The FIX Area in Söderköping

From Industry to Innovation

Partner Organisation

Region Östergötland
Coompanion Östergötland

Location

Sweden/Östergötland/Söderköping

Contact

About

Söderköping’s textile history ranges from the simple garments and crafts of the Middle Ages to a large modern textile industry with the well-known brand Fix. Archaeological finds, such as the unique Söderköping shirt from the 13th century, show early textile production in the city. In modern times, from the mid-20th century to 1990, Fix Trikåfabriker was one of Söderköping’s largest employers and a prominent player in children’s clothing production, known for its high quality and large exports.
The FIX area in Söderköping thus carries a rich industrial history. Once home to manufacturing and workshops that shaped the town’s economic life, it was a place where craftsmanship, production, and hard work laid the foundation for local prosperity. The area’s name itself has long been associated with activity, resilience, and the spirit of “getting things done.”

Today, the FIX area has transformed into something new, a living hub for cooperation and clusters. While its past was defined by traditional industry, its present and future are shaped by collaboration, creativity, and sustainable business development.
Entrepreneurs, small businesses, and organizations now gather here, forming clusters that strengthen each other through shared knowledge, networks, and resources. The FIX area has become a meeting point where different industries and ideas intersect—where innovation grows from cooperation rather than competition.
This mix of history and forward-thinking energy gives the FIX area a unique identity: a place where heritage meets renewal and where Söderköping’s entrepreneurial spirit continues to thrive in modern form.

Local challenge

The FIX Area in Söderköping addresses the challenge of transforming a former industrial district into a vibrant, sustainable local economy while preserving its cultural heritage and creating new opportunities for small businesses. Following the decline of the historic FIX textile factory, there was a need to prevent the loss of local identity, entrepreneurial capacity and economic activity. Instead of viewing the former industrial area as a legacy of the past, local actors recognised it as an opportunity to build a new type of cluster based on cooperation, sustainability and innovation.

The partnership responds to wider rural challenges that affect many European regions, including the vulnerability of small businesses, limited critical mass for innovation, and the need to strengthen local resilience in sparsely populated areas. The PARI report highlights that successful rural development depends on recognising local assets, building trust-based collaboration and supporting “micro-clusters” that are often invisible in traditional economic statistics.

The FIX Area builds on these principles by bringing together complementary businesses in textiles, retail, crafts and circular economy activities. Rather than competing, enterprises share knowledge, networks and customers, creating greater collective value. This approach reflects the Swedish tradition of high social trust and informal collaboration, where relationships are the foundation for innovation and public authorities primarily act as facilitators rather than controllers.

More broadly, the cluster demonstrates how industrial heritage can become a driver for sustainable regional development. By combining local entrepreneurship, circular economy practices and place-based identity, the FIX Area contributes to economic diversification, attracts visitors, strengthens community pride and increases the long-term attractiveness of Söderköping. Its experience illustrates how rural innovation can emerge from local history, shared values and collaboration, providing an inspiring model for other regions facing industrial transition and demographic change.

Partnership model & governance

The FIX Area cluster is based on a network governance model built on trust, voluntary collaboration and shared local goals rather than formal hierarchical structures. The partnership brings together SMEs, social economy organisations, cultural actors and public stakeholders who cooperate because of shared interests in strengthening the local economy, preserving industrial heritage and promoting sustainable innovation.

Governance is characterised by bottom-up, relationship-based collaboration. Instead of relying on extensive formal agreements, partners build long-term relationships through regular interaction, joint activities, study visits and shared promotion. Public authorities, particularly Söderköping Municipality and Region Östergötland, act primarily as enablers and facilitators, providing strategic support, networking opportunities and access to regional development initiatives without directing the cluster’s day-to-day activities.
This governance model reflects the Swedish tradition of high levels of interpersonal and institutional trust. Collaboration typically grows from personal relationships first, while formal governance mechanisms are introduced only when they add value. The cluster therefore combines informal cooperation with strategic partnerships across the public, private and social economy sectors.

Looking ahead, the partnership aims to further strengthen cross-sector collaboration, develop joint projects around circular economy and sustainable entrepreneurship, and create stronger links with regional innovation platforms such as the PARI project and the East Sweden Business Region. By maintaining an open, trust-based governance model, the cluster seeks to remain flexible, locally rooted and responsive to new opportunities while creating lasting social, economic and environmental value.

Main activities of the cluster

The FIX Area partnership in Söderköping has transformed a former industrial district into a collaborative hub for social and ecological innovation, where local businesses, entrepreneurs and organisations work together to strengthen the local economy through cooperation rather than competition. Building on the area’s textile heritage, the partnership promotes knowledge sharing, joint networking and resource exchange across different sectors, creating an environment where innovation grows from collaboration.

The partnership organises study visits, networking activities and joint promotion of the businesses located in the area, highlighting the transition from traditional manufacturing to sustainable entrepreneurship. During the PARI mission, participants visited several partner organisations—including Jofotex, Söderköpings Återvinning (second-hand retail), Björke Väveri, Medisox and Tygsparven—to demonstrate how complementary businesses create added value through collaboration. These visits showcased expertise in textile production, circular economy practices, traditional weaving, sustainable manufacturing and local retail.

The partnership also strengthens Söderköping’s identity as a destination for sustainable business, craftsmanship and cultural heritage by connecting local enterprises with wider initiatives such as rural tourism and community development. Through shared knowledge, coordinated activities and mutual support, the FIX Area helps businesses increase visibility, develop new collaborations and reinforce local resilience. Rather than operating as individual organisations, the partnership functions as a living cluster where heritage, entrepreneurship and innovation are combined to support long-term economic, social and environmental sustainability in Söderköping.

Results and Impact

The transformation of the FIX Area represents a successful example of place-based regeneration, where a former industrial district has evolved into a collaborative cluster for sustainable entrepreneurship while preserving Söderköping’s textile heritage. Rather than replacing its history, the partnership has built on it, creating a vibrant ecosystem where businesses strengthen one another through cooperation, shared knowledge and joint promotion.

The main beneficiaries are local entrepreneurs, small and medium-sized enterprises, artisans, social economy organisations, visitors and the wider Söderköping community. Businesses benefit from increased visibility, stronger professional networks and opportunities to collaborate across sectors, while residents and visitors gain access to locally produced, high-quality products, cultural heritage and sustainable retail experiences.
A key success story is the revitalisation of the former FIX industrial area into a destination where companies such as Jofotex, Björke Väveri, Medisox, Tygsparven and Söderköpings Återvinning collectively demonstrate how traditional manufacturing, circular economy practices, craftsmanship and innovation can reinforce each other. The PARI study visit highlighted the area as an inspiring example of how cooperation creates greater value than isolated business development.

Although the report does not provide quantitative indicators for the FIX Area itself, it documents clear qualitative impacts: strengthened collaboration, increased knowledge exchange, preservation of local industrial heritage, promotion of sustainable business models and the establishment of a recognised local cluster that contributes to Söderköping’s resilience, attractiveness and long-term sustainable development.

Funded by the European Union. The views, information, documentation, figures and opinions expressed in this document are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or EISMEA. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.

PARI – Project ID: 1011698037