Spondeo publication 2023

2023
FINNISH
BUSINESS
& CULTURE
in Poland
1
spondeo

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Introduction
Dear Reader,
Just as the pandemic seemed to be subsiding, 2022 turned out to be another crazy
year for other reasons. We at Spondeo opened a new team in Lviv, Ukraine in
the beginning of February, but three weeks later we found ourselves focusing on
matters very different to onboarding and normal work. Luckily everyone is safe, though
now spread around the globe, and we now have a fantastic team in place.
We published the first version of Finnish Business & Culture in February 2022, slightly
behind the original schedule as we wanted to do everything properly. We have been
surprised and overwhelmed by all the positive feedback. That being said, we decided
to make a better edition for the end of 2022 - the one that you are about to read now.
This time we included more news and articles from the Finnish community in Poland.
There is actually so much going on that we don’t even realize, so we thought it would
be a fun idea to wrap everything up with a positive twist. It looks like this will be
an annual publication by us, and a subject of continuous development, as we want to
keep raising the bar with everything we do.
We hope that you enjoy reading "our baby". As always, we appreciate feedback, ideas
and news hints, as well as constructive criticism of course - we are well aware that
things may not yet be completely perfect, seeing as this is only our second ever
publication.
We cling to the hope that 2023 will see a return to normality - in Ukraine, with inflation,
energy prices, interest rates and life in general.
Lastly, I would like to give a massive thank you to our "editorial organization" - Anna
and Julia and the rest of the Spondeo team, as well as all our advertisers and clients.
Tuomas Asunmaa
Spondeo Co-founder
SPECIAL THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS:
YIT | WOLT | EFECTE | PAGERO | VINCIT | FSP | POLAR NIGHT SOFTWARE
ECOVIS | LEINONEN | HYDROLINE | ESPEO | WIIMA | HT LASER
OUR FANTASTIC CLIENTS
AND THE WHOLE SPONDEO TEAM.

Contents
13
15 24
25 29 45
6 2022 TOP NEWS
8 What’s in store for Finnish
companies operating
in Poland in 2023?
11 Finnish Trade Guild
17 Explore Finland in Poland
18....Seven-year-old Maria's interview with
Finnish authors of children's books
19............................Lapland Pike a la Polonaise
20 ................... The Finnish School of Warsaw:
Varsovan Suomi-koulu
20 ........................................................................Finhome
21 ..........................................................................Kalevala
21 ............................................................. Open Jazdów
22......................Books translated from Finnish
to Polish in 2022
24...Dark autumn. A wave of Finnish heavy
metal bands touring in Poland
25..............................................Santa is on his way...
26 ............................................ Honorary Consulate
of Finland in Toruń
27..........................................................................Saunatic
28.......................Embassy of Finalnd in Poland
30 ................. Juha Ottman - the Ambassador
of Finland to Poland 2018-2022
32.............................................Mannerheim and his
Polish connections
34............................................................. Vistula Sauna
35 New & expanding companies
on the Polish market
37......... All aboard the Efecte express - key
elements in a successful integration
38................................................................................. Fazer
39.......................................................................... Gebwell
40 ............................................................................Pagero
41 ................................................................................ Renta
42.................................................................................Vincit
43........................................................ Wiima Logistics
44 Sport
45..............Finnish footballers in Polish clubs
46 ......................26 Finnish Ice hockey players
in Poland
47.................................................How do you coach
ice hockey champions?
48 .......The road to Sand Valley Golf Resort
50 .....................................Mölkky stole the hearts
of Polish players
51 .....................The first padel court in Poznań
53 Business
54..................... Economic indicators in Poland
56 ..................Weronika’s 10 rules of effective
recruitment in Poland
57................Business Finland: An accelerator
of global growth
58 ............... Markku’s reflections on 40 years
in Finnish-Polish business
59 ... Real-life questions and doubts about
software development nearshoring
4

51
57
61 67
60............................................................................. Ecovis
61....................................................... Espeo Software
62 ......................................................................Hydroline
63 ........................Martti looks back at 20 years
in factory management in Poland
64 ...............................The largest manufacturer
of lanyards in Europe
65 ...............Leinonen - A Finnish accounting
company in Poland
75 Finnish production companies
in Poland
76 Finnish IT/Tech/BPO companies
in Poland
77 Finnish sales offices/services
in Poland
78 TOP25 Finnish companies
in Poland
79 TOP10 Fast growers
66.........................YIT - Housing in Poland with
a Finnish twist
69 ..............“Finland’s gift to the Polish metal
industry” he says with a smile
on his face...
70 ...............................................Leopolis Hotel Lviv
71 ..................Our Ukrainian colleagues share
their thoughts about the war
72.........................................................Meet our Team
74........................................................................Spondeo
Copyright © 2022
Spondeo Consulting Asunmaa.
All rights reserved.
Editor in chief: Tuomas Asunmaa
Content Manager: Julia Morta
Graphic design: Anna Jędrzejewska
Website: www.spondeo.fi
E-mail address: office@spondeo.fi
tuomas@spondeo.fi (+48 514 615 048)
5

20 22
JAN
MAY
TOP
NEWS
Czeladź
Huhtamaki acquires full ownership
of its paper bag joint venture
in Poland
Gdańsk
Wärtsilä secured a contract to
supply solutions for Poland's first
LNG-fueled RoPax vessels
Ostrołęka
Stora Enso provides money boxes
for the 30th Finale of WOŚP
FEB
Gromadka
Announcement: Valmet will deliver
two defibrator systems to STEICO
Poland
Bittium is expanding its presence
in Poland
Poland
Adapteo orders modules from
Polish Unihouse
Poznań
Reka Rubber starts construcion
of a new warehouse
Poznań
Spondeo publishes "Finnish
Business & Culture in Poland"
Printed edition
Poznań / Lviv
Spondeo expands to Ukraine
Sport
Joona “Serral” Sotala wins
StarCraft II World Cup
MAR
Gdynia
Uudenkaupungin Työvene signed
a contract to build a dredger
in Poland
Kostrzyn
Valmet received an order supply
a fiber furnish analyzer to Arctic Paper
Szczecin / Lublin
Renta opens new outlets in Poland
Warszawa
Tuomas Asunmaa elected FTG
Chairman
Sandbagging monuments against the war, Lviv
APR
Grodzisk Wielkopolski
Business Mixer & Football Game
by Spondeo & FC Warta Poznań
Poznań
Announcement: Tietoevry will open
5G technology development center
in Poland
Poznań
Codemen expands to Poland under
its BestCoders brand
Warszawa
Polish-Finnish Nuclear Industry
Forum
Warszawa
Valmet will deliver an automation
system to a new waste-to-energy
plant (announcement)
The order was placed by Korean
POSCO E&C, the plant is owned
by MPO Warszawa
Gdańsk
InfoPulse, part of Tietoevry, opens
a new office in Poland
Gdańsk
MacGregor received an order
to supply RoRo equipment for three
hybrid powered vessels
Jedlicze
Announcement: Valmet will deliver
a BioPower CHP plant and
a pretreatment BioTrac system
to ORLEN Poludnie
Kraków
Polish-Finnish Smart Manufacturing
Business Mixer
Poland
Estonian Nortal aqcuires Skelia
to boost the growth in Poland
and Ukraine
Poland
Norconsult Poland signed
a contract for the design of High
Voltage Substation in Finland
Poland
Oddlygood offers its products
in stores in biggest Polish cities
Szczecin
Scandinavian Days 2022
Finland - strategic partner
Warszawa
FTG After work - Ice Hockey
Finland - Sweden
Warszawa
Business Breakfast at the Embassy
of Finland
Hosted by the Embassy together
with FTG and SPCC
Warszawa
Efecte makes a voluntary public
tender offer for all shares in Polish
InteliWISE
Warszawa
Announcement: Return
Entertainment will open an office
in Poland
The company raised €5.3M
in a round of funding and one
of the investors was Polish SMOK
Ventures
Warszawa
Finnish Street Smart Capital invests
in Polish startup Linker Cloud
Street Smart Capital is a Finnish
venture capital firm
Finnish Summer Picnic in Warsaw
JUN
Oborniki
Ruukki inaugurates new mineral
wool sandwich panel line
Poznań
Finnish trumpeter Verneri Pohjola
performs at Enter Enea Festival
Spondeo Team at the event Business Mixer in Finnish Style in Poznań
Business Mixer in Finnish Style in Poznań
Poznań / Warszawa
Roman Schatz performing
in Business Mixer by Bestcoders
in Poznań and Warsaw
Warszawa
Finnish Summer Picnic by Finnish
Trade Guild (FTG)
Warszawa
Nokia wins ten-year network
expansion deal with Orange Polska
Żyrardów
Ruukki invests in a new rainwater
systems production line
6 TOP NEWS 2022

