Jani Ylitalo – Interior Entrepreneur

There is a steady stream of customers coming in into Forme’s store, located just a stone cast away from the Paavali Church in the Vallila district of Helsinki. From Forme people are looking for quality carpets or long lasting wooden furniture. The founder and CEO of Forme Jani Ylitalo helps customers with a smile.

Besides the excellent service, clients respect the actual products. - Forme is an interior decor company which, offers timeless quality products. Ecological as well as ethical values are self-evident, Jani states.

Finnish family business

The story of Forme began almost 15 years ago as a collaboration of Jani and his mom Irma Ylitalo. – My mom has a weaving mill in Ostrobothnia and I started by designing carpets. Back then, I also created my own brand Forme.

Nowadays, Forme’s collection of mats has widened. Besides cotton mats still woven by his mom, Forme is also producing wool mats hand-woven in India awarded with Care & Fair –sertificate. Forme is also importing popular TON furniture to Finland and is actually, the only authorized reseller of TON furniture in Finland.

Sustainable and long-lasting products

- All products I sell, are produced from sustainable and repairable natural materials like wool, cotton or wood, Jani tells. I am a conscious consumer. When consuming, I try to make long lasting decisions. In the products, I sell I want to share these same values.

In Forme Jani is handling everything from book keeping to sales. Today he started by unloading consignment of TON chairs. After store closes at 6 pm, he jumps into his van for home delivering some of the products sold in past few days.

Versatility and functionality

Versatile job demands a lot from clothing as well. – I wish to look smart, but not posh. I try to wear cloths that suit to all kind of occasions. I need to feel comfortable at the store as well as in a business meeting or when being outdoors with my 8-year old son. He demands timeless design, ethicality and high-quality for his cloths too.



Timeless design for the right price

– Cloths or furniture should not cost fortunes yet, I think it is better to pay a bit more for long lasting products which, are sustainable and not garbage tomorrow. I can easily wear a same pullover for 10 years. I was just going through some old photos and noticed how I was wearing same style already 20 years ago, he laughs.

In FRENN cloths, Jani appreciates all above timeless design, value for money and the fact that they are designed in Finland and produced close by in Estonia.

From the FRENN Autumn-Winter 2018 collection he easily found his favourites: Tailored Pauli Coat, which is made from virgin wool herringbone fabric. Also corduroy suit in royal blue was eye catching and very comfortable at the same time.

FRENN classic Elias merino wool cardigan works well for both work and leisure. – I immediately felt these were made for me. I know I’ll be wearing these for the next 10 years, at least.