Photo: Polestar
Snow is a great building material if used and kept at the right temperature. During this time of the year, the city of Rovaniemi, Finland, receives plenty of snow and the weather conditions are just right for building almost anything you want out of snow. EV maker Polestar has just opened a pop-up store in this small town within the Arctic Circle, and it’s the first of its kind.
Out of the approximately 130 Polestar stores worldwide, the latest is the most unique, having been built entirely out of snow in one of the few places on Earth where there are suitable conditions to make this possible. Aptly named the Polestar Snow Space, the new pop-up store follows the minimalistic design of the Swedish carmaker’s headquarters in Gothenburg and was built by Frozen Innovation after plans drawn by Polestar architects.
Frozen Innovation is a Finnish company with a lot of experience in building snow and ice installations, having worked on around 50 such structures in the last 15 years.
For those who don’t know, a Polestar Space is a place similar to a dealership or brand store, except it doesn’t sell cars, as the company retails its electric vehicles online. Instead, prospective customers who visit a Polestar Space can check out the automaker’s cars in person before making a purchase decision. As per the company’s words, the Spaces are where you can “get to know the cars, and the brand, without pressure or distraction. With enthusiastic, expert assistance available if needed.”
The new Snow Space in Finland is 39-foot (12-meter) high and is made out of 105,944 cubic feet (3,000 cubic meters) of compacted snow brought from the nearby ski resort of Ounasvaara. The building, which took approximately 20 days to build, features 6.5-foot (2-meter) thick snow walls, so expect freezing temperatures inside.
Wood and metal were also used as molds and scaffolding during the construction process, but were removed once all the snow blocks were in place, so the building is now 100% snow.
“The city of Rovaniemi is known for its wonderful design. We wanted to honor this by creating a beautiful work that was inspired by our brand’s minimalistic and pure design language. The choice of building material was easy due to the location and our desire to use circular materials: of course, it had to be built from snow,” Polestar Finland’s Marketing Manager Martin Österberg explained.
The cube-shaped Snow Space is already welcoming visitors, who will be able to see the Polestar 2 electric vehicle on display, along with a series of ice sculptures by local artists representing wheels, brakes, and suspension parts. Actually, the pop-up store serves as a base for Polestar’s Arctic test drives.
Interested customers can visit the Polestar Snow Space until February 26. After that date, the structure will be taken apart and the snow returned to the ski slopes.
Frozen Innovation is a Finnish company with a lot of experience in building snow and ice installations, having worked on around 50 such structures in the last 15 years.
For those who don’t know, a Polestar Space is a place similar to a dealership or brand store, except it doesn’t sell cars, as the company retails its electric vehicles online. Instead, prospective customers who visit a Polestar Space can check out the automaker’s cars in person before making a purchase decision. As per the company’s words, the Spaces are where you can “get to know the cars, and the brand, without pressure or distraction. With enthusiastic, expert assistance available if needed.”
The new Snow Space in Finland is 39-foot (12-meter) high and is made out of 105,944 cubic feet (3,000 cubic meters) of compacted snow brought from the nearby ski resort of Ounasvaara. The building, which took approximately 20 days to build, features 6.5-foot (2-meter) thick snow walls, so expect freezing temperatures inside.
Wood and metal were also used as molds and scaffolding during the construction process, but were removed once all the snow blocks were in place, so the building is now 100% snow.
“The city of Rovaniemi is known for its wonderful design. We wanted to honor this by creating a beautiful work that was inspired by our brand’s minimalistic and pure design language. The choice of building material was easy due to the location and our desire to use circular materials: of course, it had to be built from snow,” Polestar Finland’s Marketing Manager Martin Österberg explained.
The cube-shaped Snow Space is already welcoming visitors, who will be able to see the Polestar 2 electric vehicle on display, along with a series of ice sculptures by local artists representing wheels, brakes, and suspension parts. Actually, the pop-up store serves as a base for Polestar’s Arctic test drives.
Interested customers can visit the Polestar Snow Space until February 26. After that date, the structure will be taken apart and the snow returned to the ski slopes.
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