Why Cloudberry ? February 25 2015

Whats in a name ....

If you are Scandinavian or even Scottish the chances are you already know what a Cloudberry is. But for those of you who don't, let us enlighten you and introduce you to why we choose this botanical name to represent our retail company.

A "Cloudberry" is a delicate and shy little fruit, similar in looks to those of a raspberry, only in colour they are beautiful hues of orange and amber with just a hint of ruby. The latin name for a Cloudberry is Rubus Chamaemorus meaning "on the ground mulberry" They like to grow in cold climates and are often difficult to find. Hence why they have a bit of a mythical reputation. In fact the word "Cloud"Berry appears to be almost magical in its description alone. Which I think is one of the reasons we were drawn to it.

It was on our first visit to Lapland, the land of the midnight sun and northern lights we were first introduced to this gorgeous little fruit, in sweet syrupy liqueurs and rich nectarous jams. Its also often served with cheese in Finland as we would serve grapes on cheese platter. This unusual and vitamin fueled berry also features on the Finnish version of the 2 euro coin and the name of the hill Beinn nan Oighreag in Breadalbane in the Scottish Highlands translates to "Hill of the Cloudberries" in Scots Gaelic. Giving it an almost ethereal sounding name.

On each visit we grew to love the taste, name and the story of the small hidden "orange" berry, so much so that when it came to choosing our name it was an easy decision, as it had always been there in the back of our minds since our first trip to Lapland over 8 years ago.  Consider also that the colour of the cloudberry is orange, a combination of energising red and yellow which is associated with happiness and sunshine. The colour Orange promotes joy, creativity, enthusiasm and warmth. All words which we encompass into our company philosophy.