Ms. Jorst said.In the beginning, the two were designing the product, selling it, and distributing it themselves. “There were boxes everywhere in our house. You would have move four boxes in order to get to the bathroom,” Ms. Jorst said.While their European headquarters are in Denmark, their operation is based in Reno, Nev., where the Jorsts live with their two daughters. Why Reno? “It’s the lifestyle,” according to Ms. Jorst, who said she swims for at least 20 minutes every day and is an avid equestrian. (Indeed, the entrepreneur is an inspiring, reed-thin beacon of balanced living: On a recent cold and windy New York City morning, she walked 25 blocks to get to breakfast at the Four Seasons’s 57, where she enjoyed the lemon-ricotta pancakes and sausage.)The Jorsts continue to be involved with design, but the business has grown enough to require a design team to develop the brand, as well as new collections of jewelry and sunglasses. This fall, their key retailers — Macy’s, Bloomingdale’s, and Tourneau — will stock a new Sport collection of watches, which are a Skagen take on the traditional diver style (from $185). In stores now are the signature mesh styles for men and women (between $95 and $135) and adaptations that include two-tone metals and leather bands (between $110 and $295). Sunglasses include classic aviators, blade shapes, and plastic frames (between $95 and $175). Skagen is also expanding the distribution of its jewelry, which is made from hypoallergenic steel that does not tarnish (between $55 and $345) and is more popular in Europe than in American markets.“We’ve seen some resistance. Retailers say, ‘Americans won’t buy steel jewelry,'” said Ms. Jorst. “But you can’t patronize the consumer like that. If you believe in it, you have to put it out there.”

Skagen in Sync With MoMA

Skagen in Sync With MoMA

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