Finland’s oldest bakery Ekberg to open Tokyo outlet in July

Finland’s oldest bakery, Ekberg, will open a sales point in Tokyo’s Isetan Shinjuku department store in mid-July, the company announced.

According to Martin Tkaczick, chairman of Ekberg’s board, the expansion follows four decades of collaboration with Japan. Interest in Finnish baking, particularly cinnamon buns and cardamom buns, has driven the move.

“There has always been a lot of interest from Japan in our operations and especially our products. When they reached out, the timing felt right. We want to bring unique Finnish baking culture to Japan,” Tkaczick said.

Recipes were adjusted to local ingredients to maintain the same taste and quality as in Finland. The Tokyo outlet will be the first Nordic bakery in the department store’s food section.

Ekberg, founded in 1852, joins Cafe Aalto as the second Helsinki-based café to open in Tokyo, following the latter’s launch last November.