Then&Now Nordvest: The Former Bakelite Factory on Rentemestervej — A Functionalist Icon in Nordvest

If you’ve ever cycled down Rentemestervej, you’ve probably passed one of Nordvest’s most striking industrial buildings without realizing what it once was. I bike by it every day on my way to and from work, and I still catch myself looking up — every single time. Its clean lines, large New York-style windows, and white façade are pure Functionalism (I learned!), and it still amazes me that it was built back in the 1930s.

Behind those minimalist walls lies the story of one of Denmark’s first Bakelite (one of the world’s first plastics) factories — a small but significant chapter in the country’s industrial and design history.

The factory was built in the early 1930s, designed by Marx Ishøy, who embraced the Functionalist ideals of simplicity, clarity, and purpose. At a time when Copenhagen’s architecture was still dominated by traditional brickwork, this bold structure of concrete, glass, and geometry must have looked like something straight out of the future. Inside, it produced Bakelite, revolutionary for being heat-resistant, moldable, and durable. It became indispensable for electrical parts, Nilfisk vacuum cleaner nozzles, and door handles that defined Danish homes for decades.

For much of the 20th century, the site operated as Nielsen & Jespersen Plastvarefabrik, a steady symbol of Denmark’s industrial progress. In 1993, its architectural and historical value was officially recognized when it was listed for preservation. Yet, like many manufacturers, NJ Plast couldn’t withstand globalization and closed in 2003, leaving behind a silent, empty shell. The logo of the company though, endures on both sides of the building.

A year later, Rasmus Friis A/S, an architecture/contractor firm, acquired the property and led a thoughtful restoration. By 2005, it had been converted into offices, with much of its original structure and layout preserved, a careful blend of old and new.

Today, the former Bakelite factory stands as a beautiful example of adaptive reuse, a bridge between Nordvest’s industrial past and its creative present.

For me, it’s one of those places that quietly remind you of how layered Nordvest really is — a neighborhood where factories become studios, and where industrial beauty still lines the streets if you just look up for a moment. It’s easy to see only the new - cafés, galleries, co-working spaces - but buildings like this tell us where it all began. And every morning as I pass it, I think about the people who worked inside those walls in the 1930s, shaping the first wave of modern design and material innovation — in a style that still looks strikingly modern nearly a century later.