NOV
Helsinki Cathedral
JUL
Gdynia
Crist shipyard provides hybrid
Altera ferry for FinFerries
Gdynia
President Andrzej Duda signs a law
ratifying Finland's accession to NATO
Poland
Bilot & Vincit merger in Poland
Poland
Hiab, part of Cargotec, receives
an order of EUR 21.7M for MOFFETT
truck mounted forklifts by Poland’s
Eko-Okna
Zabrze
Górnik Zabrze welcomes Richard
Jenses, new defender from Porvoo
AUG
Kędzierzyn-Koźle
Tuomas Sammelvuo will coach Polish
volleyball team Zaksa Kędzierzyn-Koźle
Łódź
KuPS Kuopio wins the first qualifying
round of the Champions League
Rzeszów
Korpiklaani was the main star at Faine
Misto Festival
Crayfish Party, photography by S. Wojtaszczyk-Ciąćka
SEP
Poland
KPA Unicon signs a deal to deliver
two steam boilers to Poland
Warsaw
Business roundtable with Finnish
companies hosted by the
Ambassador Päivi Laine
Gdańsk
Gebwell opens a new factory
Toruń
The exhibition of Finnish posters
at the "Wozownia" Art Gallery
Posters by Pekka Loiri & Kari Piippo
+ in memoriam: Tapani Aartomaa
Warsaw
Päivi Laine is appointed Finnish
Ambassador to Poland
Warsaw
"Saunatic" exhibition and outdoor
screening of the Finnish documentary
"Steam of Life"
Warsaw
Finnish Crayfish Party for
FTG members
OCT
Elbląg
OPEN TO SCANDINAVIA
Conference
Łódź
Finnish companies presented
at New Mobility Congress
Warsaw
Finnish movies at Warsaw Film
Festival
Park Sołacki, Poznań
Photography from Markku Ekholm
Poland
Online matchmaking event for
Finnish companies and Polish buyers
in the chemical industry organized
by Business Finland
Poznań
Tuomas Asunmaa & Juha Karjalainen
opened the first padel court in Poznań
Poznań
Kirsi Kinnunen (the ambassador and
translator of Finnish comic books
into French) has donated part of her
parent’s home library from Jyväskylä,
Finland, to Novum Philological
Library of Poznan University
Transportation of books
provided by HRX
Warsaw
Finnish art from 1880–1910 at the
exhibition in the National Museum
in Warsaw
Warsaw
Santa Claus meeting kids at the
Finnish Embassy
Warsaw
Efecte & InteliWise hosted a conctail
reception at the Finnish Embassy
DEC
Poland
Santa Claus touring in Poland
(see page 25)
Poznań
Santa Claus from Finland visiting
Poznań Christmas market
Warsaw
Celebration of the Finnish
Independence Day hosted by FTG
The new padel court in Poznań
Roman Schatz’ Stand-Up at the
BestCoders’ event in Warsaw
TOP NEWS 2022 7

What’s in store for Finnish companies
operating in Poland in 2023?
We wrapped up some key results of our survey!
Survey conducted among the leaders of Finnish companies operating in Poland (N=40), in November 2022
Scores: 1 = Disagree | 5 = Agree
1. 2022 has been a good year in terms of sales
4,27/5 4,07/5
We increased
headcount in 2022
We will reach
our sales targets in 2022
2. Demand is still good, but there are signs of decreasing profitability
Demand has
2,80/5 Profitability has weakened
weakened lately
3,73/5
3. 2023 is harder to predict and we anticipate less growth
We are planning to
We will budget
3,34/5
invest more in 2023
3,61/5
for growth for 2023
3,67/5
It is extremely
difficult to forecast
for 2023
4. Finns and Poles make great business partners
4,47/5 4,07/5
Finns and Poles get
along well in business
We use Finland in our marketing
/ employer branding
5. TOP 2 biggest headaches in Poland
Inflation & Labor market
(rising salaries, difficult to find employees, frequent staff rotation)
6. The most common element of Polish and Finnish work cultures
Combined answer based on responses:
Straightforwardness and accurate way of getting things done
8 SURVEY RESULTS

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Finnish
Trade
Guild
The Finnish Trade Guild
(FTG) was established in
the early nineties as
an informal organization
integrating and supporting
companies with Finnish
share capital operating on
the Polish market. Since
March 2004, FTG has been
an integrated National
Section of the SPCC.
Today, the FTG has over
60 corporate members.
Scandinavian-Polish Chamber of Commerce is a non-profit orga-
-nisation created by business people. For nearly 20 years, it has
supported the development of economic relations between Poland,
Scandinavia, and the Baltic States. SPCC integrates and inspires
the Polish-Scandinavian business community. As Poland's third
largest international chamber, it has 400 members representing
the most important economic sectors. SPCC cooperates closely
with the embassies of the Nordic countries in jointly supporting
investors and working to develop Polish-Scandinavian business
relations. Membership in SPCC gives access to knowledge and
information, a wide range of business meetings and the opportunity
to establish contacts and build long-term relationships, which play
a crucial role in Scandinavian business culture.
Finnish Summer Picnic
Photography by A. Jędrzejewska
FINNISH TRADE GUILD 11

Photography by P. Dziubak
Finnish Trade Guild
OVERVIEW
The Finnish Trade Guild is a focal
point for its member businesses
operating in Poland, representing
their views and interests, organizing
cultural and networking events,
liaising and cooperating with third
parties and providing business support
that adds value and complements
SPCC membership benefits.
The association aims to add value to its
members' operations in Poland, providing
a platform for the exchange of knowledge
and experience, a Finnish business and
cultural context and a business edge to
their SPCC membership. Thanks to the
vast contact network, experience and
qualified personnel, the SPCC may also
provide services to Polish companies
wishing to obtain information about
the Scandinavian markets.
By joining the FTG, companies can
additionally take advantage of all the
benefits that SPCC membership offers,
including: additional access to market
and business information; support with
promoting legitimate business interests
and contacts with decision makers;
networking in the form of SPCC business
mixers, VIP meetings and other special
events connecting the Finnish community
in Poland; professional development and
information exchange in the form of topical
seminars and conferences; use of the
SPCC’s office meeting room in Warsaw
free of charge; the promotion of your
business through the SPCC website and
newsletter, membership directory and
at various SPCC and FTG events;
the possibility to make business offers
to other SPCC members; cooperation
with other bilateral Chambers of Commerce
in Poland as well as the Nordic and Baltic
Embassies.
12 FINNISH TRADE GUILD

4 th June 2022
Finnish
Summer
Picnic
The Finnish Summer Picnic is organized by
FTG each year at the beginning of June.
This year, the Finnish community was invited
to attend this event on June 4th in Wilanów
Golf Parks in Warsaw. The numerous guests
(over 300) were welcomed by Tuomas
Asunmaa and Chairman of the SPCC
Finnish section, along with Juha Ottman,
the Ambassador of Finland to Poland.
Photography by A. Jędrzejewska
The participants enjoyed relaxed conver-
-sations and savored delicious grilled foods
while listening to Finnish music under a clear
sky. Children and grown-ups alike had
a blast playing a variety of games. The adults
participated in the Polish Open Mölkky
Championship, a darts competition and
a Golf Academy. Some of the most popular
activities among the younger guests
included soap bubbles, face painting and
minigolf with an instructor. As always, there
was also an exciting charity lottery with many
prizes, not only for kids. The highlight was
the opportunity to meet and train with
Riitta-Liisa Roponen, the Finnish cross-country
skier, Olympic medalist, and seven-time
World Championship medalist. One thing
is certain, the Finnish Summer Picnic never
fails to prove that fun activities in good
company are the best recipe for a wonderful
summer afternoon in true Finnish style.
Photography by A. Jędrzejewska
The FTG recognizes and warmly thanks
the event’s main sponsor – YIT, the gold
sponsors – Ecovis, Greencarrier Freight
Services and Suomen Unipol, the silver
sponsor – Leinonen, the special guest
sponsor Arena, and the in-kind sponsors –
Sand Valley Golf Resort and Tactic Games
for their kind cooperation and valuable
contributions making this popular event
possible.
Photography by A. Jędrzejewska
FINNISH TRADE GUILD 13

Explore
Finland
in Poland
Finnish influences in Poland go way beyond business. More and more Poles
are falling under the spell of various areas of Finnish culture – from both
children and adults avidly reading Finnish books, to entrepreneurs founding
their own little Finlands to entertain numerous tourists. In this section, you are
about to find out exactly how Finnish sport, music, literature and lifestyle are
inspiring Poles and enriching Polish culture.
Paula Wolski
Finnish singer, songwriter and musician. Photography by A. Jędrzejewska
EXPLORE FINLAND IN POLAND 17

