MEET THE FOUNDERS OF STEAMERY interview
Martin Lingner, Frej Lewenhaupt and Petra Ringström have always taken exceptional care of their clothes. It’s a skill they picked up from their time in the fashion industry, and it’s a skill they’re now gifting to others.
Through their clothing care brand Steamery, Martin, Frej and Petra are arming fashion lovers the world over with the tools to maintain their wardrobe with professional prowess. Their range of Scandi-sleek steamers use innovative technology and aesthetic design to gently steam, clean and depill your most precious garments without ever plucking a fiber out of place.
The result? Clothes that look better, and last longer.
Q&A with Petra Ringström, Co-Founder of Steamery
How did you begin?
It all started in Shanghai where I had my own silk clothing brand, Frej was working as a Textile Engineer and Martin worked as a Management Consultant. We crossed paths professionally and found that we all had the same realization: that the Western world didn't know how to take care of clothes properly and this lack of knowledge was causing people to throw away clothes needlessly.
So, the idea of Steamery came to life in 2014. With Scandinavian design and a clear sales focus towards the fashion industry, we began educating Westerners about clothing care. Essentially, we wanted to make clothing care a common knowledge again and at the same time make it modern, fun and efficient.
We found that there was such a demand in the market that 6 years later, we now have a whole product range designed to extend the life of clothes.
How are you different from other brands in the same category?
At Steamery, we don’t just sell steamers. We’re passionate about the full picture when it comes to garment care. We believe in changing the norm on how to take care of the clothes that you already own in order to make them last longer. So, we offer a full range of modern clothing care products and try to educate our community on textiles and fibres. We’re true nerds and we simply want to make it easy and fun to think slow when it comes to fashion.
Also, we have a global mindset. As a business, it’s easy to get stuck on a regional level,on a common ground that you know exactly how to handle. At Steamery, we try to challenge ourselves all the time and dare to think bigger in everything we do.
What is the underlining philosophy or mission of your brand?
We want to inspire people to take better care of their clothes and thereby lead the way for a slow fashion movement.
What is your proudest moment as a business
2019 was truly amazing. We received two prestigious business awards in Sweden (“DIGasell” and “Superföretag” by Veckans Affärer), Oprah listed our fabric shaver “Pilo” on her annual 'Favourite Things' list and we also went from 39-70 MSEK in revenue.
What are your three favourite brands?
Filippa K, Stella McCartney & ATP Atelier. And I also love to shop some vintage treasures at Vestiaire Collective.
What steps have you taken to make your consumer behaviour more sustainable?
When it comes to buying clothes, I always go for good quality and timeless pieces. Because of this, I honestly don’t shop very often and since I take care of my clothes they last longer. Also, I buy a lot of vintage.
What product do you wish you’d invented?
Storytel, simply because I’m obsessed with listening to great books.
What’s your biggest extravagance?
I definitely have a thing for vintage designer bags.
What’s your best life or beauty hack?
Since I have two kids, I certainly don’t have a lot of time. So, a true lifehack for me is actually steaming, since I don’t have to do laundry as often. I even steam my kids clothes.
What is your best ‘little find’?
Clothing and Shoe Mist! It’s the perfect thing to have in your bag to freshen up clothes, smelly shoes or your clothes when traveling.
Which three items would you never travel without?
Our handheld steamer Cirrus no.2, a comfy cashmere sweater and my beloved iPad loaded up with tons of books.
What time do you wake up and what’s the first thing you do?
I wake up at 6 a.m. and make myself some coffee and read the news before waking up the kids.