According to the United Nations’ World Happiness Report, Finland has been deemed the happiest country on Earth for the past eight years. But what is happiness? For me, a visitor to the Nordic country, it’s reverting back to the child-like fascination and curiosity that comes with exploring a new place. It’s seeing the auburn colors of dusk at 11 p.m. in early summer. It’s enjoying a good meal — as it is anywhere in the world — with good company.
For the locals in Finland, happiness can be attributed to many things: a work-life balance, urban environments integrated with green spaces, and a trusting society that encourages social freedoms and creativity. Also, saunas. They do love their saunas. However, for one local I befriended in Helsinki, capital of this Nordic-based joy, happiness is all about thrift shopping.
“I find it genuinely relaxing,” said Kathrin Deter, a local guide-turned-producer, journalist, and photographer who showed me around her adopted city of fifteen years. “It’s a wonderful way for me to just decompress and just let my mind flow.”
Deter is not alone. In Helsinki, where the fashionable and functional Finnish design of clothing, housewares, and furniture is as ingrained as happiness, secondhand shopping is not just about finding a bargain; it’s a treasure hunt for well-designed nostalgia. In fact, secondhand shopping is so popular in Helsinki that even Stockmann, the big Finnish department store known for retailing new goods, has an outpost of “Relove,” a local purveyor dedicated to secondhand finds. Sustainability is very much in style.
“Sustainability is really a big deal,” Deter told me as we browsed the secondhand racks at R. Collection, a Finnish family-owned clothing company founded in 1978, where old clothing can feel new again.
Finnish Fleas
In Helsinki, anyone can set up a table anywhere and just start selling their old things, and it’s at flea markets where these tables come together, often in public parks and plazas in the warmer months. For example, there’s Hietalahti Flea Market near the Old Market Hall, the Sunday Hakaniemi Flea Market near Hakaniemi Square, and the Saturday flea market in Vanha Kirkkopuisto (Old Church Square), which we stumbled upon by chance. At a glance, all the flea markets appear similar — housewares, old tchotchkes, vintage clothing, accessories — but upon closer inspection, there are unique items that differentiate these tables. Keen eyes look for rare collectibles, particularly when it comes to paraphernalia of the internationally-known Finnish cartoon “Moomin.” In fact, rare Moomin mugs can go for double their original price — but collectors know it’s worth it if they’re looking to complete a specific set.
Speaking of which, it was when Deter was a student, replacing pieces from her dinnerware set, that she discovered her passion for secondhand shopping. “That spiraled into a full-on obsession,” she admitted. Today, she’s perpetually on a quest to complete sets of vintage dinner sets from classic Finnish design brands.
Brands that Last
“There’s a lot of iconic Finnish brands, like Iittala, Arabia dishware, ceramics, and glassware,” Deter told me as we browsed the rows and rows of tables filled with tabletop goods at Faasani Antik, a popular antique and vintage shop where items are carefully curated. “And they’re much loved by the Finnish, passed down for generations. They retain their value. They’re beautifully designed.”
Whether its Iittala for tableware or Marimekko for bold and colorful textile patterns, Finnish design is undoubtedly a keeper, not only in Finland, but around the world. You’ll find Scandinavian goods in American stores — but nothing beats the thrill of finding the perfect item in its native land, at one of the many secondhand shops in Helsinki’s Design District.
Secondhand Shopping, First Class Design
Designkortteli, aka the Design District, is a compact city neighborhood encompassing over 25 streets with dozens of design-forward establishments fusing form and function. It’s also the hub for both vintage and contemporary items, with many Finnish brands that may not have necessarily made their mark overseas, but have certainly stood the test of time locally. As we browsed Fida Roba (one of the outposts of the largest Finnish chain of charity secondhand stores), Deter was on a quest to find a mug to complete an old vintage set from Finnish brand Pentik.
Secondhand shopping in Helsinki can be quite a personal experience, and several stores cater to different desires. For contemporary fashion, there’s Flea Second Hand, Vintage Magasinet, Almost New, and Moody Monday. For vintage looks, check out a boutique called Play It Again, Sam or Frida Marina. Shopping for little ones as they grow out of old outfits? There’s secondhand kids clothes at Little Copenhagen and Siisti Kirppis. For furniture and home decor, head to the secondhand outpost of Finnish mid-century furniture brand Artek, Artek 2nd Cycle. There’s also Fargo Vintage & Design and Kaunis Arki, which have many home furnishings in great condition.
Treasure Found
With so many opportunities for old Finnish items to find a new lease on life, sometimes there’s still no match between an orphaned item and a new owner. As the saying goes, sometimes “the item must find you.” In my days shopping around town with Deter, she did not find that ceramic piece she was looking for — but she did find a secondhand jacket she fell in love with. Perhaps that’s when Finnish happiness comes into focus (at least for Deter).
Back home in the States a few weeks after my trip, I saw her Instagram post gushing about how she finally completed that set with a new secondhand mug.
“Congrats!” I messaged.
Happiness acquired for Kathrin. As for me, I also found happiness in Finland, feeling that childlike wonder of exploring a new place. Plus, I now have a set of souvenir Moomin ceramic egg cups. If I ever break one of them, I know just where to go to search for a replacement.