In a masterclass of cultural localization, Zalando has bypassed the traditional fashion playbook to tap a figure who embodies the raw, paradoxical spirit of Finnish masculinity: Siim Liivik. The former professional ice hockey player turned entertainment personality has been appointed as the platform’s new Finnish menswear ambassador, launching a year-long collaboration titled the “Scandi Fashion Survival Guide.” But beneath the surface of this humor-laced campaign—which features Liivik sweating in a sauna while wearing a puffer jacket—lies a sophisticated strategic pivot. This is not merely a celebrity endorsement; it is the operationalizing of Zalando’s new pan-European “Style Confidence” brand platform, designed to penetrate the notoriously difficult menswear market by dismantling locker-room conformity with self-deprecating wit and high-gloss editorial authority.
The Art of Sartorial Defiance
The campaign, developed in close editorial partnership with Vogue Scandinavia, navigates a complex tension central to the Nordic male experience: the friction between utilitarian resilience and expressive individuality. For decades, the archetype of the Finnish male has been defined by stoicism, practicality, and a uniform of grey blends designed to withstand brutal winters. Siim Liivik, however, represents a glitch in this matrix.
Known during his hockey career for an azure mohawk and a penchant for leather jackets that defied the conservative norms of the rink, Liivik is cast here not just as a model, but as a bridge figure. The imagery, captured by photographer Jumbo Tsui with art direction by Simon Rasmussen, leans heavily into the absurd. We see Liivik skating in full leather, coffee in hand, or layering what the campaign describes as “a gazillion layers” to survive the freeze. It is a visual language that speaks fluent Finnish—referencing the national obsession with the sauna and the ice—while subverting it with the vocabulary of contemporary streetwear.
Stylist Nikke Hellström has curated a wardrobe that balances the requisite heavy puffers and warming scarves with plush faux-fur coats and bold accessories. The aesthetic is undeniable: it is a rejection of the idea that “sensible” winter dressing must be boring. By placing high-fashion silhouettes in the context of a hockey locker room or a frozen lake, the campaign grants permission for the ordinary Finnish man to experiment, framing fashion not as a vanity project, but as an extension of the “sissu” (grit) required to survive the North.
Strategic Localization: The “Style Confidence” Play
To understand the business logic driving this collaboration, one must look beyond Helsinki to Zalando’s broader corporate maneuvering. In late 2024, the Berlin-based giant unveiled its “What Do I Wear?” brand platform, a foundational strategic shift aimed at solving the paralysis of choice for consumers. While the global rollout features heavyweights like Willem Dafoe and Brigitte Nielsen, the Liivik campaign demonstrates how this platform is being engineered for local relevance.
Daniela Klaeser, Zalando’s Team Lead for Streetwear Buying, has been explicit about the objective: “becoming the number one destination for men’s fashion.” The menswear segment in e-commerce has historically lagged behind womenswear in terms of adventurous consumption. Men often purchase for replacement; women often purchase for discovery. Zalando’s strategy here is to use Liivik’s credibility as a sports hero to reframe discovery as a form of confidence.
This is a “cultural wedge” strategy. By utilizing a figure who has survived the hyper-masculine environment of professional ice hockey while dressing like a rock star, Zalando inoculates itself against the skepticism often directed at fashion platforms by male demographics. If a bruising winger can wear a faux-fur coat and laugh about it, the barrier to entry for the average consumer is significantly lowered. It is a soft-power move to expand market share in the Nordics, a region with high disposable income but a culturally ingrained resistance to ostentation.
The Commerce Engine: Curated Boards as Data Labs
Perhaps the most significant innovation within this campaign is the integration of the “Scandi Fashion Survival Guide” directly into the Zalando user experience. Liivik has launched a curated board on the platform—a shoppable edit of sneakers, bags, and outerwear personally selected by the ambassador. While presented as an editorial feature, this is a potent data-capture mechanism.
For Zalando, this moves the needle from passive advertising to active engagement. By tracking which items within Liivik’s curation garner the most clicks, saves, and conversions, the platform gains granular insight into the specific tastes of the Finnish male demographic. Do they gravitate towards the practical puffers or the statement leather pieces? This data will likely inform future buying decisions, merchandising hierarchies, and even the development of private-label collections.
