Watches inspired by the raw nature of Norway

Our mission with Berg

From the start it has been our main focus to mix minimalist design with Norwegian heritage. It is about telling a story about Norway through time. Like with our first collection, Ulriken. It is inspired by the raw nature of Norway, but also has a story. Our founder Paal Friele Grung's grandmother used salmon leather for her shoes during World War 2. Our design is a mix of modern and historic fashion design. Salmon leather was lost in time, but we are bringing it back to life.

How salmon leather was used during World War 2 to create shoes

The other day Paal showed his Berg watch to a 95 year old man that had Berg as his last name. The man told Paal that he also used salmon leather for his shoes during World War 2, just like Paal's grandmother. He said that they used wood for the soles and salmon leather for the rest of the shoe. Mr. Berg also said that the shoes didn't last long, as the soles wore out quickly, but emphasized that the salmon leather was still intact and looked great. Today you can find shoe brands that use salmon leather, like Danish sneaker brand, Woden.

The reason for Norwegians using salmon leather during the war was that it was hard to import products from other countries, so we had to get creative about our clothing. And in Norway there is no scarcity of salmon. Also Norway was a pretty poor country back then as most of its industry was fishing and shipping.

Inspired by the raw nature of Norway

Our designs are inspired by the raw nature of Norway. As Norway is a long country with many different landscapes and climates it is easy to get inspired by it and its beauty.

Bergen and the fjords on the west coast of Norway

Berg started in Bergen, which is why our first design is inspired by Bergen and its nature. Bergen which is known as the gateway to the fjords, is surrounded by 7 mountains and in 2015 it rained 278 days. The highest out of these seven mountains is Ulriken that rise up 643 meters above sea level.

Ulriken is a popular tourist attraction and its cable cars are usually packed in the summer with Norwegian and international tourists. Berg also means mountain in Norwegian, so it was natural to use the highest one in the our first collection.

Bergen is known for its gorgeous landscape and architecture, but it is a reason for it being called the gateway to the fjords, because this is where all the tourists arrive before they start exploring the true fjords of Norway, which you find in Sogn & Fjordane and Møre & Romsdal. The roughness of the mountains that rise up from the fjords and where the tree line all of a sudden stops and it becomes just grey rocks, that is what our straps symbolize with its rough pattern. The clean and elegant design of the watch itself is inspired by the beautiful and majestic fjords that can be clear and reflective and look like nothing you will ever see elsewhere. That is why Norway is so popular, because of its strong contrasts and that is what Berg is, a watch brand with strong contrasts.

If you wonder what a fjord is, then here is the definition in the words of dictionary.com, "a long, narrow arm of the sea bordered by steep cliffs: usually formedby glacial erosion."

The Lofoten alps and islands

Instagram famous is not just a catch phrase for influencers, it is also for brands and destinations. Lofoten is one of those destinations. It is everywhere on travelers accounts and travel inspiration accounts along with destinations like Iceland, Singapore and the Neuschwanstein Castle in Germany.

Lofoten is originally a small group of islands known for it's great fishing traditions and have always been a popular tourist attraction, but since Instagram came around it has been booming, everything from tourists wanting to see the northern lights, surfing under the midnight sun or just the magical landscape of its many mountain tops.

In the start of July our team traveled to Stokmarknes to deliver 11 watches to one of our biggest private customer yet. So we flew from Bergen up to Narvik and rented a car and stayed in a tent for 3 days. Our customer was overwhelmed by us coming all they way up to deliver the watches in person. We just thought it was awesome.

The photos themselves describe the beauty of Lofoten, the landscape is totally different form that of the west coast of Norway, but it still has the contrast between the roughness of the mountains  and the beauty of the fjords. It is landscapes like these that makes it easy for us to get inspired.