Weavers from Finland
Lapuan Kankurit celebrates with good deeds. Instead of Black Friday sales, the company’s stores, outlet, Store & Studio, and online store celebrates Good Spirit Friday. On Friday, Lapuan Kankurit donates also this year 20% of online and store sales to the Hyvä Joulumieli campaign. The Christmas Spirit fundraising campaign is run by the Mannerheim League […]
Lapuan Kankurit’s outlet in Lapua, Finland has been nominated in the SHOP OF THE YEAR category in Visualistit ry’s (Finnish Trade Union for Visual Marketing) Visu Awards 2024. We opened our gorgeous outlet in the Cultural Centre Vanha Paukku’s historical factory and culture site in 2015. The outlet was designed by the Japanese IMA Design’s […]
The roots of the picturesque Crafts Centre Verkaranta reach deep into the depths of the Finnish textile industry: the space once hosted the dye house of Tampere’s baize factory, which opened in 1858. Tampere and its craftspeople have long been a part of Lapuan Kankurit’s woven journey, and now the shared voyage continues: we have […]
We hope you are doing well. As we are celebrating the 50th anniversary of Lapuan Kankurit, it feels proper to not only gaze back to the past half a century, but to also set our sights on to you, the world of tomorrow. After all, it is for you that we do so much of […]
The EY Entrepreneur of The Year competition, organized annually by EY, is an acknowledgement of entrepreneurs who inspire others with their vision, leadership and achievements. In 2023, Jaana and Esko Hjelt from Lapuan Kankurit Oy were chosen as the Audience Favourite. ILOQ’s Heikki Hiltunen and Mika Pukari were declared as the Growth Entrepreneurs of The […]
Lapuan Kankurit Oy meets all the criteria set for the Sustainable Travel Finland label, and we have been granted the right to use the Sustainable Travel Finland label as proof of valuable and long-term work for sustainable tourism.
Lapuan Kankurit, Kyrö Distillery, and Lennol Oy have been recognized as pioneers in sustainability in South Ostrobothnia. The awards for exemplary sustainability efforts by these companies were announced on Thursday, June 8, 2023, at a seminar held at Seinäjoki University of Applied Sciences.In the award criteria, the companies were acknowledged for their commitment to developing […]
A lot has changed for Lapuan Kankurit in their fifty years of business. And yet, to the owner Esko Hjelt, much more remains the same way it always has been. – Our family’s textile legacy began when Juho Annala founded a felt boot factory in Lapua in 1917. His grandson, Juha Hjelt, started his own […]
The South Ostrobothnia Entrepreneurs Association awarded the 2022 Regional Entrepreneur of the Year award to Jaana and Esko Hjelt. Lapuan Kankurit, a family-run company led by the Hjelt family, has carried on Finnish weaving traditions for over a century. Founded in 1917 by Juho Annala, the company initially produced felt slippers and later expanded to […]
Katja Lösönen has worked with Lapuan Kankurit for nearly 13 years as a masterful storyteller through her words and pictures. Originally hailing from the countryside of eastern Finland, she left the bustling life of Helsinki behind to relocate in the coastal city of Vaasa, the regional capital of Osthrobotnia. She has come to enjoy and […]
Dyeing with natural, plant-based dyes is a long-time Finnish textile tradition. However, apart from traditional knowhow, industrial-scale natural dyeing also requires production development such as new recipes and creating a whole new dyeing process. Lapuan Kankurit is ready to face the challenge of the industrial use of natural dyes. Lapuan Kankurit is aiming to include […]
Tunnustustuoli, awarded by the Association of Interior Journalists, is awarded as a recognition for excellency in the field of interior decorating. The association’s executive committee chooses the winner from three to four nominees appointed by the association. This year the Association of Interior Journalists wished to reward a company which has dedicated itself to treasuring […]
At the Textile & Fashion Forum Helsinki event on April 7, 2022, the Textile and Fashion Award was presented to Lapuan Kankurit. The Award Winner Grows and Evolves While Honoring Tradition The Textile & Fashion Forum Helsinki, which brought together the key players in the textile and fashion industry, culminated in a gala evening where […]
We were honoured to win the brand of the year award by the Finnish chamber of commerce. For the third year, the Chamber of Commerce awarded the brand of the year. This year the award was won by Lapuan kankurit, a family business with a 100 year history of weaving. The choice was reasoned with […]
Elina Helenius, nominated as Finnish Textile Artist of the Year 2012, has won several design competition awards, and her textiles are on display at Helsinki Design Museum, Röhsska Museum in Gothenburg, and the Kyoto Textile Research Center. She also gives lectures at Aalto University School of Arts, Design and Architecture, and Metropolia University of Applied […]