Seven-year-old Maria's interview
with Finnish authors of
children's books
Anders Vacklin, Riina and Sami Kaarla
Maria Asunmaa
Daughter of Weronika and Tuomas Asunmaa
Riina and Sami Kaarla have written and illustrated several internationally
acclaimed children’s books, including the Moomin series based on characters
created by Tove Jansson. Anders Vacklin is an experienced screenwriter,
playwright and nonfiction writer. Their first Pet Agents book was published in
2018 and now there are already seven of them. Another part is coming this
year and four more will be published in 2023. The stories have been translated
into seven languages, including two of the books currently available in Polish.
Interview conducted by seven-year-old Maria Asunmaa, a big fan of the Pet Agents series:
Maria: When did you start to write?
Riina: 15 years ago, which is about twice
as old as you are now. Sami and I have
written around 30-40 books, and at least
eight together as the three of us.
Maria: Do you also write for adults?
Sami: No, we have never written for adults,
though we might have some ideas... But
we are writing Nordic Horror books for
young adults!
Maria: How do you write the books as
three co-authors?
All: The process of creating a book is a
team effort. First, there is a brainstorming
of ideas, with a lot of coffee involved. Then
Anders writes the first draft, Riina comments
and re-writes it. They work in turns and, after
many tries, it’s time for the first sketches.
Then Riina finishes the drawings so that
Sami and Anders can take care of the
coloring on their computers.
Maria: Do you live in the city or
countryside?
Anders: We all live in the city, in Helsinki.
I live quite close to Riina and Sami. As you
know, the Pet Agents stories also take place
in a city. This is not very common for kids
books, which tend to be located in the
countryside. We thought it would be more
relatable this way, since more and more
18 EXPLORE FINLAND IN POLAND
children live in the cities. Well, at least now
we know why so many authors prefer the
countryside – it takes a really long time to
draw skyscrapers.
Maria: How do you like electronics and
computers?
Riina: I do not, I use pens and rubber.
Sami: I try to fix lots of machines but I do
not know how to.
Anders: I like to buy electronics and I play
like Kati-e.
Maria: What books did you read when
you were kids?
Riina: Astrid Lindgren books and also
Moomins. But I also wrote my own books
like Kati-e.
Sami: I read a lot, especially adult agent
books, which were much better than kids’
books.
Anders: Comics (Asterix, Lucky Luke and
Donald Duck) and detective books. I wanted
to be a detective. Obviously, I never became
one, but I did get to write about them.
A big part of my wisdom comes from
Donald Duck.
Maria: What animals do you like the
most?
Sami: Dogs.
Riina: Depends on their character – I like all
animals with a good nature.
Anders: Mostly dogs.
All: The animal ideas in each book have
come after meetings with kids. They asked
for lions, farm animals, dinosaurs, dolphins
and reindeer – and all of them have been
written into the books. One time a death
of an animal was requested, and we
included that too, as it is a natural
happening for any pet owner.
Maria: Why is Kati-e’s hair pink?
Riina: Often in comics, the characters
always have the same clothes, which is
how you identify them. Kati-e can have
different clothes, but her pink hair makes
her recognizable from the crowds.
Maria: Why is the robot’s name Ti-bot?
Sami: The whole idea of the Pet Agents
series came up one evening when our
goddaughters were visiting us. They also
came up with the names, and then Riina
added the hyphens, like Kati-e and Ti-bot.
The stories behind the names were invented
later. For example, the first idea for Ti-bot
was that it comes from ”teapot”. Eventually,
we decided it means that his heart is made
of a titan.
Sami: What animals would you like to
see in PetAgents?
Maria: Birds, like flamingos or
woodpeckers.

Lapland Pike a la Polonaise
Last year, Sebastian Musielak,
a Polish translator of Finnish literature,
translated Juhani Karila’s debut novel
“Fishing for the Little Pike” (2019), and
the book was published by Marpress.
Readers in Finland and abroad quickly
fell in love with “The Pike”, which won
two important Finnish literary prizes
and was nominated for a handful
more – including some abroad.
Sebastian Musielak
Tuomas Asunmaa: “Fishing for the Little
Pike” is written in the East Lapland
dialect with very lively vocabulary.
How did you manage to translate it?
Sebastian Musielak: The problem with
this book is not whether its translation is
manageable, but how to go about the
whole translation thing. You can always go
the easiest way (“jump over the fence
where it is lowest”, as you say in Finland)
and make this very vivid and rich text,
jumping around wildly between different
registers, into something just boringly
“standard”: dull and easy to read – so as
to not disturb readers in their comfort
zone. But you can also go and try to make
it, at least to some extent, just as funny,
wild and rich in Polish. I decided to do just
that, and then of course I had some
management issues to solve, that is for
sure! The language of the original, of which
maybe a quarter is written in one of the
Finnish dialects of Lapland, presents a huge
problem to a translator wanting to find
some working equivalent of it. This is why
this book by Juhani Karila was the greatest
challenge in my career as a translator, and
I have been translating literature for more
than twenty-five years now.
Tuomas Asunmaa: Did you know the
dialect beforehand or did you have
to study it?
Sebastian Musielak: No, I did not know it,
but it is not that difficult, at least to read –
as long as you have some knowledge of
the most common deviations from
“common Finnish” in different dialects.
I was familiar with them, as dialects have
been in vogue in literature for some time
now, so I keep encountering them in
Finnish novels I read. I also have Finnish
friends who speak with some kind of
dialectal accent, so no – Karila’s language
was not a stumbling block to me, but of
course it did require more dictionary and
internet research than usual.
Tuomas Asunmaa: Did you use some
Polish dialect to give the same feeling
for Polish readers?
Sebastian Musielak: I did, yes. Generally
we do not do that in translation, we don’t
substitute a dialect from the original with
one of our Polish ones; in fact, it is not really
acceptable in other countries, either. It has
been done and tried, to some extent, but it
just does not feel right. It disturbs the reader
too much when a character from Finland
(or any other foreign country) suddenly starts
to speak in the heavy accent of Silesia, in
the Greater Poland dialect, or like a high-
-lander from Podhale. So we are afraid of
dialects in books that we translate, as there’s
not much you can do about it. When you
have one or two sentences spoken by someone
who is not very important to the story, you
can just suggest the oddness of the character’s
language by dropping one or two words
generally considered “redneck” or substan-
-dard – and that would be it. But when you
have a book in which a quarter of the text
is written in a spoken dialect and virtually
all the characters but one speak it, you have
to do something special. What I did was
to compile an “artificial dialect” of sorts,
a mix of a few strong dialectal features
from various parts of Poland that make up
a language which – at least to my knowledge
– is not spoken anywhere, so it cannot be
pinned down to one specific place in this
country. It does sound a lot like a Polish
dialect, so it does give the reader a feeling
of being somewhere in a God-forsaken
province, but it cannot be localized. In this
sense, it fits perfectly into the book, which
presents Lapland as a mythical land full of
monsters and ghosts living side by side,
with the local people who speak their own
lingo, vastly different from the language of
the rest of “normal” Finland.
Tuomas Asunmaa: How did you translate
the main character “Peijooni” into Polish?
Sebastian Musielak: I decided to use the
word “chyłek”, which I invented years ago
when I was translating Johanna Sinisalo’s
Finlandia-winning novel “Ennen päivänlaskua
ei voi” (“Not Before Sundown”, “Nie przed
zachodem słońca”). I did so, because the
book was the source of early inspiration
for Juhani Karila, and Sinisalo’s troll Pessi
is very much like Karila’s “peijooni”. I also
wanted to link those two great novels on
our Polish literary playground.
Tuomas Asunmaa: Did you work together
with the author while translating, i.e. did
he help you in some places?
Sebastian Musielak: Yes, Juhani was of
great help, as well as the translators who
had done the work before me, or were
doing it at the same time, especially the
Dane Rene Semberlund Jensen, the French
Claire Saint Germain, the Dutch Annemarie
Raas and the Russian Ivan Prilezhayev.
All the ideas and changes (like killing the
allusion to the computer game The Witcher,
which evolved from the story by the Polish
fantasy writer Andrzej Sapkowski) were
consulted with and agreed to by Juhani.
Tuomas Asunmaa: How was the book
received in Poland? Did you receive any
feedback?
Sebastian Musielak: I have had lots of
feedback and I can say that the book was
mostly very well received, including among
my fellow translators, whose opinions I value
very much. I even heard that one group of
readers from Gdańsk was very upset when
the translation was not nominated for the
Gdynia Literary Prize, but well – I treat that
as a nice anecdote.
Tuomas Asunmaa: What book are you
currently working on?
Sebastian Musielak: My next big project
is Miki Liukkonen’s gigantic 860-page-long
“O”, which is supposed to be “a treatise
on why things are as they are.” This is a
magnificent book that I have been working
on since February. I should be ready with
the translation by next autumn.
EXPLORE FINLAND IN POLAND 19

