How H&M is changing Sydney

When global fast fashion chain H&M opened its first Australian store in Melbourne last year, crowds lined up around the block. Last month, it was Sydney’s turn with the opening of its flagship store in Pitt St Mall.

H&M Opening in Pitt Street today.

When global fast fashion chain H&M opened its first Australian store in Melbourne last year, crowds lined up around the block.

Last month, it was Sydney’s turn with the opening of its flagship store in Pitt St Mall.

While many came for the fashions, there’s also a wide range of on-trend, affordable homewares ideal for updating your interior.

H&M Home head of design, Evelina Kravaev Soderberg, says the fashion brand has more than 60 years experience developing textile products for apparel, so “home interior felt like a natural next step,” when it launched in 2009.

“We would like to show the customers that it is not difficult, nor expensive to update their homes and to have fun with interiors”

While there are obvious links between fashion and interiors, the homewares line has its own signature.

“We get a lot of inspiration from fashion when it comes to colours, prints and materials, so it’s natural for us to think of our home in the same way we think about our wardrobes, but not all fashion trends are suitable for interiors,” she says.

Bring Scandi style to your next dinner party. Branch shaped candlestick 53cm high in antiqued metal, $39.95

It’s the detail that counts and gold is so hot right now. Stainless steel and aluminium handles in gold, $7.95 a pair

This timber box has enough retro style to suit any room — and solve any storage issue. Wooden box, $29.95

Update your table without breaking the bank. Cushion covers from $7.95, runners from $9.95 and tablecloths from $19.95

Homewares range

“We constantly monitor the world around us in an ongoing creative process, to identify styles that are current and adapt trends to create collections that work. We also like to have fun with interiors in the same way that H&M has fun with fashion.”

This includes silver metal candlesticks inspired by the shape of twig branches, retro-inspired wooden storage boxes and bronze knobs to update dressers and door handles.

The advent of fast fashion means you can shop constantly, confident in the knowledge that even if you pop in-store once a week you’ll find something new, but home moves at a slower pace, with two collections a year - spring/summer and autumn/winter.

“We don´t see ourselves as ‘fast home’, we always want to offer our customers a great and exciting assortment of interior products. H&M Home is for everyone interested in fashion and interiors,”Soderberg says.

“We would like to show the customers that it is not difficult, nor expensive to update their homes and to have fun with interiors.”

At the moment the focus is on accessories, linen and soft furnishings, but Soderbeg has plans to extend the offering.

“The concept has evolved so much since we launched, and we see an increased interest for interior design from our customers, so it is ever-changing and we always strive to evolve and to surprise,” she says.