Vivian wants to redefine what Finnish luxury can look like
Born in Helsinki, Vivian creates handcrafted handbags from Finnish birch while challenging the idea of what luxury is made of. Behind the brand is not a fashion house or a design team, but one designer and a belief that something can emerge from Finland that dares to look entirely like itself.
In the world of fashion, a handbag almost automatically means leather.
Johannes Weckman wanted to know what would happen if one of the industry’s biggest conventions were replaced entirely with something else.
That is how Vivian was born.
Handcrafted in Helsinki, Vivian handbags are made primarily from Finnish birch. Wood is combined with leather, metal and carefully finished details. Thanks to the natural grain of the wood, every bag is slightly different.
Vivian, however, does not want to be known simply for making wooden handbags.
“If Vivian is remembered only because the bags are made of wood, then I haven’t achieved what I set out to do. The material captures attention, but ultimately the bag should be desirable because it is beautiful, intriguing and feels special.”
Finnish without having to look Finnish
Vivian’s roots are firmly in Finland. The bags are designed and handcrafted in Helsinki, and their key materials are Finnish birch and reindeer leather.
Visually, however, Vivian deliberately takes a different direction from many Finnish design brands.
Instead of minimalism, pale tones and restrained Nordic aesthetics, Vivian’s world is dark, dramatic and slightly mysterious. In the brand’s imagery and storytelling, Vivian almost becomes a person, although her identity is never fully defined.
“To me, being Finnish doesn’t mean everything has to look pale, minimal or close to nature. Vivian can be completely Finnish while also being dramatic, strange, elegant and even slightly unsettling.”
The idea behind Vivian is to build a distinctive and recognisable world around the product. The brand does not try to explain everything, but instead leaves room for the viewer’s own interpretation.
That is why one question keeps appearing around Vivian:
Who is Vivian?
A fashion brand built by one person
There is no large organisation behind Vivian.
Weckman designs the bags and makes them himself in Helsinki. The same person builds the prototypes, develops the production techniques and finishes each individual piece.
This also makes Vivian an exceptionally personal project.
“Vivian probably started with a slightly unreasonable idea. I wanted to see how far one person’s vision could go if I didn’t immediately start making it smaller just to make it realistic.”
Vivian first stepped into the public eye in autumn 2025 at an invitation-only event held in the crypt of Helsinki Cathedral.
The first launch, however, did not lead to the breakthrough Weckman had hoped for. For a while, Vivian became quieter.
But it never disappeared.
In 2026, Vivian is being built again. New pieces are being designed, the brand’s world is being developed, and the ambition is to establish Vivian more decisively as a category of its own, somewhere between Finnish design and fashion.
The next chapter begins in October
Vivian’s next major appearance will take place at the I love me fair at Messukeskus Helsinki from 16–18 October.
A distinctive visual world will be created for Vivian at the fair, and the brand will also take to the stage with the WHO IS VIVIAN? fashion show.
The purpose of the show is not to present handbags in the traditional runway format. It is an extension of Vivian’s world: a visual performance where handbags, music, movement and storytelling come together.
The entire journey towards October is also being documented in the series Visio, joka ei päästä irti (A Vision That Won’t Let Go). The documentary follows the creation of Vivian behind the scenes: the design process, failures, craftsmanship, uncertainty and what it actually takes to bring an ambitious vision to life.