The Finnish School of Warsaw
Varsovan Suomi-koulu
Complementing knowledge on Finnish
language and culture
The teaching at the Finnish School is
complementary to regular schooling.
It does not replace kindergarten or basiclevel
education, but is all about offering
kids with a Finnish background the
possibility to spend time with each
other and communicate.
Reactivation after the pandemic
Despite its long tradition in Warsaw, like
so many other activities, the COVID-19
pandemic brought the school to a halt.
Luckily, thanks to active parents and the
interest of the local Finnish community,
in-person classes were resumed in Autumn
2022. The school is now active again and
meets regularly.
Photography by Varsovan Suomi-koulu
The Finnish School of Warsaw
(Varsovan Suomi-koulu) promotes
Finnish culture and language among
children with Finnish background
who live in the Polish capital. It is
part of a network of Finnish schools
around the world. The school
supports both children of expatriate
Finns in maintaining their Finnish
skills while they are away, as well as
helping Finnish children living
permanently abroad keep in touch
with their roots.
Lessons consist of a couple of hours on
Sundays. Meetings take place mainly in
the Embassy of Finland (or other suitable
locations).
During the classes, children are encouraged
to work together in groups and converse
in Finnish. The activities include various
handcrafts, oral and written assignments,
playing board games, as well as learning
various Finnish songs and traditions.
Children over three years old may partici-
-pate, and the teaching is adapted to two
age groups: kindergarten/preschool partici-
-pants and kids already attending school.
With older children, the focus is more on
writing and speaking.
New volunteers with good Finnish skills,
interested parents, and most importantly
– children – are warmly welcomed.
Contact:
suomikoulu.varsova@gmail.com
Text: Lassi Vainio
Finhome
Finhome Ltd. is a Finnish-Polish family business, established in 2016 and
a truly 100% Finnish place in Poland. It is located in the peaceful village of
Kliny, 15 km from Poznań. The complex of Finnish wooden log-buildings
situated in a 3000m² garden and run by Finhome is called “Finlandia SPOT”.
It can be rented via the Airbnb.com website.
The complex consists of:
• a 120 m²wooden log-house,
• a 40 m² sauna building with separate
changing room and hot tube on the
terrace,
• a 25 m² grilling-hut.
Finlandia SPOT offers a large meeting room,
eight sleeping places, two toilets, bathroom,
kitchen, access to the sauna building,
a hot-tub, grill house and fireplace. All the
buildings are well equipped and have
access to free Wifi.
Finlandia SPOT by Finhome is a perfect
place to organize a meeting, training, or
small event for organized groups of up to
25 people. The main customers for Finlandia
SPOT are business groups, educational
groups, families & friends.
At Finlandia SPOT, all the visitors can feel
relaxed and at home among nature.
The Finlandia SPOT team represents
a good understanding of Finnish and
Polish business, educational and cultural
needs and collaboration with a multilevel
network of experts and business support
organizations in Finland and in Poland.
The team has over 15 years of experience
in running international projects, matchmaking
events for various sectors, as well as in
boosting international marketing
and PR projects.
Kliny, ul. Miła 14, 62-004 Czerwonak
www.finlandiaspot.com
www.facebook.com/finlandiaspot
tero.jamsa@finhome.pl
finlandiaspot@gmail.com
20 EXPLORE FINLAND IN POLAND

Kalevala
Reindeer Tuuli
Kalevala, Lapońska 1
58-564 Borowice
+48 723 586 759
kalevala.pl
recepcja@kalevala.pl
Magdalena & Michał Makowscy - the founders of Kalevala
Kalevala is a Finnish village located in
Borowice near Karpacz. The idea for this
project came from the desire to create
something utterly original. Taking into
account the founders’ business experience,
knowledge of Finnish culture and the fact
that they had a plot of land in the
mountains, which resembles the vastness
of Lapland, they created Kalevala.
Guests are the most surprised by the
combination of nature and modernity,
and the fact that all architectural elements
come directly from Finland. During their
stay, they can learn how to take care of
unique animals such as huskies, reindeer
and wildcats. In addition, visitors have an
opportunity to experience a traditional
Finnish sauna with feasting.
This year, Kalevala was happy to welcome
its third husky dog – Lappi – and introduce
a new collection of Muurla mugs from the
Moomin series. Kalavela’s main goal is to
open a year-round Finnish Education
Center, working in cooperation with Finnish
companies investing in Poland.
Kalev & Lappi
Open
Jazdów
Otwarty Jazdów (Open Jazdów) in Warsaw
is an intimate, green settlement of wooden
Finnish houses. It was built right after the
end of World War II on Jazdów Street,
near the Polish parliament. Now it is also
a community of NGOs, offering a social,
cultural and ecological public program.
In 2021, the Partnership Open Jazdów
(established in 2015) was distinguished by
the European Commission for its exceptional
commitment to the protection and
development of the common European
heritage. At the end of that year, as a result
of negotiations between the Partnership
and Warsaw Municipality, PLN 10 million
was secured for the renovation of houses
in the long-term financial perspective of
the city.
As a part of civil society, Open Jazdów is
on the front line of helping refugees – and
not only from Ukraine. From March until
June 2022, help in most of the houses was
provided on an ongoing basis, from shelters
to meals, along with psychological and
legal support.
In addition, achieving these numerous and
diverse initiatives is possible on the basis
of grants, competitions and donations.
Open Jazdów is open to cooperation with
Finnish companies.
www.jazdow.pl
otwarty@jazdow.pl
Jazdów, 00-467 Warsaw
Drone view, photography by M. Potempski
Otwarty Jazdów, photography by A. Jędrzejewska
EXPLORE FINLAND IN POLAND 21

Books translated
from Finnish to Polish
in 2022
The Finnish-Polish
Literary Translators’
Collective KIRJA
(Finnish for “book”) was
established at the
beginning of 2019 and
consists of nine Polish
professionals. KIRJA’s
aims are set out in the
Collective’s slogan:
We read, we review,
we translate. KIRJA
actively promotes
Finnish literature
through its social
media channels and
webpage. KIRJA’s
activities are dedicated
to everybody who is
interested in Finland
and Finnish culture.
It also supports Polish
publishing houses by
promoting their newly
published Finnish
books.
For a couple of
years, Finnish
literature in Poland
has been on
a sharp rise. While
in 2019 there were
only seven Finnish
translations
published in
Poland, in 2022
there are already
25! These are of
all kinds: fiction
short stories,
young adults’ and
children's literature,
romances and
even a picture
book...
ROMANCE
GRAPHIC
NOVEL
Adventuress
Seikkailijatar (2021), Lilith
Poszukiwaczka przygód
Publisher: Risky Romance
Translator: Szalast, Agata
Salla is a sales manager, incurable
party animal and a lover of wild
adventures. Her life shakes up as
she hits her eyes on the grim, illdressed
– and breathtakingly
desirable psychiatrist Konstantin
Kankaanpää. Konstantin just happens
to be a serious man who doesn’t
warm up to women like Salla. Who
will win, the man with principles or
the passionate woman? Or could it
be that they both win?
SHORT
STORIES
Memento Mori
Memento mori (2020),
Tiitu Takalo
Memento mori
Publisher:
Timof i cisi wspólnicy,
Warszawa
Translator: Paczkowski, Piotr
Memento mori is a raw, intimate
autobiographical graphic novel by
one of the most famous Finnish
creators of the genre. At 38 years old,
Tiitu Takalo experienced a sudden
cerebral hemorrhage. The long process
of recovery forced her to reflect and
reconsider her own past and present.
It’s a story of how one short event
can forever change one’s whole life.
Angel
Enkeli (2021), Lilith
Anioł
Publisher: Risky Romance
Translator: Szalast, Agata
Birgitta Linnalaakso has a problem.
His father has left a family business
in a bad mess. She needs help with
marketing and suddenly there is Leo,
a younger man with angelic features
but not-so-angelic-behaviour. Birgitta
is nearly 40 and should be able to
deal with this. But Leo has some new,
risky ideas that seem very appealing.
(to be published in 2023)
Master storytellers –
Scandinavian summer
Raija Siekkinen,
Juha-Pekka Koskinen
Rosa Liksom,
Kjell Westö,
Tove Jansson,
Mistrzowie opowieści -
skandynawskie lato
1. Ostatni dzień lata
2. Biały zając
3. XVI
4. Midsommar z panem Laakso
5. Duża plastikowa kiełbasa
Publisher: Wielka Litera
Translators:
Musielak, Sebastian
Kyntäjä, Dorota
Homanowska, Anna
Teperek, Agata
Czechowska, Justyna
Five stories of Finnish authors – both
Finnish - and Swedish-speaking –
appear in this short story collection
centered around Scandinavian
summer. The collection is divided
into four thematic parts: City, Road,
Vacation and Kiss.
Bishop
FICTION
Piispa (2021), Lilith
Biskup
Publisher: Risky Romance
Translator: Homanowska, Anna
Doris is writing a master’s thesis
about the sexual life of unmarried
priests. Volter Helakorpi has just been
appointed the youngest bishop in
Finland, and Doris asks whether he
would like to be interviewed for her
thesis. Volter agrees. It soon turns
out that the young bishop is very
attractive, and Doris finds herself
enamored of him. Unfortunately,
it doesn’t take long before Volter
discovers some disturbing information
about the girl.
Iceman - Kimi's journey
Iceman - Kimin matkassa
(2021), Heikki Kulta
Kimi Räikkönen
Publisher: SQN, Kraków
Translator: Laskowska, Marta
Formula 1 fans have now a perfect
occasion for behind-the-scenes
glimpses. Heikki Kulta is an experienced
Formula 1 journalist who followed
Kimi Räikkönen’s career for over 20
years. Just before the driver’s
retirement Kulta released a book,
which is actually far from a traditional
sportsman biography: it consists of
the journalist’s memories, selection
of his articles as well as some texts
which had never been published
before. Kulta is one of the few in
Formula 1 whom the Iceman let into
his world.
King Eagle
Kuningaskotka (2009, 2013)
Janne Ahonen,
Pekka Holopainen
Maska. Biografia legendy
skoków narciarskich
Publisher: SQN, Kraków
Translator: Laskowska, Marta
The list of Janne Ahonen’s merits in
sport is exeptionally long. However,
during his long career he experienced
many ups and downs. In his biography,
which finally has been translated into
Polish and updated as well, he not
only tells the reader about his struggles
for the top in ski jumping, but also
reveals disturbing secrets about his
private life.
Pekka Holopainen is an awarded
Finnish sport journalist.
The Weather that Changed
the World
Väder som förändrade
världen... (2018),
Marcus Rosenlund
Gdy pogoda zmienia bieg
historii
Publisher: Bo.wiem, Kraków
Translator: Teperek, Agata
Rosenlund’s book tackles historical
events from a perspective we don’t
often think about – weather conditions.
In a fascinating way, the excellent
science journalist explains how climate
and weather can shape the historical
and sociological landscape of the
world, influence whole civilizations
and hinder carefully planned war
operations. From huge cataclysms
to seemingly minor weather anomalies
which turned out to have significant
consequences, Rosenlund shows
how powerless humans can be
against nature’s whims.
YOUTH
NON-
FICTION
22 EXPLORE FINLAND IN POLAND

