The Olsen brand is represented in many different countries around the world. While our headquarters are located in beautiful Hamburg, Germany, we also have great colleagues in our neighboring country Poland and even in Canada! What else unites us besides our great passion for fashion? We all celebrate Christmas and look forward to the upcoming festive season. Three different colleagues have given us very private insights into their personal Christmas traditions and customs.
Christmas is celebrated so differently in other countries!
Christmas is a festival that is celebrated on many different continents of the world – although not always and everywhere in the same way. Because different countries have very different customs for the celebration of love. And then there are also the very private Christmas traditions that each of us cultivates with our families.
Kelsey from Canada, Agnieszka from Poland and Isabel from Germany tell us how they spend Christmas and what traditions they have at home. Read for yourself how differently they celebrate Christmas in some cases and what, in turn, they all agree on.
Isabel, Global Head of Product Management:
“This is how I celebrate Christmas in Germany!”
In the run-up to Christmas, it’s a must for me to stroll through one of the great Christmas markets here in Hamburg at least once. With delicious lard pastries and a hot mulled wine, the first Christmas mood comes up. I also love singing Christmas carols at home with my little daughter.
On December 24, it’s finally Christmas Eve and my boyfriend, our daughter and I traditionally spend it with my parents. At 5 p.m. we give presents and we always do it in such a way that one after the other unwraps a present. I find that very nice, because then you perceive the gifts much more consciously. Afterwards, we always have fondue – a very sociable meal that we like to take a lot of time for!
We celebrate Christmas Day with our cousins and their children. I’m already looking forward to the delicious roast turkey that will be served again. With it we eat dumplings, red cabbage and brown sauce. This traditional Christmas dinner was introduced by my grandma and we like to stick to it. So Christmas Day is always quite turbulent and colorful in our house, with lots of children and lots of delicious food.
This year I will wear a cool black & white look for Christmas. It’s important to me that my Christmas outfit is a good mix of comfortable and elegant. After all, I want to feel comfortable in it throughout the evening and at the same time look chic according to the festive occasion. I think the tight-fitting vegan leather pants look very elegant in combination with black pumps. With the cozy cardigan the look gets its feel-good factor.
Kelsey, Marketing Coordinator:
“This is how I celebrate Christmas in Canada!”
Christmas time is my favorite time of the year. I just love that anticipation and excitement that is in the air. Most of the time we are also lucky in Canada and the first snow falls at this time – at the latest then the Christmas spirit is perfect! With the cold and snowy weather, I always get in the baking mood and bake tons of cookies! Afterwards, I make myself comfortable in front of the fireplace with a hot chocolate and watch a cheesy Christmas movie. I can’t think of anything better to watch!
Something else that gets me in the Christmas spirit is wrapping presents. As a self-proclaimed shopaholic, I love shopping for others! Wrapping gifts afterwards is a fun and creative way to surprise the people you love. I always try to make my gifts extra special. For example, I got myself some Christmas stamps that I like to use to embellish my gifts.
My family has been throwing a party on Christmas Eve with all of our friends and family for most of my life! We eat, drink, and talk late into the night. I really look forward to that all year long. In Canada, unlike in Europe, we don’t open our presents until Christmas Day. My family and I always do that first thing in the morning and then watch the movie “White Christmas” together – it’s become a kind of tradition with us!
I love to combine different materials in my outfit. So this year for Christmas I will wear my pants made of vegan leather and a blouse that feels totally soft and silky on the skin. The final touch I give my festive look with the cozy teddy fleece jacket. This makes the outfit really cozy!
Agnieszka, Office Manager:
“This is how I celebrate Christmas in Poland!”
At Christmas, I especially love to please my favorite people and give them beautiful gifts. I always take a lot of time to wrap the gifts with care. The wrapping paper, bow and small tags I choose individually for each person and think in advance what might please whom best. In my opinion, a beautifully and carefully wrapped gift is sometimes more important than the gift itself.
A classic Christmas tradition in Poland is the feast on Christmas Eve, which must consist of 12 different dishes. This is a custom in our country. That evening there are, for example: Herring, beet soup with dumplings, mushroom soup, carp, poppy seed cake and much more. You can certainly imagine how full our dining table will be that evening. I am really looking forward to this festive meal with all my loved ones!
I already know exactly what I will wear for Christmas this year. It is very important to me that my outfit is coherent on this evening. I want to feel comfortable in it and at the same time it should be a special eye-catcher. The blouse dress from Olsen with gray snake print seems perfect for this occasion. It looks very elegant and the cut is very advantageous. I combine it with overknee boots in matching colors. I’m already looking forward to celebrating Christmas in this outfit!
