The Sello shopping centre in Espoo attracts thousands of visitors daily. The shopping centre has turned into more of a meeting place rather than just a concentration of shops. People come to spend time and enjoy themselves with friends and family. This makes the cosiness of both the inside and outside spaces more important than it used to be. We have been cooperating with the Sello shopping centre for a long time. This time around, our mutual goal was to create a unique eye-catcher.

In Europe, green walls and surprising green decor solutions are a bit more common than in Finland, but change is clearly in the air. “It is noticeable that the traditional pot planting isn’t enough anymore. People want something more special, something to create experiences,” says Jaakko Pesonen, one of the founders of InnoGreen and wizards behind the green tower.

The idea to build a green tower came from Sello’s passion for environmental issues. With the green tower, Sello wanted to highlight important values concerning recycling and the environment in celebration of being the first European shopping centre to receive a Leed certificate, and of course to further improve the cosiness of the shopping centre. The 900 plants in the tower wer planted, or bagged, into SACK growing bags together with Sello customers.

Vihersisustus: Sellon vihertorni (InnoGreen)

An automatic watering system and an aluminium frame that is surrounded by the plant parts were built for the tower. Each shelf-like plant part holds four plants and each layer of the tower has 12 plants in total. The watering system guarantees the plants receive exactly the right amount of water and nutrients to thrive.

Vihersisustus: Sellon vihertorni (InnoGreen)

The plants in Sello’s green tower are regularly maintained. We also place seasonal plants in the tower to make sure it stays marvellous.

“We are expecting a “wow” effect. And for news to travel by  word of mouth that there’s something new and amazing to see in Sello again,” explains Sanna Kouvalainen, the marketing director of the Sello shopping centre.

Watch a video of how the green tower was built!