CRIME
Cargo
Kontti (2021), A. M. Ollikainen
Kontener
Publisher:
Czarna Owca, Warszawa
Translator: Kojro, Bożena
A.M. Ollikainen is actually two
writers – Aka and Milla Ollikainen.
While they both had already published
crime fiction on their own, this was
their first collaboration, and also the
first book in the series starring Police
Commissioner Paula Pihaja.
In Helsinki, a dead body is found in
a cargo container on a property
belonging to a notorious businessman.
The investigation is being led by Paula
Pihlaja, who focuses on uncovering
dark secrets of the businessman’s family,
while simultaneously struggling with
difficulties in her own personal life.
Little Siberia
Pikku Siperia (2018)
Antti Tuomainen
Mała Syberia
Publisher: Albatros
Translator: Kojro, Bożena
Pikku Siperia is a crime novel with
strong comedic elements. A man
finds himself in a bizarre accident:
a meteorite falls from the sky straight
onto his car. The locals realize the
huge value of the meteorite, and
decide to temporarily place it in the
neighbourhood museum, where Joel,
the priest, is supposed to watch it.
Someone attempts to steal the treasure,
and even though the burglar fails,
Joel still wants to discover his identity.
At the same time, his wife announces
her pregnancy but Joel has strong
suspicions that the child cannot be his.
Still Waters Run Deep
(A.K.A The Isle of Sheep)
Kun jäljet katoavat (2021)
Elina Backman
Kiedy znikają ślady
Publisher:
Czarna Owca, Warszawa
Translator: Kojro, Bożena
The book is an independent sequel
to Backman’s widely acclaimed
crime novel Kun kuningas kuolee.
Three young men decide to make
a documentary about a hermit who
lives on the island of Lammassaari
in Helsinki. Two of the three disappear,
and when one of them is discovered
dead, the police start an investigation.
Meanwhile, Saana, a journalist with
a relatively newfound passion for
solving mysteries, sets up a true
crime podcast to help locate her
colleague’s brother.
The Ice Coven
Pahan verkko (2020)
Max Seeck
W sieci zła
Publisher:
Sonia Draga, Katowice
Translator:
Wojciechowska, Karolina
Pahan verkko is the second novel in
the world-famous Jessica Niemi series.
The body of a young Slavic woman
has been found on a beach in Helsinki.
At the same time, two famous Finnish
influencers disappear in what could
seem like a publicity stunt, if it wasn’t
for the unsettling farewell post on one
of their social media profiles. Jessica
Niemi’s team is supposed to examine
both cases, but the investigator
finds herself spiraling into a mental
health crisis.
Doctor Novel
Dog Park
Ice
The Woman Who Loved
Insects
White Hunger
Koirapuisto (2019),
Sofi Oksanen
Is (2012), Ulla-LeenaLundberg
Nainen joka rakasti hyönteisiä
(2020), Seija Ahava
Nälkävuosi (2012),
Aki Ollikainen
Lääkäriromaani (2007),
Riku Korhonen
Powieść lekarska
Publisher: Marpress
Translator:
Musielak, Sebastian
Psi park
Publisher:
Znak Literanova, Kraków
Translator:
Aniszewska, Katarzyna
Lód
Publisher: Marpress
Translator:
Czechowska, Justyna
Kobieta, która kochała owady
Publisher: Relacja
Translator:
Polanowska, Justyna
Biały głód
Publisher: Art. Rage
Translator:
Polanowska, Justyna
Middle-aged Niklas is deeply unhappy
with his life and relationship. In search
of his own voice, he starts writing
a novel, while seeking comfort in casual
sex and alcohol. It quickly turns out
that the path he has chosen will bring
him more pain than relief. Unfortunately,
Niklas finds himself trapped in a vicious
circle that only causes more destruction
along the way. It seems that every
choice he makes is always the wrong one.
In 2010, Korhonen’s novel received
the European Union Prize for Literature.
Oksanen’s highly acclaimed novel tells
the tale of two women and two very
different realities. The plot switches
between modern-day Helsinki and the
early years of post-Soviet Ukraine.
Classified by some as a psychological
thriller, Koirapuisto leads the reader
down the dark paths of mother’s grief
after a lost child, but also tackles the
grim reality of the fertility industry.
The novel made Oprah’s list of Best
Translated Books of 2021.
Young pastor Petter, his wife Mona and
their baby daughter arrived in the Åland
Islands in the summer of 1946. They
fall in love with the tiny windswept
island and its small, resourceful
community of fisher folk and farmers
who struggle every day to create
a better future for themselves. But
then winter arrives, bringing with her
the omnipresent ice…
Lundberg’s novel is slow and full of
intricate details. It is a long read but at
the same time, a true literary feast.
Maria, whose character is based on
a historical figure, the German
naturalist Maria Sybilla Merian, has
been fascinated by insects since
childhood, even though she was
born at a very unfortunate time for
female scientists – the age of witch
trials. She takes to drawing meta-
-morphic cycles. Throughout the novel,
we can observe Maria’s own meta-
-morphosis during the 370 years of
her strangely long life. Ahava’s
protagonist is an extraordinary woman,
intent on following her passions and
transcending the roles and limitations
assigned by her contemporaries.
Ollikainen’s debut novel tells a tale
of a family struggling to survive
during the last naturally occurring
famine in Europe, which happened
in Finland in 1866-1868. Marja,
a farmer’s wife from the north, takes
her two children on a journey to
St Petersburg, where they may finally
find some bread. They are not the
only ones attempting to flee the
desperate situation.
Ollikainen has received some of the
most prestigious Finnish literary awards
in recognition of his extraordinary
storytelling.
Challenge
Friend
Goddess
Hotwife
Valentina and the Stolen
Paintings
Haaste (2021), Lilith
Ystävä (2020), Lilith
Jumalatar (2020), Lilith
Hotwife (2021), Lilith
Valentina ja varastetut
taulut (2021), Lilith
Wyzwanie
Publisher: Risky Romance
Translator: Szlęk, Zuzanna
Najlepszy przyjaciel
Publisher: Risky Romance
Translator: Bobotek, Artur
Bogini
Publisher: Risky Romance
Translator: Szalast, Agata
Niewierna żona
Publisher: Risky Romance
Translator:
Wojciechowska, Karolina
Valentina i skradzione obrazy
Publisher: Risky Romance
Translator:
Wojciechowska, Karolina
After a breakup, Pihla wants to put
dating aside for a while and focus
on her career and studies. Her best
friend Henriikka decides to intervene
and dares Pihla to have sex with five
different men before the deadline:
if she succeeds, Henriikka will help
her get the dream summer job.
Pihla’s first date is a much older man,
for whom the girl quickly falls.
The unexpected relationship will
push Pihla’s boundaries and help
her discover new aspects of herself.
Sofia and Santeri used to be best
friends – until Santeri left for the
United States to pursue a career in
film. Years later, after the death of
his father, Santeri comes back to
Finland. Sofia offers him a place to
stay. It turns out that the man whom
she welcomes at the airport does
not have much in common with the
boy whom she remembers from her
youth. Their friendship is in danger
but something much more exciting
seems to be in the cards.
Konrad von Holstein is an aristocrat
who owns a number of luxurious
nightclubs around the world. He’s
known for his wild lifestyle and being
the tabloid’s favorite. Minerva is an
uptight and well educated worker in
a charity and she hates nightclubs.
When the charity needs a fund from
Kondrad, Minerva suddenly finds
herself in a weird situation full of
passionate games and an alarmingly
hot battle of wills…
Raakel is quite happy with her marriage,
they have a lovely little child and
everything is just fine. That’s why
Rachel is shocked when her husband
suggests something completely
unheard of. Sakari has always dreamed
of a ”hotwife" arrangement meaning
that his wife should be with others.
Rachel slowly warms up to the idea.
But can such an arrangement become
dangerous? Especially when Raakel
can’t stop thinking about one of her
”acquaintances”, Manuel?
Valentina inherited a prestigious
erotic club in Berlin. She has been
managing the club for seven years
and she prides herself on her work.
The only thing missing from her life
is any kind of romantic or sexual
relationship, which is the effect of
her conscious choice rather than
lack of interested potential partners.
One evening, a mysterious stranger
comes to the club, claiming that
many years ago Valentina’s late
husband took possession of a few
priceless paintings. The man asks
Valentina to help him retrieve them.
Ella and Finisher
Ella on a School trip
Ella in the Theatre
The Masters of Illusion
The Pearl Whisperer
Ella ja lopettaja (1998),
Timo Parvela
Ella luokkaretkellä (1997),
Timo Parvela
Ella teatterissa (1996),
Timo Parvela
Tinasotamiehet (2020),
Anniina Mikama
Pärlfiskaren (2017),
Karin Erlandsson
Ella i wykończyciel
Ella na wycieczce klasowej
Ella w teatrze
Władcy iluzji
Poławiaczka pereł
Publisher: Dwukropek, Kielce
Publisher: Dwukropek, Kielce
Publisher: Dwukropek, Kielce
Publisher: Dwukropek, Kielce
Publisher: Dwukropek, Kielce
Translator: Kiuru, Iwona
Translator: Kiuru, Iwona
Translator: Kiuru, Iwona
Translator:
Musielak, Sebastian
Translator: Czernow, Anna
Ella and her friends are going to
a summer camp. When they arrive,
it turns out that their teacher from
school will be the one taking care of
them. The children are happy until
they realize that a mysterious stranger
is threatening their favourite professor.
They decide to conduct an elaborate
rescue operation.
Ella ja lopettaja is the fourth book
from Parvela’s Ella-series published
in Poland.
Ella luokkaretkellä is a fun book for
younger schoolchildren. It’s the third
book from the iconic Finnish series
Ella ja kaverit published in Poland.
Ella is a happy, energetic schoolgirl,
very excited about going on a trip with
her classmates. The trip is going great,
if only the teacher hadn’t left all the
money in the school parking lot…
Ella’s class visits a restaurant, a museum
and even a zoo, showing a great deal
of resourcefulness along the way.
Ella teatterissa is the second book
from Parvela’s beloved series Ella ja
kaverit translated into Polish.
Ella and her classmates get to organize
a Christmas school play. To provide
them with inspiration, their teacher
takes them to a theater. But of course,
nothing goes as smoothly as planned.
Fortunately, the children can find fun
and important life lessons in every
situation!
Tinasotamiehet is the final part of
Mikama’s Illusionist trilogy. The main
characters, Tom and Mina, prepare
for their upcoming magic show in
London, but Tom also has other goals
to accomplish during their trip: he
wants to discover the mysteries of his
own past. An old enemy finds out about
the quest, and Tom and Mina have
to unite in order to vanquish their foe,
supported by their trusty mechanical
companion, the Tin Soldier.
Pärlfiskaren is the first novel in the
Song of the Eye Stone series.
Miranda is the most skilled pearl fisher
in the world where pearls are the most
important currency. It is also the world
where “pearl whisperers” exist – people
who can hear the pearls sing and who
can simply lure pearls to come to them.
Miranda wants to gather the mythical
pearl desired by all but even despite
her skills and experience, this is no easy
task. In December 2022, Dwukropek
will publish the second part of Karin
Erlandsson’s cycle, The Bird Master
(Fågeltämjaren, 2018).
EXPLORE FINLAND IN POLAND 23

