Japan Collection
Darumas
Rolodexes packed with contacts, long discussions in late-night bars, people you meet in dark studios, tip-offs from long-time readers: it's a network of valued sources that make this magazine come to life every month.
Kingdom road
Relatively unscathed by turbulent recent history, Morocco is intent on building a modern economy driven by technology. It would be a unique regional feat but the changes needed to achieve it will test the limits of the nation's new freedoms.
Grand ambition
It's a tough job: tackling crime, pollution and a sprawling population. But Mexico City's enterprising mayor is not only addressing that but also preparing for his next challenge: becoming a potential presidential candidate.
The view from the campaign trail in Spain and a new life for a former Nazi seaside resort.
Americas briefing
The rugged motorcade for the governor of the Falklands and a flagging debate in San Francisco.
Asia briefing
A new wall between two anxious neighbours, an election in Burma and Japan's increased links with Africa.
Africa and Middle East briefing
Sultan style tips, Somali airlines' take on bigger Gulf rivals and a Swaziland journalist.
Oceania briefing
How the Australian media is damaging relations with Indonesia, the Pacific consequences of a new Australian PM and a leading New Zealand politician.
Serbia cosies up to Russia, US bases turn to solar and China prepares for a sell-off
The Danish ambassador to Mexico on the nations' links, plus the case for a new UN refugee chief.
On a whirlwind tour taking in the likes of the Netherlands, Italy and Ethiopia, Monocle meets the new wave of diplomats making valuable connections in one of China's fastest-growing cities.
Conchita Wurst: Austria's new face
Since winning the 2014 Eurovision Song Contest, Conchita Wurst has become a global star. Yet despite her new-found acclaim she refuses to accept iconic status – and is never happier than when she's in her own capital city.
What's up, dock?
Rarely out of the news during the dying years of communism, Gdansk slipped into obscurity when democracy came to Poland. Now the port city is making waves again as it regains its place as a major trading hub and attracts a new generation of innovators.
EU law has cast a pall over incandescent-bulb company Righi Licht but its spirit and skill shines on.
High notes
People still come to Nashville for the tunes but increasing numbers are pitching up in the capital of country music to chase other dreams. The result tis a dynamic small-business culture and a quality of life that is hard to come by in bigger cities.
Fashion in the Palestinian Territories, the little California airport with big ideas and a bookshop in the 'Bul.
Wheeler dealers
The world of cycling shifts up a gear for the Eurobike trade fair: the stage for all that is state-of-the-art in the industry. Monocle took the best of the show for a spin.
Style counsel
When Raffaello Napoleone took over at Pitti Immagine, Florence's Pitti Uomo was a moribund trade fair. Having revitalised both it and the city's fashion business, he shares his wisdom on the leadership skills needed to help start a renaissance.
More than just places for a trim, the barbershops of Istanbul sit somewhere between confessional and symposium. The men behind the chair, therefore, train for years to become dedicated specialists with chat as keen as their razors.
Press ahead
Publishing granddaddy Magazine House has helped guide Japan's cultural conversation with a stable of timely titles. Monocle met the president for a lesson in vitality and to discuss print's place in a digital world.
For professionals and high-end consumers, pure sound has always meant Danish equipment, and one company in particular.
A boom of one's own
Far and free from the media hegemony that hangs over New York, the Bay Area is a hub of popular publications and pioneering ideas. With both old-guard papers and tech magazines shaped by Silicon Valley, this is the place for the press to be.
Art market briefing
An Auckland auction house, a gallery in New York and a Q&A with the director of the Hirshhorn Museum.
A clubbing festival in Turin, a supernatural medical drama from Switzerland and a great John Grant album.
Media briefing
A typography treatise that delights, an interview with a crime author turned TV writer and an app with a difference.
Labour of love
Despite our constantly changing reading habits, there's still a place for printed independent magazines. Monocle met some pioneering editors and publishers who are not afraid to risk it all in order to tell the stories they believe in.
Good as new
While many French companies have sought cheaper manufacturing options abroad, a few ambitious heritage brands have revived their fortunes by staying faithful to their roots.
Cutting a dash
Milan, Paris, London, New York – and Ubrique, of course. What could be dismissed as a sleepy Spanish town is in fact a fashion heavyweight renowned for its leatherware. Monocle paid a visit to pick up some bags and brogues.
Right minds
From London to Mexico City, Monocle has selected five of the best practices with the architectural flair and interior ingenuity right for your next project.
We visit the world-leading garden trade fair where budding makers are challenging the supremacy of cheap imports.
Quiet triumph
The work of modernist architect Alvar Aalto is revered well beyond his native Finland. But you have to travel to the country's far north to discover a barely known part of his portfolio: a city he planned from scratch
Hive minds
On the 60th anniversary of Ljubljana's revered Biennial of Graphic Arts, Monocle meets the Slovenian designers worth watching.
Smart thinking
Coming up with design solutions and bringing customers new ideas is what these entrepreneurs and companies excel at. Here Monocle meets the shop owners, designers and manufacturers making waves from Portland to Prague.
In the cool mountainous village just north of Beirut, a chef and a fashion designer have transformed a traditional stone house into an idyllic, immaculately designed weekend retreat. The good news? This is just a blueprint for an entire franchise.
Squared away
Brushed by greenery in the well-heeled area of Higienópolis, the Edifício Louveira apartment block stirs much modernist ardour. Monocle meets the artist who finally found a home there.
