August 2023
Marie grew up in Jutland, specifically Ålborg, and she studied design in Kolding. It was therefore not entirely in the cards for Marie to become a Copenhagener, but she has become one with all her heart. She lives in Vesterbro, and she loves the city, where she finds much of her inspiration.
She finds the inspiration for the new collections together with the rest of the design team, which consists of four designers, all with different backgrounds and ages. What makes the team unique is the way they work together, where everyone contributes their creative expertise and the development of a collection is very much a democratic process where all input is taken into account.
At a very young age, Marie decided to take up sewing so that instead of going into shops and buying what she wanted, she could visualise a dress and sew it. Throughout her schooling, Marie sewed, but when she finished high school, she considered becoming an architect. Still, she ended up applying to Design School Kolding and had an a-ha moment and a feeling of being in the right place. Today, craftsmanship remains Marie’s passion. But while she used to be passionate about sewing, she now uses knitting as a way to relax and increase her concentration if she needs to listen to something - and she loves to knit just to release her creative energy.
Regarding the clothes hanging in Marie’s own wardrobe, she says:
Marie’s ambition as a designer is to create clothes that last, so they’re not something you wear for one season and then throw them out. It’s important to her that the clothes can be worn for a number of years, making them more responsible.
For Marie, it is important to create collections where you as a woman feel seen and heard.
Women are an eternal source of inspiration for Marie, and she likes to observe both young and older women. Marie is captivated by young women’s enthusiasm and courage for life and older women’s wisdom and experience – and likes to listen to them both. Both groups are interesting to design for, because today women of different ages often choose the same clothes but wear them in different ways - and that’s inspiring, says Marie.
Masai stories are portraits of women’s lives, presented through thoughts and reflections from a group of dedicated and passionate women. The stories reflect on diversity, openness, courage and, not least, the freedom to be and want to be yourself. Through meetings these women, who all inspired us with their life choices and creativity, we wanted to create a special insight into women’s lives. Our stories portray the strength and beauty that emerges when your life passions are allowed to blossom, and when you choose to listen to yourself and pursue your dreams.
The Danish/Ukrainian pianist Elisabeth Nielsen began her musical journey and her love affair with the piano when she was just 5 years old. For her, music is a language that gets its energy from the audience.
Carina Simons has always followed her heart, in both her life choices and her career. This led to her joining the Red Cross, where she currently is Marketing Manager for Red Cross recycling, raising money for the most vulnerable groups in Danish society. Last year Masai and the Red Cross entered a special partnership whereby Masai customers bring old Masai clothes to their local Masai store, and Masai then sends them on to the Red Cross charity stores. As a thank you all Masai's customers receive a discount on their next purchase.
The amazing people who have been a part of the journey are definitely the reason for the success. Therefore, we have invited nine women, both colleagues and customers, to an open, honest and personal talk about turning 30, about being a woman today and about why Masai is something special. All of this has been put together into a fine story that feels like the perfect way to celebrate ourselves and Masai.
