Marimekko has won the SIGNUM Prize which is awarded annually to a Nordic
corporation for outstanding trademark management and protection. The prize was
presented at the Varumärkesdagen conference organised by IBC Euroforum in
Stockholm on 17 January 2008.
The prize, presented now for the 14th time, was awarded to Marimekko for
extremely consistent trademark management, active and long-term protection of
intellectual property rights, and an exemplary interaction between design,
fashion and brand building.
The award citation also states the following:
“'Restrained' is not a term that can be used to describe the winner of this
year's SIGNUM Prize. Instead, we are talking about design that in most cases is
strikingly bold, in both style and colour. And above it all, the winner's logo -
marimekko - hovers, looking the same as it did in 1954 when it was created. This
ingenious solution was chosen from among logo proposals, most of which would
feel hopelessly old-fashioned today.”
“The rock-solid Marimekko logo has been like a focal point of existence, around
which all the blazing colours revolve, and so the logo has been filled with
design associations along the years. Thereby the trademark becomes a kind of
model for how a trademark should function. When customers meet the trademark,
they get what they expect - the company is very strict about fulfilling the
design and quality associations that have been built up around the trademark.
There is also something in Marimekko's language of form that makes customers
think about the trademark, when they see the products. And in the middle of all
this, Marimekko still manages to surprise in an inimitable way - it is
impossible to predict where courage and creativity will take the new designs."
The SIGMUM Prize has been awarded since 1995. The competition is organised by
the Swedish patent and trademark firm Groth & Co. The 2008 jury comprised, among
others, Ulf Bernitz, Professor at the University of Stockholm, and Marianne
Reuterskiöld, Managing Director of Sveriges Marknadsförbund.
MARIMEKKO CORPORATION
Group Communications
Marja Korkeela
Tel. +358 9 758 7238
Fax: +358 9 759 1676
Email: marja.korkeela@marimekko.fi
For further information, please contact:
Piia Pakarinen, Marimekko Corporation, tel. +358 9 758 7293, mobile +358 40 567
1317, piia.pakarinen@marimekko.fi
Lars Göransson, Groth & Co. KB, tel. +46 8 729 9192, mobile +46 70 662 9771,
info@groth.se
Marimekko is a leading Finnish textile and clothing design company that was
established in 1951. The company designs, manufactures and markets high-quality
clothing, interior decoration textiles, bags and other accessories under the
Marimekko brand, both in Finland and abroad. In 2006, the company's net sales
amounted to EUR 71.4 million. Exports and income from international operations
accounted for 25% of the Group's net sales. Licensing has been part of
Marimekko's operations in Finland and abroad since the 1960s. The Group employs
about 400 people. The company's share is quoted on the OMX Nordic Exchange
Helsinki. For further information, visit www.marimekko.com.
