Duro Sweden captures Swedish nature and heritage wallpaper with NCS Colour

MARCH 20, 2024

In conversation with Maria Bryngemark, Designer Manager and Staffan Persson, Sales and Marketing Manager at Duro Sweden, they describe how the NCS System has improved their colour design process, from the factory to the paint store. Two new collections, Akvarell and Småmönstrat, have NCS codes identifying every colour in their patterns.

Duro is Latin for strong and lasting, and it is a word that captures the essence of Duro Sweden. Founded nearly 100 years ago, Duro Sweden has a legacy of designing and manufacturing classic and modern wallpapers from their main factory in Gävle, Sweden. Rooted in Swedish heritage, the company uses fragments of historical wallpaper to recreate them and bring them to life. They use traditional methods with authentic wallpaper paper and produce their own ink with the highest quality natural pigments.

Creating historical designs and modern classics

“We have always specialised in Scandinavian design, and since the 1960s, we have also been a specialist in heritage wallpapers, and we are proud to talk about our historical designs,” says Maria Bryngemark, Designer Manager.

'Idun Blue' from Collection Flora.

“From a design point of view, it’s a challenge to be relevant and exactly on point because the customers are so aware of colours and trends. They know exactly what they want. We try to be their first choice, requiring exact knowledge and the ability to speak a colour language. This is when Staffan came in and brought us new knowledge about the business,” continues Maria.

Single colour collection Akvarell

Explore Duro's single colour Akvarell (Watercolor) collection, which consists of 60 carefully selected colours, each with a specified NCS code. These wallpapers have been created with generous amounts of paint, giving them a fine grain and vibrant finish. With shades that reflect nature's rich colour shifts and calming elements, Akvarell creates a timeless and cosy atmosphere in your home.

Akvarell Collection. 'Fläderblomma' NCS S 0510-Y10R.

Akvarell Collection. 'Blåbär med mjölk' NCS S 2010-R70B.

Akvarell Collection. 'Ingrid Marie' NCS S 4040-Y90R.

Akvarell Collection. 'Malva' NCS S 2020-Y60R.

Inspired by Swedish nature to design the Akvarell collection

When envisioning the new wallpaper collection, Akvarell, Maria describes the process. “We wanted to create a surface with a live feeling. It's a lot of colour, it's almost like it is painted, and there's something that we specialise in. We wanted to be classic and have a Duro Sweden feeling to it. And that is the knowledge of colour. The inspiration for the colours came from the landscape surrounding us - the stones in Scandinavia, trees like birch and our flowers. When we had those colours that we liked so much, and the main colours were white and beige, we wanted to add more edgy colours.”

Meeting everyday needs in paint stores

Their main customers are paint stores within the Nordic region, where customers share similar preferences and appreciation of products. Staffan Persson, who recently joined Duro Sweden as a Sales and Marketing Manager, knows the paint business industry well. “I ran a paint store in Uppsala, where I lived for many years and have worked for major paint and coating companies. My whole DNA is NCS codes. I know that the paint store’s most important daily tool for tinting paints is the NCS System.”

“As a small actor in the wallpaper market, we really need something to stand out. This is one of the main reasons we started to work with the NCS System, and I was really happy that Maria accepted this,” continues Staffan.

Akvarell Collection. 'Kalk' NCS S 1002-Y20R.

Akvarell Collection. 'Tjärn' NCS S 6010-R90B.

Speaking a common colour language: internally and externally

By introducing NCS codes throughout the company and developing a partnership with NCS Colour, Duro Sweden now had a universal language to communicate their colour vision and design. “It has really engaged the whole company. It’s been so much great fun, and it's really appreciated,” explains Staffan.

Duro Sweden has colour experts known as colour masters, designers and people working in the lab and factory. “When all those people came together and had this common language of the NCS System, it made all the difference. It was much easier to work together and talk about colours. ‘Should the colour be more black or whiter?’” describes Maria.

Externally, the paint stores benefit from using the NCS System as a common colour language between the painting and wallpaper departments, making combining paint and Duro Sweden wallpaper easier.

Colour precision is key

Once Maria and her team had all the colours presenting the collection, they referred to the NCS codes. “It really worked out well. During the design process, when we discussed with people at the mill, we had the NCS codes to guide us, and we found NCS standard colours to match our thinking. This is a process that took several months. Akvarell is a plain wallpaper collection based on a palette of 60 warm, neutral and rich colours. In that way, it's more important to make them absolutely accurate. It’s all about colour accuracy, to see the colours in the right lighting and texture.”

“The response to the Akvarell collection has been enormously positive and overwhelming. We look forward to continuing our partnership with NCS,” concludes Staffan.

Read more about the Akvarell collection here (in Swedish).

Explore more collections of Duro Sweden

Two other collections, Flora, based on Swedish flowers and Småmönstrat (Small Pattern), are also based on the 2050 NCS Standard colours.

Småmönstrat

Småmönstrat is the collection for those who want to decorate with patterns while giving the walls a calm and quiet impression. In this collection you will find stripes, checks, flowers and other small, subtle patterns in different colour schemes. The small patterned wallpapers are timeless and suitable for all types of rooms, and they are ideal to combine with the plain wallpapers from the Watercolour collection, which consists of 60 carefully selected colours, all identified in the NCS colour language.

'Lillstjärna' Green, NCS S 1005-G.

Flora

In the wallpapers of Flora you find floral patterns that evoke summer, birdsong and the smell of rain. The popular plaid patterns add a nice accent. All in a gentle colour palette with warm tones of pink, honey and lime blossom green.

'Lotta' Yellow, NCS S 0907-Y30R.