Helping customers find the perfect fit in every glove

We tell the customer: if anything happens to your glove, we’ll take care of it says Viktor Östrup. He is Retail Operations Manager and responsible for Hestra’s four physical stores. For Viktor and his colleagues, it is not about selling as many gloves as possible, but helping the customer finding just the right one. With many purchases happening online, the physical store plays an even more crucial role.

A size 9 in a ski glove isn’t the same as a size 9 in a classic dress glove. That’s why it’s important for our customers to be able to come in, try them on, see our full range, and get help finding a model that matches their needs. If we don’t have the right size in-store, we’re happy to recommend other nearby stores that have it in stock.

REPAIRS ON-SITE

Once a customer finds the perfect pair, the goal is for the gloves to be used for as long as possible. In this regard, Hestra stores play a crucial role, with in-house seamstresses available at every location to offer smaller repairs that extend the life of the gloves, except for the store in Copenhagen.

We repair broken seams at no cost, and we sew in new linings for a fee says Viktor Östrup. Repairs that require more technical equipment are sent to one of Hestra’s service centres, either in Småland or Hungary.

DETACHABLE LININGS ”COOL” AMONG TOURISTS

Today, the stores receive more questions about sustainability compared to a few years ago, Viktor explains. He believes this is partly because awareness has grown generally in society, but also because Hestra consistently emphasizes longevity and replaceable linings.

Among our foreign customers, detachable linings attract attention; many of them think it’s a cool feature to prolong their Hestra gloves’ life

says Viktor. Although many Swedes already know that linings can be replaced, it is still common for customers to come in with wellused ski gloves that they believe are worn out.

But if the leather looks good, we’re happy to sell a lining instead of a new glove. And I usually ask if the customer has tried washing the lining; that can bring back volume to fibers that have been compressed during use. That often goes a long way if the lining isn’t too worn out.