Relaunching historic Norwegian ski brand: – I started on bare ground

Martin Eriksen is the founder and managing director of the company Streamlines. These days she is relaunching the brand with the same name. The company has a collection consisting of skis, as well as a selection of knitted designs and anoraks with a modern touch.

– I started from scratch, and had no experience in business, marketing, textile production or ski production for that matter. It has been a tortuous road at times, and new challenges appear all the time, says Eriksen to Kampanje.

Marius pattern and Olympic gold in Oslo
The ski and textile brand she is relaunching saw the light of day in the 1950s and has been a real family tradition. The brand became known to the world when the brothers Marius and Stone Eriksen was at the top of the world in alpine skiing in the 50s. The well-known Marius pattern that can be found on, among other things, the Marius sweater is named after Marius Eriksen, while Stein Eriksen was both an Olympic and world champion in skiing and in textile design.

Martine herself is part of the family.

– My grandparents started a small family business in 1935 in Oslo. Marius and Stein, who became famous for standing on their father’s handmade Streamlines skis wearing the tram sweaters designed by Bitten, their mother. Bitten was my grandmother and a great guiding star, says founder Martine Eriksen.

Laid dormant
However, the Streamlines brand has been down for a while. The skis with the name were sold until the mid-60s, while the clothing store Bentestova in Vikaterassen in Oslo was sold and acquired new owners in 1987. However, the store was given new life when it was then moved to Geilo.

Now Eriksen is betting on the brand again, but admits that along the way he has encountered some reefs in the sea.

– I have to admit that Korona put a few sticks in the wheel when it struck a couple of months after Streamlines was established. It takes a good deal of courage, perseverance and willingness to work to start a new company, says Eriksen.

– In retrospect, it was perhaps a good thing that I threw myself into the project with a certain naivety – otherwise it might not have come of it. I never dreamed that Streamlines would get to where it is now, in such a short time. The learning curve has been incredibly steep, and entrepreneurial life turns the life you lived before upside down, adds Eriksen.

Sustainability and organic
Eriksen says that “new” Streamlines also focus on sustainability. The alpine skis have been developed in collaboration with the ski brand Stereo Skis and are handmade from Norwegian birch and spruce.

– The family’s courage, love of skiing and sense of adventure are the reasons why I started Streamlines. I am inspired by human hands at work, good craftsmanship, wood, the forest and the mountains, says Eriksen.