Dark autumn
A wave of Finnish heavy
metal bands touring
in Poland
After the end of the pandemic,
European roads have quickly filled
with various bands touring across the
continent. We have been thrilled to
see an entire wave of Finnish heavier
bands in Poland this autumn. Tuomas
had a chance to meet Insomnium
right before their concert in Wrocław
to chat about their experiences in
Poland, teamwork and music.
Insomnium & Tuomas Asunmaa before the concert in Wrocław
Finnish bands in Poland
Fall & Winter 2022
Korpiklaani | Rzeszów 26.08
Lost Society | Kraków 30.09 & Warsaw 01.10
The Rasmus | Warsaw 12.10 & Kraków 13.10
Poets of the Fall | Warsaw 05.10 and Kraków 06.10
Insomnium & Wolfheart | Wrocław 12.10
Omnium Gatherum | Poznań 26.10 & Warsaw 27.10
Finntroll |Kraków 17.11 & Warsaw 18.11.
Amorphis | Warsaw 05.12
Nightwish & Turmion Kätilöt | Gliwice 14.12
Tuomas Asunmaa: Today is your 14th
gig in a row – do you feel it yet?
Niilo Sevänen: Yes, 18 gigs in a row
without a day off, we have never done this
before. It starts to feel a bit tough for our
kind of 40+ year old men at this stage.
When were you in Poland for the first
time and what memories do you have
from here?
We came for the first time in 2006 and since
then we have been here about 20 times
because all our tours include Poland. We
have played in Warsaw, Kraków and Wrocław.
Usually we try to do some tourist stuff too
if possible. Today I had a walk in the city,
there are many beautiful places here. We
have also filmed music videos in Poland,
e.g. ”While we sleep”, which is our most
viewed video (12.7 million views), was
filmed here in Wrocław.
Having a band like yours is kind of like
running a company. How do you plan
your work and prepare schedules?
Basic cycle is 2-3 years. After an album
comes, we go on tours – Europe even twice,
Americas and so on plus summer festivals.
Then we take a small break, or actually
a composing break because I do not really
stand still. Tours are planned one year in
advance since it is a pretty big crowd to
move - five other people besides us plus
the other bands.
I have a question about teamwork from
our team member Tania, who is also a fan
of yours: Throughout the years people
change, and their view on their own music
may shift – new albums might feel closer
to the author’s heart compared to old
ones, or vice versa. I always wonder how
several people in a band maintain the
same view and ideas and are agreeable
with each other?
It is very collective, we aim to have democracy
in these matters. Everyone can share their
views on music, and the common way
usually comes easily. The band has changed
and the style has developed, and we want
to develop and do different things, not to
repeat the first album forever. New members
have brought natural development and growth.
How do you handle disagreements?
By wrestling… Well, usually we vote, it is
five of us so it is difficult to make the voting
result a tie. It is usually three against two
and we can fight the rest. For the upcoming
album it went easily, there was no one
wanting to do a completely different record
and also no one wants to change this band
to a completely different one.
The pandemic seems to have affected
you a lot, you had the American tour
planned in March 2020 and it never
happened…
Yes, it was a total disaster. Tours were
canceled right away and we had the whole
crew, their work permits and everything done.
Luckily, we have great fans - they wanted
to help us by buying merchandise, we had
crowdfunding and four live stream gigs.
We managed to survive without ending up
in debt and got back to normality pretty fast.
We also applied to personal pandemic
support for artists and were fortunate
enough to receive it, it was helpful too.
And now we are dealing with the war.
Has it affected your upcoming album?
Not at all. I had the story for the album on
my mind before the war started. Although
the war affects all of our moods, it is not
visible in our art. It has always been dark
anyway.
But with some small lights there…
Yes, and there are some small blinks of
lights in the upcoming album too.
Do people outside Finland see the lyrics
differently?
Finns understand the agony we are singing
about. But it feels good when native English
speakers are endorsing the lyrics, then
I know that I have succeeded on some
level. I write in a language which is not my
mother tongue and if I manage to touch
them, it is always great.
The time has come – thank you and \,,/
Interview conducted by Tuomas Asunmaa
on 12th October 2022, backstage at A2
Concert hall in Wrocław, before the concert
24 EXPLORE FINLAND IN POLAND

