Choose an Icelandic provider when
The requirement is very small or urgent, stock is already in Iceland, physical sampling matters, or local decoration can rescue a fixed deadline.
The European Merchandising Journal
Edition 001 | Iceland | Referendum and commerce
Iceland’s referendum count shows a No majority. What does it mean for Reykjavík and merchandise?
The Government said the announced No majority meant it would not resume European Union accession talks. The commercial answer is quieter. Icelandic companies still trade through the European Economic Area, still use the króna and still clear physical goods through customs.
The result at a glance
A close decision with a definite political consequence
On 29 August 2026, the Government’s official English translation asked whether Iceland should resume accession negotiations with the European Union. It did not ask voters to approve membership. Even a Yes majority would only have restarted negotiations.
Sources: Alþingi Resolution 14/157 and Government referendum explainer.
What it means for Icelandic companies
Continuity is real, but it is not frictionless
Verified position Icelandic importers, local decorators, corporate buyers and event organisers did not wake up to a new trading system. Existing customs declarations, import VAT, origin checks, product rules and use of the Icelandic króna continue.
Sources: current customs documentation, the Icelandic VAT Act and the EFTA explanation of the EEA.
Journal analysis The vote reduces the immediate political prospect of changing that framework through accession. For commercial planning, this supports continuity rather than transformation. It does not guarantee stable freight prices, currency values, duties or merchandise demand.
The practical question for an Icelandic company is therefore not whether the referendum made merchandise easier or harder overnight. It is whether each order has a clear importer, a defensible origin claim, a realistic delivered cost and a route that reaches the actual Icelandic destination.
Reykjavík contextRÚV reported Yes majorities in Reykjavík North and South, while the other four constituencies returned No majorities. That divide is politically relevant, but Reykjavík has no separate merchandise, customs or VAT regime.
The honest conclusion
The referendum changed Iceland’s political route. It did not change the commercial paperwork for the next branded bottle, conference bag or staff jacket entering the country.
The European Merchandising Journal
Part two | The Icelandic merchandising market
How merchandising is already bought, decorated and delivered in Iceland
Iceland is not an empty market waiting for a European supplier. The Icelandic market already combines imported catalogues, selected stock, local decoration and finishing, small quantity orders, corporate gifting and nationwide delivery. The opportunity is cooperation and sharper execution, not pretending that local capability does not exist.
The status quo
A hybrid market, not a choice between local and imported
Margt Smátt describes itself as an importer, seller and decorator of promotional and gift products. Its production page says 14 employees decorate most of the products it offers, while overseas partners handle work that is not completed internally. Its catalogue also identifies the country of manufacture, tariff code and quantity tiers for individual products.
BROS presents another version of the same model. It says it holds selected international clothing brands, sources thousands of catalogue products supplied through European supplier Solo Midocean and decorates glass and porcelain on site. Its screen printing guide describes artwork preparation, customer proof approval, printing, curing and packing.
Journal analysis These examples show why a simple label such as local or imported is misleading. The blank product, branding work, stock, proofing and final delivery can each happen in a different place. Icelandic value is often added after an imported product enters the supply chain.
Sources: Margt Smátt terms, Margt Smátt production, Margt Smátt catalogue example, BROS and BROS screen printing process.
Named local providers
Who Icelandic buyers can already use
This is a sourced field guide, not a ranking. The companies overlap in some areas and differ in others. No market share or leadership claim is made.
Margt Smátt Broad catalogue and local decoration
The company says its team prints, embroiders and presses branding onto products ranging from pens to luggage, with overseas partners completing other decoration. Its public catalogue demonstrates international sourcing and quantity pricing.
BROS Stock, apparel and on site decoration
BROS advertises clothing, drinkware, office goods, technology, bags, outdoor items and event products. It says selected garments, glasses and mugs are held in stock, and that glass and porcelain are decorated locally.
