During 2020, SP01 was lucky to have wonderful global friends who championed our brand in their home city, from Chicago to Dubai, and Los Angeles to Milan. This month we hear from Andreja Krivosic who shares how Nova showroom in Slovenia is celebrating its 20th anniversary and describes a scene at the crossroads of contemporary and traditional design. On a personal front she feels lucky to have a home surrounded by peaceful woodlands that make for idyllic strolls with her Irish Setter Aga.
How did you get into business at Nova Showroom?
In 2021 we are celebrating our 20th anniversary of our showroom, that I founded with my husband Andrej. We started back in 2001 as a concept and flower store in the historical city centre of Ljubljana. We have been rewarded by The City of Ljubljana several times in a row as a best interior and decoration shop. Seven years ago, we moved due to logistic reasons to the commercial centre, where many other furniture showrooms are located. Nova Showroom offers an inspiring range of products straight from the world´s leading brands and designers – so whatever the scale, taste or constraints, our clients can find furniture, lighting, wallpaper, home textiles and decor, at Nova which will more than meet the brief.
What is unique about your city’s approach to design?
Ljubljana is a small city and Slovenia is a small country, one which is at a crossroads of cultures - both contemporary and traditional. It has developed through history and has Austro-Hungarian, Venetian and some Turkish influences. It remains open to the very new on one hand, and is quite traditional on the other. We have some influential internationally renowned designers (as Nika Zupanc for example) and we have a lot of young emerging designers and artists, who are promoted in international environments.
What is the best neighbourhood for design in Ljubljana?
Ljubljana is not a major metropolis compared to other capital cities. We are a small country so everything is scaled down compared to our bigger neighbours, but our size also enables us to be more open to experimental new ideas. MAO – the museum of architecture and design with its Centre for Creativity is a powerful catalyst for different events and an accelerator of the Slovenian creative sector. We also have a few annual events that focus on specific fields such as wood architecture and design at Spirit of Slovenia and a “month of design” event and some other architectural and design events. Pop-up projects, urban interventions and research into alternative use of public space is also quite common.
“Metelkova” area has been a centre for alternative culture and subcultures for more than a decade. It developed in an abandoned army barracks area and now houses galleries, nightclubs, a hostel and many events for LGBTQAI and other communities. It remains a rare example of revitalising and integrating subculture into cultural and social action. “Metelkova City” is also a renowned symbol of the new meaning that the “underdeveloped” voids of modern cities have acquired, a self-development of culture in action.
What is your favourite SP01 piece and why?
For me it’s hard to decide which SP01 piece would be my favourite. There are few, that I like: Michelle Mirror, Yee Storage and Jeanette Chair. Still, my absolute favourite is the Caristo Armchair. It is a sleek and modern take on a wingback chair, bringing a contemporary feel and absolute comfort. We just love having it in our showroom pairing it with small SP01 Mohana table.
How you like to relax?
In my free time I like to relax in nature. We live a short distance out of Ljubljana with the woods behind our house, where we can walk our dog Aga, the Irish Setter. We also like to explore the countryside of Slovenia with mountain bikes. We are happy to be able to dine out again in our favourite restaurants (Cubo, the business restaurant and Maru, the Japanese restaurant) and in the hills outside of Ljubljana Grič (a young chef with a Michelin star). We also love to cook and entertain at home with friends.
I can hardly wait to travel again, at least across the Europe for a start.
Something we wouldn’t know about you?
Well, there is no special secret about me, I am a painfully frank and open person. Secretly, I am a control freak: I like to have each detail and every situation under control. Well, with years, I have relaxed a bit. I passionately love my work and every kind of beauty.
Andrej and Andreja Krivosic, the husband and wife team who are the driving force behind Nova Showroom in Slovenia.
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The beautiful Islamic Religio-Cultural Center, colloquially known as the Ljubljana mosque is an Islamic mosque and cultural-center complex in the Bežigrad district of Ljubljana.
What is the current vibe with retail and social life in Ljublijana in terms of the recent lockdowns and Covid-19 Pandemic?
The Covid-19 situation became our new reality overnight, its everywhere and in light of the current situation we are all happy that the life is slowly getting back on track. It seems we might not be able to go back to the pre-COVID-19 normal quite yet, but we should certainly be able to move into the ‘new normal’ informed by what we have learnt and experienced. The city vibe is still easy, but we are missing out on all the tourists that were traditionally visiting Ljubljana in the pre-pandemic times. In Slovenia generally, all the shops, restaurants and bars have been recently re-opened. Cultural events and other social events, exhibitions, concerts are now re-scheduled for the coming period albeit with limitations needed to enable these to happen safely.
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We came away from 2020 more at peace with the fluctuation and fragility of the current situation and ready to face new challenges. We now know there is very little stability in the world and we learned to adapt to it and grow more confident and reliant on our abilities to face the obstacles that come our way.
Andreja Krivosic
What is something positive you will take away from your experience of 2020?
2020 was at first, a time of an imposed break, stepping away from the office. It became a time to reflect, make new plans and revaluate our way of thinking and doing business. We came away from 2020 more at peace with the fluctuation and fragility of the current situation and ready to face new challenges. We now know there is very little stability in the world and we learned to adapt to it and grow more confident and reliant on our abilities to face the obstacles that come our way. We have scaled down and back, we opened and closed our store, and we learned to use every online resource we have at our disposal. We also took care to stay in touch with our friends and business partners worldwide, to keep up the good spirit and to boost each other in overcoming any situation that arose. We believe we are now stronger and more at ease with ourselves than we ever were before.
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Thank you Andreja,
Nova Showroom
NOVAE trgovina in storitve d.o.o.
Šmartinska cesta 53 1000
Ljubljana, Slovenija
Images in slide show from 1-5.
1. NUL / NUK (National and University Library) Created by Slovenian architect Jože Plečnik in the 1941. It can be viewed as one of his greater achievements in architecture, as it attracts visitors from all over the world. At first sight, I was overwhelmed by it's size and complexity.
2. Architect Edvard Ravnikar: TR3. Trg republike (Square of the Republic) has a meaningful history for Slovenian people – here, on this square, Slovenia declared its Independence. For this, large groups of people visit this square daily, to meet, hang-out and occasionally even party at this square. Square was finished in 1982 by Edvard Ravnikar. The square is accompanied by two building »twins« facing each other – representing the hills on each side of Ljubljana.
3. Architect Ivan Vurnik: Vurnik House Vurnik house, built in 1921, is one of the most famous houses in Ljubljana. With its coloured facades and the level of detailing, stands out from its surrounding. The facade is coloured in national Slovenian tricolours. With its vibrant colours It gives me a feeling of happiness and excitement.
4. Architect Vladimir Šubic: Nebotičnik (Hi-rise in Ljubljana) Ljubljana's skyscraper, built in 1933 by Vladimir Šubic, was modelled by American skyscrapers. With its 70 metres high views, it offers visitors undisturbed views of Ljubljana. It is a highly visited tourist spot, offering a caffe restaurant at the top story.
