MUJI has a taste for Finnish ice cream

If it wasn’t for MUJI’s participation in last year’s Habitare design fair in Helsinki, the story could be different. While visiting Finland, MUJI’s senior staff fell in love with the tasty ice creams of Suomen Jäätelö, which quickly found their way into MUJI stores in Munich, London, Paris, Milan and Barcelona.

What was originally meant as a four-week pop up concept has turned into an all summer-long campaign, with possibly bigger plans to come. The demand has been significantly higher than originally thought, with the company reporting that the latest orders came in last week.

“Co-operation with MUJI has been an encouraging start to foreign markets,” says Petri Laukontaus, founder and ice cream connoisseur at Suomen Jäätelö. “Even a small company can make it to the big markets, if the product is right, genuine and distinct.”

The European stores have been supplied with several flavours, which include quite exotic options for European taste buds such as spruce. Other flavours include rhubarb, milk, dark chocolate, liquorice and vanilla. However, it’s not just the distinct flavours that have delighted customers.

According to MUJI, the ice creams have a better taste and texture than most on the market. “This is because Suomen Jäätelö uses Finncattle milk. It has a bigger fat and protein content than other milks and is superior in the production of ice cream.”