Our story
It all began with a tragedy. Esben Johannessen, Anne-Kari's husband and Märtha Louise's best friend, passed away from pancreatic cancer in the summer of 2019. Espen was one of the country's finest horse trainers in show jumping and had many students. He conducted classes, and Anne Kari managed the finances. Now, Anne-Kari found herself alone on a small farm, without income. What was she to do? This is where Monica stepped in as a saving angel. She had always dreamt of starting a clothing brand, and since Anne-Kari was in deep sorrow and believed life couldn't get much worse than it already was, she seized the opportunity.
Esben's company was dormant due to his passing, and they both thought it was a fitting tribute to him to repurpose his company with this new idea. The name naturally became a play on words; a variation of "horse" became Hést (pronounced with a long E sound). From then on, the two of them began designing clothes, with Monica as the head designer.
Märtha closely supported Anne-Kari through this tough time, and she was very pleased to see things taking off for the two of them. Therefore, she wanted to wear the long green knitted cardigan from her friend's company when she appeared on Harald Rønneberg's show, "Helt Harald," on TV2. The green Logo Cardigan made an impression, and it didn't take long before the newly established Hést website crashed due to all the attention. Many people inquired about the knitting pattern for the long jacket, and just like that, the idea for the knitting books, "Hést Knitting Book" and "Hést Summer Knits," was born, featuring many beautiful designs for those who enjoy knitting.
Throughout this process, the three of them realized they had great chemistry, and after a few months, Märtha Louise joined the company. Both Anne-Kari, Monica, and Märtha Louise are undoubtedly like three "Pippi Langstrømpe" who live by the motto, "I've never tried that before, so I'm sure I can do it." And it turned out to be absolutely true.
We love creating clothes for active women, and something for active men will likely come along in due course.
We hope that our story can be an inspiration for those facing challenges, showing that it's possible to turn life into something positive no matter how dark it may seem.