Stockholm Business City Guide: introduction
Combining rich tradition with modern innovation, the Venice of the North is an international centre for research, design and technology. With just 1.2 million inhabitants, the city itself may be small but it achieves the atmosphere of a modern, sophisticated metropolis. The country’s financial and business hub is home to major Swedish corporations such as Ericsson and IKEA.

A long history of research and innovation – resulting in the pacemaker, local anaesthetic and the Celsius thermometer – is recognised each year when the Nobel committee awards its prizes in Stockholm. The spirit of Alfred Nobel (inventor of dynamite) lives on in the city’s new IT University in Kista, Centre for Physics, Astronomy and Biotechnology, and Karolinska Interactive Institute.

Stockholm business districts

City
The compact heart of central Stockholm, where you’ll find high street shopping (Drottninggatan, Hamngatan, Kungsgatan), Stockholm City Conference Centre, Reuters' headquarters, cinemas, restaurants and half of the city’s 22,000 hotel rooms.

Södermalm
Söder, for short, is why Stockholm is Northern Europe's capital of cool. Home to film directors, musicians, actors and fashion designers. Come and explore the “experience industry” (Sweden's third largest) encompassing music, design, art, fashion, media and entertainment.

Östermalm
Ritzy residences, designer boutiques and upscale eateries. Stureplan is the epicentre of Stockholm nightlife and the best shopping area in town. Just across the Djurgårdsbron bridge is Djurgården island, known for its green spaces and tourist sights.

Gamla Stan (Old Town)
A warren of narrow streets and shaded courtyards. The oldest and most charming part of the city, centred around Stortorget square. Guided walks are available. Companies in the old town are mainly located around the waterfront.

Up-and-coming areas in central Stockholm include newly trendy Kungsholmen, design-friendly Vasastan and the luxury residential island of Lilla Essingen.

Stockholm: 10 facts

1. Stockholm is built on 14 separate islands in an archipelago of more than 24,500.
2. In 1973, hostages in a local bank became emotionally attached to their captors, a phenomenon since dubbed the Stockholm Syndrome.
3. Although Swedish voters rejected the euro in 2003, Stockholmers voted in favour of the common currency (56%).
4. Every Stockholm metro station features at least one work of art, making it the world's longest art exhibition (110km).
5. Stockholm was the first city in the world to offer its residents telephone service, as far back as the 1880s.
6. Half of Sweden's 350 biotech and medtech companies are located in the Stockholm–Uppsala region.
7. Kista Science City is one of the world's top IT industrial parks, uniquely positioned in the fields of telecoms and wireless systems.
8. The water in Stockholm is so clean that you can swim and fish in the city centre.
9. The Swedish parliament has a larger percentage of female members than any other in the world (43%).
10. Hollywood legend Greta Garbo began her career modelling hats at Stockholm's PUB department store.