Furthermore, this signals a deepening convergence of media and commerce. The campaign was covered extensively by Vogue Scandinavia, which utilized affiliate language and direct shopping calls to action. We are witnessing the evolution of the fashion magazine from a reporter of trends to an active co-creator of commercial ecosystems, where the line between editorial feature and catalog is intentionally blurred to drive gross merchandise volume (GMV).
Timeline: From Penalty Box to Fashion Week
The trajectory of Siim Liivik from sports enforcer to fashion authority illustrates the changing landscape of celebrity endorsements.
- The Origins (1990s - 2010s): Liivik establishes a reputation as a “locker-room rule breaker,” arriving at school with colored mohawks and maintaining a flamboyant personal style throughout a professional hockey career defined by grit and physicality.
- The Pivot (Early 2020s): Post-retirement, Liivik transitions into entertainment, leveraging his personality to remain in the public eye. Vogue Scandinavia identifies him early as a potential crossover star, featuring him in editorial contexts that validate his fashion credentials.
- The Strategy (AW24): Zalando launches the “What Do I Wear?” global platform, emphasizing style confidence. The need for hyper-local, relatable figureheads in key markets becomes a priority to ground the high-concept global campaign.
- The Launch (Winter 2025): The “Scandi Fashion Survival Guide” goes live. Liivik is named the official Finnish menswear ambassador. The campaign utilizes humor and cultural tropes (saunas, ice) to soften the entry into high fashion for Finnish men.
- The Expansion (2026): The collaboration is slated to run year-long, implying upcoming content drops synchronized with the Spring/Summer fashion calendar and potential capsule collections based on performance data.
Industry Reaction: A Quiet Cultural Victory
While the campaign has not triggered a viral firestorm across the broader European web—overshadowed by the massive media spend of Zalando’s holiday campaigns involving Netflix and Tinder—it has achieved something arguably more valuable: authentic local resonance. Social sentiment analysis across Nordic channels indicates a reception characterized by amusement and pride. The specific brand of “Nordic self-irony” deployed here acts as a shield against the cynicism that usually greets corporate fashion advertising.
Industry insiders note that there has been virtually no backlash regarding the campaign’s “masculinity” messaging. By casting a figure with unimpeachable “tough guy” credentials, Zalando has sidestepped the culture war landmines that often plague progressive advertising. Instead, the discourse has focused on the relatability of the winter struggle—the “survival” aspect of the guide—which allows the fashion messaging to ride along as a solution to a shared problem.
However, the silence on sustainability is notable. In a region where Zalando has previously championed eco-conscious collaborations with brands like House of Dagmar and IAMISIGO, this campaign is purely focused on aesthetics and confidence. It suggests that for this specific growth phase in menswear, Zalando prioritizes emotional resonance and market penetration over its usual sustainability narrative.
Forecast: The “Local Hero” Blueprint
As we look toward the remainder of 2026, the success of the Liivik partnership will likely serve as a blueprint for Zalando’s operations in other fragmented European markets. The “Local Hero” model—identifying a culturally specific icon who bridges a traditional domain (sports, music, crafts) and high fashion—is a scalable asset.
We predict Zalando will replicate this structure in markets like Germany and France, potentially tapping footballers or rugby players who have demonstrated a flair for style but haven't yet been fully embraced by luxury houses. The goal is to create a constellation of local ambassadors who can translate the abstract concept of “Style Confidence” into the vernacular of their specific regions.
Financially, expect to see Zalando double down on the “Curated Board” feature. If the conversion metrics from Liivik’s edit prove superior to algorithmic recommendations, this human-led curation layer could become a dominant interface element, effectively turning the Zalando app into a personalized digital magazine for every user. For Siim Liivik, this is likely just the first period; a co-designed capsule collection, utilizing the data gathered from his current board, seems the logical next step in cementing his status as the new face of Nordic menswear.
Written by Ara Ohanian for FAZ Fashion — fashion intelligence for the modern reader.
