We have strict quality management processes in place both at our own printing factory and for our contract manufacturers. These processes help ensure the high quality of the materials used and the finished products. Marimekko’s own quality team, Marimekko’s textile laboratory, external testing laboratories and our suppliers monitor quality continuously in accordance with international standards.
How we test materials and products
One of the key elements in our quality assurance is Marimekko’s own textile laboratory, where more than 5,000 tests are carried out on different materials every year. Materials and products are tested for shrinkage, color fastness, wear resistance and pilling, among other things. For example, all base fabrics are tested before they are introduced into production and approved for use in collections. Naturally, new and innovative materials must meet the same strict quality requirements as all other Marimekko materials and products.
The adoption of innovations, such as new textile materials and plant-based dyes, often requires close collaboration between the printing factory, product development, design, the textile laboratory, and the sustainability and quality teams – all of which are located in connection with our headquarters in Herttoniemi, Helsinki. This enables seamless development work across functions.
In addition to material testing, we test new products in everyday use before introducing them into our collections. This helps us ensure that products bring joy for a long time, from one consumer to another. We measure our success in quality by the share of products subject to claims: in 2025, the share of claimed products of all sold products was 0.3 percent, clearly below our annual target of no more than 0.5 percent.
Product care, maintenance and repairability
Marimekko aims to extend the life cycle of its products in many ways. In addition to timeless aesthetics, we seek to lengthen product lifetime by, for example, further improving careability and repairability.
Our goal is that, when properly cared for, Marimekko products can last from one generation to the next. Proper product care extends lifetime, helps keep the product beautiful for longer and reduces the environmental impacts of the industry.
By providing a comprehensive care guide, we encourage our customers to take good care of their products. We also regularly share product care practices and the importance of caring for products in our social media channels. In addition, a large share of our products include a leaflet with guidance on proper material-specific care. We also actively aim to expand our lifecycle services, including care and repair. Our products carry the Clevercare label. At Clevercare.info, our customers can find care instructions that save the environment and the product, as well as effort and money. For example, the guidance reminds users not to wash a product too often or at too high a temperature, and to consider local stain removal or airing instead of washing the whole product.