SANTA
IS ON
HIS
WAY...
Nobody knows how old Santa Claus is –
Mikołaj in Polish and Joulupukki in Finnish.
Even he himself does not know. Mystery is
an essential part of his story. However, one
thing is certain…
He comes from Finnish Lapland, from
Rovaniemi. Some people are of the opinion
that he comes from Greenland, or Kiruna
in Northern Sweden or even from the North
Pole… But Santa is not complaining. There
is nothing wrong if they would like to be
a part of the Santa legend too. In any
case, a few years ago the EU admitted that
Rovaniemi City is the capital of Santa Claus
land. There, in Santa’s Village, very near the
Arctic Circle, Santa is available every day
for visitors, who come to see him there from
all over the world – almost half a million guests
annually. But where does he really live?
Legend says that Santa lives in Korvatunturi,
(the Mountain of the Ear) to the east of
Rovaniemi, though no map can show the
way. There, he has a cozy log hut and
a host of mischievous elves, Santa’s helpers
whose main duty is to make sure that no
child in the world is left without a present
at Christmas.
These laborious Elves enjoy a vacation only
once a year, after Christmas Eve, when all
the presents have been distributed. Then,
on Christmas Day, Santa and the elves
celebrate Christmas with a sauna, riceporridge,
gingerbreads and other treats
at their Christmas table.
In ancient times, people in Finland believed
that elves lived everywhere, every house-
-hold had its “home elf” and people used
to leave little treats out for their elves.
With time, it seems that most of them
have gathered around Santa. Nowadays,
they travel around the world to make sure
that kids are happy. Adults cannot see
them, but sometimes children do. Then
Santa spreading joy in Poznań on the invitation of Warta Poznań
they can confess their dreams and wait for
Santa to make them true.
Santa is often asked how he manages to
deliver all the presents on time. The answer
is logical and simple. In different parts of
the world, presents are expected at different
times of the day, Christmas Eve, Christmas
Day morning… And you have to remember
that time differs in all parts of the world
based on the time zones. If you travel the
right way, you can save hours. On top of
that, those clever elves have constructed
a magical time machine that can stretch
time as much as Santa needs to successfully
complete his Christmas mission.
Santa receives around half a million letters
each year, coming from all the countries of
the world. Polish children have always been
at the forefront of those writing to Santa,
along with kids from China, Japan and
Great Britain.
Apart from his magical Christmas Eve trip,
Santa likes to make official visits. In December,
he also visits Poland, where he is met by
enthusiastic crowds of kids and adults.
Once he admitted to us that, if he ever
declared an independent Santa Claus Land,
the first letter of recognition would surely
come from Poland. So it is no surprise that
Santa loves coming all the way from Finland
to visit his friends in Poland each year. This
year, Santa has been invited to Białystok,
Bielsk, Mińsk Mazowiecki, Poznań, Buk
and Gniezno, as well as to a unique place
on the Polish map – to Kalevala Village
(Lapońska Wioska KALEVALA) in Borowice.
As always, his program is full of open-air
meetings with people from different towns,
often connected with the ceremony of
switching on the Christmas lights, but also
very special visits by Santa to integration
schools, hospitals and other places where
he can bring joy and smiles to less
fortunate kids.
3 December
Saturday - Bielsk
4 December
Sunday - Białystok
6 December
Tuesday - Mińsk Mazowiecki
8 December
Thursday - Poznań
Event for Finnish companies in Poznań,
Christmas market (Plac Wolności)
9 December
Friday - Poznań
11 December
Sunday - Poznań
12 December
Monday - Buk
13 December
Tuesday - Gniezno
16-18 December
Friday-Sunday Borowice
(Lapońska Wioska KALEVALA)
EXPLORE FINLAND IN POLAND 25

Honorary Consulate of Finland in Toruń
Drawing competition prize-giving ceremony
In 2014 I was appointed Honorary
Consul of Finland in Toruń. I am one
of eight people in Poland holding
this position, and for the past eight
years I have tried my best to fulfill
the tasks entrusted to me.
The institution of Honorary Consul is
an excellent tool for maintaining bilateral
relations between countries. To a large
extent, the duties of a consul include
acting as a civil registrar, issuing documents
and performing other civil law actions.
For me, it is equally important to promote
and develop relations between Poland
and Finland, and above all to promote
culture. Every year I organize many events
that bring Finnish education, economy
and culture closer to the residents of the
region. Concerts by world famous artists
such as Iro Rantala, Ida Elina and Bel Canto
Choir from Jakobstad gathered a huge
audience. The year 2022 was very turbulent
due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
I received a lot of enquiries from Ukrainian
citizens with requests for help and infor-
-mation about transit through Poland to
Finland. I tried to help in every such case
by making up-to-date information always
available on the Consulate’s website.
Despite the tense situation, I managed
to maintain the continuity of my standard
promotional activities. My flagship endeavor.
In cooperation with the Foreign Language
Department of Nicolaus Copernicus University,
I organize a Finnish language course. This
is the first ever Finnish language course to
be held in the region. I am responsible for
recruiting students and organizing language
textbooks. Since the COVID-19 pandemic,
the course under the university’s patronage
has been held online. More and more
people are signing up for the classes, and
the wonderful lecturer makes sure that the
language is not as difficult as it seems
at first glance.
Every year I organize a painting competition
for children. The theme is always related to
Finland. In February 2022, the competition
was entitled “Wonders of Finland’s Nature”.
At the moment we are waiting for artworks
from the children entitled “My friend from
Moomin Valley” in the next edition.
The interest is always overwhelming, and
each time I am amazed by the creativity
of the young artists.
An important part of my activities is
supporting Finnish citizens. This year, for
example, I organized a meeting between
the authors of the book “Mannerheim
Puolan Vuodet”, Anna and Jukka Soisalon-
Soininen, and the management of
the Adam Marszałek publishing house.
Cultural events have always been my priority.
I have helped organize several of them this
year. On May 28, we held a concert by the
Kardemimmit kantele quartet from Finland,
as part of the 29th Probaltica Festival of
Music and Art of the Baltic Countries.
In July, during the Finnish cinema strand
of the 20th Tofifest International Film
Festival, there was a presentation of
documentaries and fiction films by Finnish
filmmakers, including “Girls”by Alli
Haapasalo, which won the Audience
Award at the Sundance Film Festival.
I am proud to have been able to make
a contribution in strengthening the relations
between Poland and Finland.
Tadeusz Pająk
Honorary Consul of Finland in Toruń
After Kardemimmit concert, together with Henryk Giza-the festival
organiser
The awarded work from previous edition of the drawing competitionorganiser
www.kf7.pl
ul. Droga Starotoruńska 5 | 87 - 100 Toruń, Polska
+48 609 22 99 00 | consul@kf7.pl
26 EXPLORE FINLAND IN POLAND

Saunatic:
Sharing the passion
What started as a personal passion
for the hot and cold sessions of sauna
transformed into creating an open-air
educational exhibition about the bigger
sense of sauna, to be shared with the
public. And “Saunatic”, as the project
is called, keeps evolving.
Creators of Saunatic: Jacob Dammas & Józefina Jarmużewska/ Photography by J. Delbar
In 2018, Jacob Dammas from Denmark
and Józefina Jarmużewska from Poland
were visiting the Jazdów colony of Finnish
wooden houses in Warsaw. It felt like the
perfect spot for expanding the concept
and knowledge of sauna. This became
the beginning of a long learning process
(which is still going on) about what is
commonly known as sauna, but in fact has
many other names, depending on which
region in the world and in what era: it is
sweat lodge in Africa and Native America,
the Roman baths, the Islamic hammam,
the Mayan temazcal, the Slavic banya,
the Scandinavian bastu, and more.
It turned out for the Danish-Polish couple
that sauna contains so many other aspects
than the sweating itself.
Many months and hundreds of emails
later, in April 2019, “Saunatic” saw the
light of day; an educational non-profit
open-air exhibition about the historical,
social, architectural, and health aspects
of sauna culture that has existed around
the world for several thousand years.
The Saunatic exhibition consists of
information boards and photographs
of the many forms and practices of the
sweat bath, hands-on accessories, a fullscale
example of a hot room, and regular
accompanying events, such as visiting
hours with the creators, expert talks,
artistic happenings, workshops, etc.
The project was made thanks to the
generous product support from private
Finnish companies such as Narvi and
Tammisto, financial contribution and
patronage from the Finnish and German
Embassies, and the help from Jazdów
NGOs, volunteering local citizens, and
family members.
Saunatic was located in the green Jazdów
settlement in Warsaw for almost two years,
until one freezing winter day in February
2021 it was transported to the other side
of the city’s Vistula River, to the courtyard
of the Creativity Center Targowa in the
Praga district where Jacob and Józefina
run their creative company StudioJOT.
Here, at the backdrop of historic Warsaw
tenement brick houses and the modern
glass cladded Creativity Center, the small
wooden pavilion Saunatic keeps evolving.
New elements are implemented and
activities are organized, for example a mini
sauna fashion show, and, recently, supported
by Spondeo, a thematic film screening of
“Steam of Life” by Joonas Berghäll and
Mika Hotakainen.
The next event is a photographic wall with
the faces of some of the people who have
visited the exhibition over the years, making
the statement that on the sauna bench all
our differences become less important and
we are all equal. In the beginning of 2023,
a neon installation will be created on
Saunatic, including a meeting with the
designer, and later in the year a scientific
conference about sauna culture is planned.
Current location of Saunatic at Creativity Center Targowa, Warsaw and earlier in Jazdów settlement (left)
For more information, see www.saunatic.pl
Opening hours: during the accompanying events and by appointment.
info@studiojot.pl | +48 797 779 518 | Address: courtyard of Creativity Center Targowa, Targowa 56, 03-733 Warsaw
EXPLORE FINLAND IN POLAND 27

