Set up by two young Finnish women, 2cooldesign is a one-stop interior design shop selling a range of Scandinavian design furniture and accessories.
Located at Sauls Court, Cow's Lane in the west end of Temple Bar, 2cooldesign brings some of the best Finnish and Swedish furniture and home designer names to Dublin.
Labels on sale at their showroom include bathroom range Duart, the young and trendy Snowcrash product range, the Vivero range of chairs and Zaza furniture and contemporary furniture and accessories range .
Titta Isokourtti and Ulla Enkvist are the two Finns who have successfully established the company in Dublin.
From Helsinki, Titta Isokourtti is the managing director while Ulla Enkvist is an interior architect.
"Initially we came to see what was available in the Irish market and to see what we could do here. We knew the Scandinavian design market, we knew the products and we felt certain the concept could work here.
"We saw the Irish market as such a clear opportunity," explains Isokourtti.
While 2cooldesign designs furniture like reception desks, kitchen units and other fixed furniture, its main business is selling and representing Scandinavian labels in the Irish market.
Fifteen brands are available at their Temple Bar showroom, which is also open to the public. There is a good choice of products, and all - they are all modern (from the early 1980s on), ergonomic and made from high-quality materials, Isokourtti says.
"Our aim here is to sell a certain style, the service takes a longer time than the standard but that's because we want our customers to have the perfect sofa or chair, and one that they will have forever.
There's a functional style to all the products we have here and an economical use of raw materials, say using the best parts of the timber to make the parts of the product you can see and combining different materials freely," says Enkvist.
One of the most eye-catching products on display at the Cow's Lane showroom is a large Duart bathtub made from 50 per cent recycled plastic. The products come in a range of colours, from bright red to a more subdued grey. Scandinavians take their bathrooms seriously.
The pair's favourite is the Snowcrash range. Smart, fun and affordable, Snowcrash products are all about materialising new ideas and exploring new technologies and materials.
Glowblow is a living, breathing light that inflates when it is switched on. The new generation Glowblow LEDs use LED technologies to interact with the environment in unexpected and imaginative ways.
Airbag borrows materials and components from sports equipment to create a flexible, lightweight seating solution for use indoors, outdoors or on the move," says Isokourtti.
2cooldesign is located at 4 Sauls Court, Cow's Lane, Temple Bar, Dublin 2. Tel: (01) 6725402. www.2cooldesign.ie.