Lapuan Kankurit weaving mill is going through times of constant change. Over the past ten years, the weaving facilities have expanded thrice and the equipment has been modernised. Currently, a new wool production line is underway. According to fourth generation weaver Esko Hjelt, investments and sustainable product development are the success factors of their business. […]
A large portion of the wool of Finnish sheep is wasted, but now this wool will finally be utilised for industrial purposes Lapuan Kankurit is investing in a new finishing mill. This mill will produce wool textiles also made from the wool of the Finnish sheeps. Lapuan Kankurit is the leading manufacturer of household textiles […]
Lapuan Kankurit is a small, tight-knit family business woven together by skill and community. The clang of weaving machines fills the air. The weaving mill in Lapua is the focal point of the company, where the magic of creating new textiles is always present. The thirty people at the weaving mill all work together as […]
Lapuan Kankurit – the most recommended brand 2020The survey of economic research – Taloustutkimus, included 536 brands, and Lapuan Kankurit was the most recommended brand with NPS result +52. The NPS number shows how likely a user would recommend a brand to a friend. The second most recommended was Moccamaster with a result of +50. […]
Pattern Lab is a year-long study project at Aalto University of Art, Design and Architecture. The project gives students a possibility to experience what it is like to work as a professional freelance designer in the textile industry. During the training, students create their own designs in co-operation with a design company, such as Lapuan […]
Lapuan Kankurit opened their first flagship store in Omotesando, Tokyo with their long-term distributor in the beginning of October 2019. With this store Lapuan Kankurit strengthen their presence in Japan and bring their company values and way of life closer to the customers. “The opening of the store in Tokyo with our partner felt like […]
We have combined traditional Finnish elements with Japanese minimalism to create a light infused and peaceful environment in our completely renewed Helsinki Flagship store. Locals and Tourists of Helsinki are now able to enjoy their new “living room” when we re-opened our doors to Katariinankatu 2, during May 2019. In the space, you can enjoy […]
A collaboration between The National Museum of Finland and Lapuan Kankurit resulted in a sauna collection designed by Reeta Ek. Hvitträsk was built between 1901–1903 by famous Finnish architects Herman Gesellius, Armas Lindgren and Eliel Saarinen. The main building, designed in National Romantic style, built of logs and natural stone, was both a common studio […]
TERVA Linen-Tencel one of Editors’ choises 2014The new linen-Tencel is a material like no other! The Association of Interiors Journalists has selected the 12 best Finnish interior design products yearly from 1999. 2014 one of Editors’ choises are Lapuan Kankurit’s new innovative linen-Tencel bathtextiles TERVA and KIVI. The award-winning products are a combination of beautiful […]
Students from Aalto University challenge their designs at the Lapuan Kankurit weaving mill.The weaving mill in Lapua, Finland is full of life, as students from Aalto University gather to learn about industrially woven fabrics. “They get to see how weaving with a machine changes the design”, says university teacher Maija Fagerlund. The CEO of Lapuan […]
This year’s Ornamo Sphere will be presented to Finnish weavers Lapuan Kankurit for their long-standing commitment to the Finnish textile industry during a period of sustained change and for their skill in making successful use of Finnish expertise in design. The company’s ongoing investment in its weaving facilities and its considerable commercial success on the […]
The CORONA blanket in 100% wool designed by Finnish textile designer Marja Rautiainen was awarded with the Finnish MUOTO 2015 prize. MUOTO is a timely cross-section of the best Finnish design. The annual gala rewards the most creative, talented, and uncompromising professionals in the field while highlighting the most significant products. Jury’s justification for the […]
The linen weaving mill Lapuan Kankurit has won the Taito-Finlandia 2014 award. The award was presented on November 14th at the Finnish Craft & Design Fair in Tampere. The recipient was selected by internationally renowned designers Aamu Song and Johan Olin. The nominees were chosen by a jury consisting of professionals in the handicraft and […]
Lissu was a cornerstone of the weaving mill for 40 years. She began her career in 1971 by looking after a three-year-old blonde-haired boy. That boy is now Esko Hjelt, the CEO of Lapuan Kankurit. Her work continued at the weaving mill, and from then on, no one wanted to let go of Lissu. To […]
The MUOTO 2012 competition culminated in a spectacular Muoto Gala at Finlandia Hall on September 5th.2012. Jaana and Esko Hjelt from Lapuan Kankurit, along with designer Anu Leinonen, attended the event to receive their award. Leinonen’s KASTE and LÄHDE bath textile collection, made from washed linen, won the public’s favorite award in the textile category. […]