Fast Fashion Mogul Builds Western Europe's Tallest Tower in The Middle of Nowhere

A wealthy Danish businessman is planning to build a 320-meter skyscraper in a remote village in the country’s west. Called The Bestseller Tower, once complete the giant building will be the tallest in Western Europe. 

Anders Holch Povlsen is the owner and mastermind behind the building, and soon the tiny town of Brande will be as well known as his fashion labels Vero Moda, and Jack and Jones are.

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The tower will be designed by star architectural studio Dorte Mandrup who plan on making sure they take the tallest European building crown by making the building 10.4 meters taller than the Shard in London. 

“It will be a landmark that places Brande on the map,” Anders Krogh Vogdrup told The Guardian, head of constructions for Bestseller.

Give something back

The fast-fashion label bestseller was founded in 1975, and its owner says its time he gave something back to the town that has housed the business headquarters for over 4 decades.

“We have been very happy to have our home in Brande, and we feel we are a natural part of the local community,” Krogh Vogdrup said when the tower was first announced. The idea, he explained, is “to give something back to the town.”

The local council has approved the towers building permit. Jutland is known for its flat featureless landscape. It’s so flat in fact, that the tower will be able to be seen from more than 60km away.

Spire seen from everywhere

Visitors to popular tourists sights in the area like Jelling, the royal seat of Harald Bluetooth, the Viking king who united Denmark, and the other famous sight Legoland will easily spot the spire.

“It’s hard to find anybody here who is opposed to the tower. Everybody thinks it’s a fantastic idea, and me too,” says Morten Dickmann, a reporter for the local newspaper.

“The Danish news media tried hard to find someone opposed, but they couldn’t find anyone.”

Learning from Japan

The lack of opposition might sound surprising but the Best Seller brand has been described as a cult and Anders Holch Povlsen as its leader. It isn't the first time a tower has been built in the middle of nowhere. In the early 90s in Japan, a 41-story residential tower project was started.

However, the country's economic crash slowed the building's construction to a crawl. It was only completed in 1999. It took a further 6 years for the apartments to be sold, many going for half their original advertised price.

It isn’t clear yet, what proportion of the new Bestseller tower will be offices and residential but no doubt the tower will become an icon in the region.