City dodge
Privacy and quiet in the city are in short supply but this mid-20th-century-inspired house in a lively Toronto shopping district is an object lesson in bold choices and the art of concealment.
House mates: Top 25
From tables to trays, cushions to chopping boards, Monocle presents a polished selection of new products you will be happy to share your home with.
New shops to visit and a selection of elegant winter-warmers to add to your wardrobe.
Inventory no.88
This month we bring you tea strainers from Tokyo, flower pots from Florida, ceramics from Sydney and, of course, something to spice up your drinks cabinet.
This month's array of places to stay includes a regency-era London hotel, a renovated bank in North Carolina and a hostel in Tokyo that offers books instead of breakfast.
Work wonders
Manufacturing in Turin may have withered but the Borgo Rossini district has made grand use of empty industrial spaces to refashion a warm community in its place.
Roll model
Belgian stationery-maker Le Typographe combines time-honoured typesetting techniques with polished designs to notable effect.
Chef Anthony Rose is determined to deliver simple yet desirable dishes.
Dished up
We spread the news about a Parisian bakery that combines a contemporary interior with traditional pastries and a café in Istanbul that hopes to turn the city's tea-drinkers onto coffee. In England, of course, the time-honoured tipple is gin: we also reveal Dorset's only distillery.
Wim Wenders extols the virtues of German cuisine at his favourite haunt.
Not content with opening a pioneering new London newsstand, editor in chief Tyler Brûlé has overseen the launch of a seasonal pop-up shop in Merano. If you want an early dose of Christmas cheer, make your way to South Tyrol.
Expo 88: Drink in the view
Forst is a family-owned brewery with the mountains of South Tyrol as its backdrop and a commitment to staying independent as its calling card. And it doesn't hurt that the beer tastes bloody good.
ambassador no.35
Henrik Bramsen Hahn
Danish Ambassador to Mexico
Mexico and Denmark see each other as allies when working within international institutions on environmental and climate issues. But when it comes to bilateral relations, the two countries are increasingly focusing on trade and commerce. Settling into a chair on the back patio of the Danish embassy in Mexico City's regal Polanco neighbourhood, ambassador Henrik Bramsen Hahn picks up a ceramic-and-wooden sugar bowl, an example of the type of product from his home country that is now being sold in Mexican boutiques. "The Danish furniture sector started in the 1930s with simplistic, clear-cut designs," he says. "These have gained a worldwide reputation."
While the Danish embassy and the ambassador's residence have fairly modest exteriors, inside is a grand variety of Danish products. "Winter in Denmark is long and dark and since we spend so much time indoors we want a home that is nice to look at," says Hahn. Inside the embassy, details range from a toy-size house made from yellow and red Lego bricks to a barometer made by Hahn's great-grandfather.
Denmark established diplomatic relations here in 1827 and opened its embassy a century later. Mexico is exposed to tropical storms on both coasts and is one of Denmark's strongest partners in efforts to combat climate change. Today, as well as prioritising environmental issues and clean energy, the Denmark-Mexico relationship is also defined by commercial ties. Lego's biggest factory is in the northern city of Monterrey and shipping giant Maersk exports Mexican-made products.
"We have a growing number of companies here," says Hahn. Alongside furniture-maker BoConcept and dairy giant Lurpak, an expanding group of Danish luxury brands are looking to enter Mexico. "The potential is there: the upper-middle class is growing and they are looking for these kinds of products. There's a market for luxury goods." While Hahn has seen Mexican food grow in popularity in Copenhagen, he also sees a growing interest among Danish chefs in building their reputations in Mexico. "René Redzepi from Noma comes here once a year."
After driving us from the embassy to his home, a mid-century mansion with modern lines and floor-to-ceiling windows, Hahn tell us that everything we see is Danish. He does, however, make sure that his kitchen is stocked with Mexican coffee beans. "I serve espresso made of beans from Chiapas," he says. "It's excellent."
A boxy two-storey building on a quiet side street.
The embassy has 15 Danish members of staff who handles request relating to issues in Mexico and the Caribbean. They enjoy the use of Danish-made adjustable desks that can be used in a standing or seated position.
The biggest challenge
"You always feel guilty about how you use your time," says Hahn. "It's a balancing act between time spent with one's family and time spent solving the tasks that the job as an ambassador entails."
New direction?
Global — REFUGEES
The search for a new UN high commissioner for refugees rarely makes the headlines. But as Europe struggles to deal with the refugee crisis, the debate over who should lead the organisation has garnered more attention.
Former Danish prime minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt wants the job but her country's hardline response to refugees may go against her. Only one of the previous 10 high commissioners came from a developing country, though the French-born, Swiss-and-US-educated Prince Sadruddin Aga Khan of Iran barely counts as non-western. Perhaps it's time for a high commissioner from a poorer nation who understands why refugees make these dangerous journeys in the first place.
Delicate detente
South Sudan — TALKS
Successful peace talks are usually a cause for celebration. However, the response in South Sudan to the agreement between president Salva Kiir and his erstwhile deputy-turned-rebel-leader Riek Machar was muted.
Threats of UN sanctions persuaded Kiir to sign but the underlying ethnic tensions remain. So too does the endemic corruption that has bedevilled South Sudan throughout its short life. Add into the mix far too many weapons, high levels of poverty, the threat of famine and an international aid industry that still hasn't worked out how to make a positive difference and it's not hard to see why fears of a new war remain.