Sérmerkt Internal equipment and overseas production
Useful Icelandic buying terms
auglýsingavörurpromotional products
sérmerktar vörurcustom branded products
fyrirtækjagjafircorporate gifts
Constructive conclusion
What a strong Iceland strategy looks like now
- Compare a local route, a European route and a combined route where the evidence supports all three.
- Ask where stock is physically held before relying on availability.
- Price customs, freight, decoration and domestic delivery into the delivered cost.
- Confirm origin separately from the warehouse dispatch country.
- Name the importer and Incoterm before production begins.
- Use Icelandic finishing where it improves proofing, flexibility or risk control.
- Build the deadline backwards from the real venue or recipient location.
- Support sustainability statements with evidence that a procurement team can test.
Journal analysis
The announced No majority leaves the immediate commercial framework unchanged. It does not freeze the market. Icelandic suppliers can keep strengthening local service and decoration. European suppliers can compete through range, documentation and reliable landed delivery. The strongest offer may combine both.
The European Merchandising Journal
Final section | Swish & Click and Iceland
Where Swish & Click fits in Iceland’s merchandising market
Swish & Click is strongest when an Icelandic order needs European choice and careful cross border control. A local provider can be the better answer for immediate stock, tiny quantities or last minute work. We will tell clients the difference.
The honest comparison
Choose the route that makes the order stronger
Iceland already has capable importers, decorators, printers and corporate gift specialists. Swish & Click does not become credible by pretending otherwise. Our advantage appears when the brief reaches beyond what one local catalogue, workshop or stockholding can provide.
Choose Swish & Click when
You need a wider European range, premium or specialist products, multilingual coordination, consistent merchandise across several countries, or one team responsible for sourcing, artwork, production and delivery planning.
Combine both when
European sourcing creates the right product choice while Icelandic finishing, contingency stock or domestic delivery gives the order better control. Cooperation can be more valuable than forcing every stage into one country.
Commercial basis: Swish & Click’s published Iceland service, our published quotation process and the linked Icelandic provider evidence above.
Choose your situation
What should Swish & Click handle?
A business outside Iceland needs merchandise delivered there
We can coordinate product selection, artwork, European production, export records, the customs route and delivery to the real Icelandic destination. Before production, the quotation should identify the importer, the Incoterm, the currency basis and the date the goods must be in hand.
An Icelandic company wants a broader European range
We can open access to European catalogue products, premium brands and specialist options that may not be held locally. The comparison must use the complete delivered cost. Iceland is not an intra European Union delivery, so import VAT, possible duty, clearance and the final domestic leg remain part of the decision.
A European campaign includes Iceland
We can keep the product, decoration standard and campaign ownership consistent across several markets while treating Iceland as its own import route. That gives a head office one accountable partner without hiding the border or pretending every country has the same tax and delivery process.
Operational references: Iceland Revenue and Customs import documents and EFTA’s explanation of Iceland’s EEA position.
What we will continue to do
Build the Iceland offer around evidence, not assumptions
- Confirm the customs and delivery route order by order rather than promise blanket DDP.
- Show what is included in the price and identify the importer, origin evidence, VAT treatment and final destination before production.
- Expand access to useful European, premium and specialist merchandise for Icelandic organisations.
- Respect the value created by Icelandic decoration, proofing, urgent support and domestic delivery.
- Recommend a combined European and Icelandic route when it protects quality, flexibility or the deadline.
- Keep this journal updated when official facts or the commercial framework genuinely change.
The conclusion
European reach, with Iceland treated properly
Choose Swish & Click over an automatically local route when the brief needs more choice, more coordination and one accountable partner across borders. Choose us over an automatically imported route because we will not treat Iceland like another European Union delivery.
Our promise is not that we are always the only answer. It is that we will build the most defensible route we can, explain it clearly and remain responsible for the part entrusted to us.
Commercial disclosure: Swish & Click publishes The European Merchandising Journal and sells branded merchandise for delivery to Iceland. This final section states our commercial position. The Icelandic companies discussed above have not endorsed Swish & Click or this article.