The Zoco Home Story - An Interview with Johanna Weckstrom

In many ways, the Scandinavian design has influenced the way we decorate our homes and changed our perspective in design. It is characterized by minimalism, where less is more and drawing nature into our homes. 

The founder of Zoco Home, Johanna Weckstrom adds a twist to the basic Scandinavian design by combining a beautiful Ethnic and Boho style, creating authenticity and a story in every item. 

Turning dreams into reality, in just eight years, the Finnish designer, Johanna, has successfully opened a beautiful furniture store in Spain, built a global online business, as well as providing a full interior design service for clients all over the world. 

Johanna shares her story and enlightens us with her dreams of becoming an interior designer, what sparked her passion for travelling and the entire story behind Zoco Home. 

So tell us a little about yourself and how Zoco Home began? 

I have always been lucky enough to travel when I was younger. It is so interesting to understand different cultures and travelling to countries around the world. It has opened my eyes and gave me a different perspective on life and the beauty of it. 

My father was running a business importing beautiful Ethnic styled decorations from Mexico and I realised this definitely influenced my love for interior design and art. Traveling with my father became a wonderful part of my life and I loved everything about it!

So that passion for design continued to grow. The more beautiful things I saw around the world, the greater my enthusiasm for design. I knew I needed to discover the world of interior design.

So, around eight years ago, my dreams came true and I started the Zoco Home online business! 

Many of my clients, specifically Scandinavians, really wanted us to open up a physical store. 

I never really thought about opening up an actual store at the beginning, but there was such a high demand so I thought, sure let’s do it!

At this point, my family and I were living in Malaga, so opening the Zoco Home store on the Costa del Sol was the perfect opportunity for us. It is super international here, so we have clients visiting our store from all over the world. It’s incredible to be in contact with inspiring people and different cultures on a daily basis.

To open the Zoco Home store truly became the start of something amazing. As the Scandinavian style increased in popularity, our authentic decor flourished, too. 

We began collaborating with other designers, property developers and real estates, creating inspiring projects. Our client base just continued to grow from there and ever since then we have been participating in international projects. 

Photo: Perla Del Mar by Designa Properties

Within the first few months after our first big project, which was a collaboration with the stylish restaurant Scorpios in Mykonos Greece, we had projects all over the world. 

From luxurious villas in Marbella and beautiful apartments around the Costa Del Sol region to exclusive hotels in Mykonos, to the world renowned Nikki Beach in Miami. The list is endless!

Photo: Nosso Summer Club Marbella

What inspires that Ethnic and Scandinavian design?

My inspiration starts at the heart and understanding the beauty in different things, that is what makes all the Zoco Home products so unique. We have items that are one of a kind, handmade with care from countries like Morocco and Indonesia origin. No two items are ever the same, and that in my idea, is beauty. There is so much more behind the products than what meets the eye. 

I am forever inspired by nature so I wanted to bring that style into Zoco Home. So basically, combining the Scandinavian colour palette with natural elements is the perfect way to decorate your home. 

It is super important to have that connection with nature as it portrays a sense of calmness and freshness into your home. 

Travelling has always been a part of my life. Seeing different places and meeting other people from various cultures truly inspires me. There are so many wonderful things to see, and how spectacular is it that I can bring that beauty into your homes with our Zoco Home decoration. 

There is a story in everything and I would love to share that with people and inspire them so they can create their own beautiful stories. 

What has been your favourite project so far? 

We have been involved in so many wonderful projects but I would say the Scorpios Mykonos project was just incredible. 

We collaborated with designers from Lambs and Lion to create a beautiful restaurant in Greece, creating an authentic atmosphere with stylish Bohemian decor. This was our first big collaboration so it really helped us to grow in business. After this collaboration we began to be involved in so many more projects.

Photo: Scorpios Mykonos 

So in reality, Zoco Home started as an online business selling wonderful Scandinavian and Boho decor and quickly became one of the leading interior companies, both locally and internationally.

I find it so rewarding to see that all our clients love what we do and the way we decorate their places. We have many exciting projects coming up and we can’t wait to share them all with you. 

Photo: Sea La Vie Marbella 

What is your favourite Zoco Home item at the moment? 

I love all the Zoco Home products! I have so many favourite items, especially all our vintage and unique finds. These items have been collected around the world, and like I mentioned previously, there is a story behind every product. 

If you are looking to create that authentic atmosphere in your house, by having one of our vintage finds you will be able to achieve that look. We have items originating from Indonesian islands like our Sumba Statues to beautiful vintage coffee tables which can be seen as the centerpiece of any room. 

We also create custom made pieces of furniture, depending on the clients wishes and the types of projects we are doing.

Our organic chair chairs are incredible, too! They are made of teak wood, giving that beautiful natural aura which is essential in a home and combining it with pure elegance. 

Zoco Home isn't just a furniture store; we also offer a professional interior design service, too, putting the clients first at all times. From large collaborations to offering furniture packages and making your decorating process as easy as possible. 

Tell us what your favorite part of designing is.

I really enjoy the whole design process, from learning and understanding the clients needs and demands to finalizing the project and seeing the client's reaction! It is so rewarding to see the final results after all the hard work and effort you put into making the perfect place. You are basically looking at art that you created, it’s amazing! 

Keeping an open mind and being unique is key! 

Designing a place is a real personal thing, so we have actually ended up being great friends with a lot of our clients. They always invite us over to their houses and that is what is so special about designing and decorating. We make people so happy and those emotions are just priceless. 

Zoco Home has designed beautiful places around the world with its contemporary Scandinavian and Ethnic design, inspiring people globally and creating a story in everything. 

Now it is your turn to create your own stories with Zoco Home. 

Whether you have a small decorating project in mind or a project on a much larger scale, Zoco Home is looking forward to collaborating with you. 

Contact us through email at sales@zocohome.com or through Whatsapp and phone on +34 635 546 360 

All portraits and travel photos:

@real_rastivo

www.rastivo.com

#createyourownstories

#zocohomeprojects

#myzocohome