Nova Interiør

Building tailored furniture for Tromsø

Approaching its sixtieth birthday, the kitchen and furniture brand Nova Interiør has always been proud of its roots in Tromsø. Now, it’s looking to expand, while remaining committed to the people that support it across the north of Norway.

Nova Interior is extremely proud of its history. Founded in 1963 by Astor Fredriksen in Tromsø, the company has been producing furniture on the same site ever since. But there’s change in the air.

“Our history has always informed what we do,” Rolf Jacobsen, Nova’s CEO, tells Localfolk. “We’ve been here in Tromsø for sixty years, making furniture inspired by our founder and the beauty of the north—and we’re thrilled that we’ve had the support of the local community throughout these decades. But now we’re modernising, growing, and taking our products to new customers.”

Nova’s key offering has always been kitchens—tailored, made-to-order kitchen furniture that’s assembled by hand and recognisable for its elegance and durability. Over the years, the brand has added bathroom and wardrobe products to its collection. Now, Nova is finalising plans to offer a complete interior design service.

“Our local customers have always come to us for the quality of our products. They trust us to design, build, and install kitchens that will last for decades,” Karen Eline Johansen, Nova’s sales manager, explains.

“But when customers are renovating their homes, they’re less likely these days to go to one brand for a kitchen, another brand for another solution, and another brand for something else. We want to help customers come to one place for their kitchen and for the design of the surrounding space. We want to offer customers quality in all parts of their home.”

But what do we mean by quality? Rolf and Karen identify three things that make Nova’s products so special.

“Firstly, there’s the durability of the furniture,” Rolf says. “A few years ago, a customer came into the store to ask for help to replace a hinge on his Nova kitchen. He had never needed to fix anything on his kitchen before—and he had bought it thirty years ago!”

“Then, there’s the flexibility of our service,” Karen continues. “Everything we make is tailored to our customers’ spaces. If they’re local, we’ll come to their homes, take measurements, and have a real discussion about all their different options.

“Finally, our commitment to handcraft makes a huge difference. Every completed product is controlled and assembled by hand.”

Yet the driving force behind this quality?

“At Nova, everything is about our people,” Rolf tells us. “We have people working with us who’ve been here for over 50 years. Sure, we can buy new machines, move to a new factory, or change our products, but we’re nothing without our people. If we know they’re happy and that they enjoy fulfilling, meaningful work, we can be sure we’re getting the quality we all want in the products.”

Looking into the future, Nova’s emphasis on its staff remains its top priority.

“Of course, we are looking to diversify the business and enter new markets perhaps further south in Norway—and we’re thrilled that we’ve seen incredible growth over the last couple of years,” Karen says.

“But our focus stays right here in Tromsø. This city is a huge part of who we are. It’s where Astor Fredriksen founded the company and it’s where the heart of the company is. The mountains here give their name to our products, and we are really part of the community. That’s not changing for anything.”

Finally, Rolf points out the Nova logo, the blue star.

“I think it’s an extremely good logo. A nova is a type of star that attracts and gains energy from other stars around it— getting stronger and stronger thanks to others. That’s how we feel about our staff: we’re gathering energy from all of them to shine, to become bigger and stronger. We couldn’t do it without them.”

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