Internationalisation Awards of the President of the Republic of Finland to Supermetrics, Harvia and Lojer

President of the Republic of Finland Sauli Niinistö has granted Internationalisation Awards for the year 2020. The award for the Newcomer Company of the Year was presented to Supermetrics Oy that specialises in monitoring online marketing data. The Growth Companies of the Year are the sauna and spa company Harvia Plc and the largest manufacturer of medical furniture in the Nordic countries, Lojer Group Oy. The general award criteria included the winner's proven ability to grow internationally regardless of the exceptional circumstances caused by the coronavirus pandemic, competitive and profitable business operations, and ethical and ecological sustainability.

The Internationalisation Award of the President of the Republic is a recognition granted each year to internationally successful Finnish companies or communities.

In addition to international success, the evaluation focused on a company’s ethical operations, impact on Finnish expertise and employment, as well as, foreign investments and promoting Finland’s innovation environment. The companies have been able to continue their operations regardless of the coronavirus crisis.

• It is important that the companies can renew and innovate during the crisis. The awarded companies have been able to succeed, internationalise and employ people during these economically challenging times. These companies that represent various industries set an example by inspiring others and bringing light to the current situation, says Director-General of Business Finland and Vice-Chair of Team Finland network, Nina Kopola. 

The actors of the Team Finland network (including Business Finland, ELY Centres, Finnvera and the Ministry for Foreign Affairs) present their proposal on companies and communities deserving of the award to the President. Professional organisations gave suggestions for candidates.

Supermetrics helps marketers to utilise data 

The growth of digital marketing has created a basis for a growing market for analysing and utilising data. With the help from Supermetrics, marketing teams can gather data from different sources in one place to be analysed and reported. Already over 10 per cent of global digital marketing is reported through Supermetrics. Supermetrics has approximately 500,000 users in over 120 countries, and over 15,000 customer companies including global advertising, media and consumer product giants, such as BBC and Nestlé, as well as charitable organisations, such as Unicef and Amnesty. Typical end users include experts in marketing and data analytics.

The turnover of the company recognised as the newcomer of the year is almost entirely comprised of exportation, and the turnover has doubled annually within the recent years. The turnover for 2019 exceeded €13M, and according to the company’s forecast, the turnover is expected to continue growing this year. In the summer 2020, the company secured an extensive funding round of €40M with several investors that promote international growth. At the end of 2019, the company was listed on the Deloitte Technology Fast 50 program list that measures the turnover growth in the time period of four years.

• We have been an international company from the start, and for a long time we were more recognised abroad than in Finland. We have always recruited employees regardless of nationality – we have 25 different nationalities represented in our team of about 100 persons. The growth of Supermetrics is based on our products that meet genuine demands. We have all been amongst the first in developing data tools that everyone can use without particular technical know-how. The importance of data in business operations continues to grow, and we should all have the opportunity to utilise data independently in our work. This can only be achieved with technology that everyone can have access to, says the CEO and Founder of Supermetrics Mikael Thuneberg.

Harvia: From a sauna heater manufacturer to an international sauna and spa brand

In 70 years, the Growth Company of the Year, Harvia Plc, has evolved from a manufacturer of sauna heaters from a Finnish town of Muurame to a globally recognised sauna and spa brand, whose products and solutions are sold in over 80 countries. The company’s earnest internationalisation started as early as in the 1990’s.

Harvia was founded in 1950 and went public on Helsinki Stock Exchange in 2018, but a family business culture remains strong in the company and the family is still involved in the business as a shareholder. In 2020, the group’s turnover is expected to exceed €90M and the group employs approximately 550 people in Finland, the USA, Germany, China, Estonia, Austria and Romania. The company’s domestic production facilities and headquarters are located in Muurame, Central Finland. The growth continued throughout 2020 regardless of the exceptional circumstances. The company has strongly and comprehensively invested in taking environmental aspects into consideration all the way from designing to production, logistics, use and recycling. The safe and durable products are manufactured sustainably.

• This great recognition means a great deal to us and a special thanks goes to Harvia’s staff, who have systematically and with determination internationalised Harvia and built it into one of the most recognisable brands in the sauna and spa industry. We at Harvia have realised that 90% of the global sauna and spa markets is outside Finland. This requires relentless work from our part. Approximately 75% of the turnover originates from outside Finland. What makes this even more special is that we are being recognised on Harvia’s 70th anniversary. We have always been as close as possible to the market and our customers, and together we humbly keep implementing the cornerstones of our strategy by focusing on geographical expansion, increasing the value of the average purchase and continuous improvement of productivity, says the CEO of Harvia, Tapio Pajuharju. 

Manufacturer of medical furniture Lojer is proudly exporting Finnish production 

Another Growth Company of the Year award winner Lojer Oy is the largest manufacturer of medical furniture in the Nordic countries and Finland's biggest employer in the field. In Finland, the company directly employs 150 people and indirectly dozens of others. The company was founded in 1919 and its manufacturing facilities are in Sastamala, Kempele and Hollola, Finland. The company’s products are used in more than 115 countries. Around 60% of turnover comes from exports, and in regard to operating tables the figure is over 95 per cent. The primary export markets are the Nordic countries, Central Europe, Russia and Middle East.

Lojer’s experience in industrial manufacturing in Finland exceeds 100 years. Out of the products 80% are of domestic content, and the company acquires its materials and components from domestic and regional suppliers wherever possible. Manufacturing products in Finland is a question of value for the company.  

• The award is a valued recognition for our resilient exportation work that was started in the 1960’s. Our global competition are the big global corporations, and we can hold our own due to the high-quality, excellent usability and durability of our products. They are based on domestic development and production. The significance of these matters culminated during the spring of coronavirus as the demand for hospital beds and transport stretchers increased exponentially. Thanks to our own production, we were able to help many of our European customers in addition to the Finnish healthcare operators. We are proud of the Finnish industry and we are proudly exporting it to the world, says the Managing Director of Lojer Ville Laine.

More information:

Team Finland: Risto Huhta-Koivisto, Head of International Business (Business Finland) tel. +358 40 343 3347, [email protected]

Lojer: Ville Laine, Managing Director, +358 10 830 6715, [email protected]

Supermetrics: Mikael Thuneberg, CEO and Founder, +358 40 356 3260 [email protected]

Harvia: Tapio Pajuharju, CEO, +358 50 577 4200, [email protected]

Team Finland network promotes Finland and Finnish companies in the world. With public funding, the network supports the internationalisation of companies, attracts investments to Finland and promotes the image of Finland in the world. Read about Team Finland and its services www.team-finland.fi/en

Pictures: https://businessfinland.kuvat.fi/i/3GR4XcMkPsm2EwK56aj9hqxy8vUVgfJz and flickr.com/photos/tpkanslia/