The Vipp Story
From Marie to MoMA
The Vipp story begins in 1939 with a bin for Marie. Holger Nielsen, a young metalworker crafts a sturdy, pedal-controlled bin for his wife's salon. Over the next 50 years it becomes a permanent object in Danish clinics. Today, still family-driven and family-owned, Vipp has grown into a large portfolio of industrial design products developed from the functional philosophy of the pedal bin. In 2009, the bin was accepted into the permanent design collection at the MoMA in New York - the only place in the world where the bin is just for decoration.
1932
Luck is all you need
On a spring Sunday in 1932, 17-year-old Holger Nielsen wins a car in a lottery at the local football stadium. Holger loves cars, but has no driver's license, so he decides to sell the car and invest the money in a metal lathe that allows him to work with one of his great passions - steel.
1930S
Metal factory
As a newly educated metal smith with a newly invested methal lathe, Holger builds his own metal factory in the small Danish town of Randers.
1930S
Ballroom dancer and metal worker
Withdrawn in his metal workshop during the day and a vivacious ballroom dance instructor after dark, Holger believed that you could learn anything your set your mind to. His father being a coppersmith, Holger grew curious of good craftsmanship and was educated as a metal smith in the 1930s.
1939
'Holger', said Marie. 'I need a waste bin for my salon. Can you make me one?'
Not for sale
The Vipp bin was never intended to be sold. Originally, it was made as a tool for Marie’s salon only. However, many wives of doctors and dentists have their hair done at Marie’s salon and find the practical Vipp bin ideal for their husbands’ clinics. The request for more bins prompted Holger to start production on a larger scale.
HOLGER NIELSEN, VIPP FOUNDER
‘Good design never goes out of fashion.’
1949
Shape shifter
Due to new production techniques in 1949, the lid changes form. Instead of a wavy welded lid it is now stamped out with a rounded shape.