Embassy of Finland in Poland
The Embassy of Finland in Poland is one
of ninety-four official representations of
Finland located around the world.
The Finnish Embassies and Consulates
General promote the interests of Finland
and Finns abroad in many various ways.
The missions deal with foreign policy, trade
policy, development cooperation and
export promotion, public diplomacy and
country branding, as well as consular and
citizens’ services. Due to the war in Ukraine,
and Finland’s aim to join NATO, the security
policy is very prominent on both global
and the Finnish Embassies’ agendas.
The team of the Embassy of Finland in
Warsaw currently consists of thirteen
employees led by the newly appointed
Ambassador of Finland, Päivi Laine.
The team was also recently strengthened
by a new First Secretary and the Team
Finland Coordinator, Marianne Purojärvi.
The Embassy cooperates closely with the
Defence Attaché’s Office and Business
Finland’s Office in Poland. The Embassy’s
work is also supported by eight Honorary
Consulates of Finland located in Białystok,
Gdynia, Kielce, Kraków, Poznań, Szczecin,
Toruń and Wrocław.
Team Finland, Smart Mobility Congress 2022 - source: Embassy of Finland
In recent years, Finland-related activities in
Poland have focused on climate and energy
solutions, nature and sustainable develop-
-ment, digitalization and innovations,
as well as Finnish values such as equality,
inclusiveness and personal freedom. This
direction will be continued in the coming
years. The Embassy plans to strengthen
and refresh the image of Finland in Poland
by even closer cooperation with Polish
stakeholders, media and influencers, as
well as Finnish business representatives
and cultural patrons. The Polish-speaking
Head of Mission is a great asset that can
broaden the Embassy’s contacts.
The Embassy team is looking forward to
starting a new chapter in its activities.
In order to keep track of the Embassy’s
plans and actions, follow
@SuomenSuurlahetystoVarsova and
@FinlandinPoland social media channels.
28 EXPLORE FINLAND IN POLAND

Greetings from the newly appointed Ambassador
Päivi Laine
Ambassador Laine with Honorary Consuls - source: Finnish MFA
Today, the relationship between Finland
and Poland is determined by EU member-
-ship, which will hopefully soon be
deepened by a Nato connection when
Finland joins the alliance. We have had
periods in history when Finland and Poland
were parts of the same country: At the end
of the 16th century, Sigismund Vasa was
briefly king of Poland and Sweden, which
ruled Finland at the time. In the 19th
century, our countries both belonged to
the Russian Empire. It is fascinating to
dwell upon the similarities and differences
of Finland and Poland throughout history.
Many things have changed fundamentally
in Europe and in the world after Russia
attacked Ukraine in February 2022. Ukraine
and the Ukrainians are paying the highest
price with the loss of life and the destruction
of their country. The international order is
in disarray and we need to adjust to the
new reality. The Nord Stream gas pipelines
were supposed to satisfy a large part of
Europe’s energy needs. However, the risks
– which Poland and the Baltics were
warning us about – have now manifested
and now we are facing a huge problem
with securing the energy supply to Europe.
My previous posting, from 2019, was Kyiv.
Although I had always dreamed of becoming
the Ambassador to Poland, it was really
hard to leave Ukraine at this difficult time.
It is great that I can continue supporting
Ukraine from my new post, since Poland
has become one of the most important
contributors in helping Ukraine’s war effort.
Finland is a country that lives on exports,
so it is one of our main tasks in the Embassy
to support Finnish business. Competition
in Poland is tough, but with Finnish “sisu”
and determination, we do our best to help
Finnish companies succeed. This job is
made easier by the fact that Finnish
business is about quality, innovation
and new, sustainable solutions.
I have a long history with Poland. Already
as a child, I became very fond of Polish
serials shown on Finnish TV: Four Tankers
and a Dog, Karino and Janosik. In the
mid-1980s, I spent my first summer at
the Warsaw Race Track riding horses, and
totally lost my heart to Poland. I learned
the language, wrote many of my academic
works on Poland, managed to win six races
at the Warsaw racetrack and returned to
Poland time after time.
”My dream came true when I returned
to Poland as an Ambassador!”
Paddling in the awesome archipelago of
the Baltic Sea by Inkoo, 60 km west of Helsinki
And here I am again. Even if times are
difficult, I am in the job of my dreams.
My aim is to strengthen the ties between
Finland and Poland as much as I can.
The best results are made through
cooperation, so I welcome the Finnish
companies in Poland to become part of
Team Finland and work together with
the Embassy.
Päivi Laine
Twitter: @PLpaivi
Diplomatic missions abroad:
1996-2000 Riga, Latvia
2000-2004 London, United Kingdom
2007-2012 Warsaw, Poland
2012-2016 Moscow, Russia
2016-2019 Roving Ambassador to Iraq
2019-2022 Kyiv, Ukraine
2022- Warsaw, Poland
EXPLORE FINLAND IN POLAND 29

Juha Ottman
the Ambassador of Finland to Poland
2018 - 2022
Juha Ottman graduated from the Helsinki School of Economics
with a Master’s of Science (Economics). In 2006, he took a position
as Director in the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland. From
2010 to 2013, he served as the Ambassador of Finland in Zagreb,
Croatia. In 2013-2018, he worked as Deputy Director General in
the Department for Europe before being appointed the Finnish
Ambassador to Poland, where he carried out his duties until
2022. In September, he started as the Finnish Representative
in the EU’s Political & Security Committee in Brussels.
Interview conducted by Julia Morta on July 19, 2022, in the Embassy of Finland in Warsaw
Summary of the term
Julia Morta: Thank you for agreeing to
this interview. First, I would like to
congratulate you – you are now at the
end of your four-year-long service as
Finland’s Ambassador to Poland. Could
you tell me what kind of experience it
was for you? Are there any professional
highlights and personal observations you
would like to share?
Juha Ottman: Thank you for interviewing
me. It is very nice to contribute to Spondeo's
publication. These four years in Poland have
been a great experience for me. Of course,
a lot has happened. I first arrived here in early
September 2018. Initially, I focused on
getting to know people and building
a network of connections. In the second
half of 2019, we were busy with Finland's
Presidency of the Council of the European
Union. The presidency itself and its prepara-
-tions gave me an opportunity to meet with
a lot of people from the administration,
including a number of ministers. Then of
course, what made this term unusual is the
COVID-19 pandemic. Fortunately, we have
been able to catch up a bit by now. Last fall
and this year we had a lot of high-level
visits, including a visit from Prime Minister
Sanna Marin to Warsaw. The President of
Finland, Mr. Sauli Niinistö, did not make a
bilateral visit during my term, but did attend
the COP24 in Katowice in December 2018.
In 2020, he also took part in the commemo-
-ration of the 75th anniversary of the libera-
-tion of Auschwitz-Birkenau, which was one
of the most memorable moments for me.
The ceremony was very touching. I would
say it was one of the highlights.
Julia Morta: What convinced you to
become the Ambassador to Poland?
Was it a carefully planned step in your
career, or more of a sudden opportunity
you decided to take?
Juha Ottman: I think that it was both. Before
coming to Poland, I was the Deputy Director
General at the Department for Europe. That
meant I was already dealing with the Embassy,
because we oversee all the embassies in
Europe, apart from those in Russia and
Eastern Europe. Also, when you are in a
managerial position in the ministry, after
four years you have to start looking for a
new assignment, either in the ministry or
abroad. I was aware that this position in
the Embassy of Warsaw was going to be
open and I was very interested in coming
here. Of course, it always depends on what
opens up and whether you are selected.
But yes, it was a deliberate move because
Warsaw was on top of the list of embassies
I applied to.
Julia Morta: Was this experience mostly
like you had expected it to be, or were
there any elements that came as a surprise
or were particularly challenging?
Juha Ottman: I think I can refer back to
the first question. Nobody expected the
COVID-19 pandemic. It seriously affected
our activities because no physical meetings
were possible. The work of the Embassy is
limited when you are not able to meet with
people and exchange information. On the
positive side, we learned a lot from this
situation, for example to rely more on online
meetings and become, to some extent,
more efficient because you do not have to
physically travel everywhere. However, our
job obviously involves building confidential
relations and talking to people in private,
which is not feasible online. There are also
issues that you do not want to discuss
online because of security concerns. Now
that I am coming to the end of my term,
the war in Ukraine came as a shock. At the
same time, it is remarkable to see how
much Poland has been helping Ukrainians
and Ukraine itself.
Julia Morta: What lessons have you
learned as a diplomat in Poland?
Juha Ottman: I would say that you need
to have a genuine interest in your host
country and find something that you like
in order to promote bilateral relations. It is
important to be passionate about what
you are doing, but at the same time, you
have to stay humble. We are not here
to teach or preach, but to listen to other
people and learn. On the other hand, you
need to be able to look at things a little
bit from an outside perspective.
Ambassadors sometimes fall in love with
their host country, but it is important to
maintain this kind of objectivity.
A diplomat’s job is not only to observe
things, but also to influence. I have also
discovered how important history is in
Poland. In Finland, we often forget about
it, especially in business, and here I think
history is very present. When I think about
the starting point of Poland after the Second
World War, how you have reconstructed
your country from ruins to what it is now,
I have really tremendous respect for the
Poles and Poland.
30 EXPLORE FINLAND IN POLAND

Julia Morta: What have you enjoyed
about living in Warsaw? Is there
anything you are going to miss?
Juha Ottman: What I have enjoyed very
much is the city itself. Of course, I am very
privileged to live in the Embassy compound
in the middle of the city where I can walk
everywhere. I have cherished the green
parks of the city. You also have very good
restaurants at affordable prices, especially
compared to Finland. In general, what
I like is the variety of the country. You have
so much history present everywhere and
so many beautiful cities. What I regret is
that I did not learn Polish. Because of that,
I am living in this expatriate bubble, which
makes you feel kind of an outsider all the
time. You cannot dig deep in society, in
the cultural scene in particular. For example,
I have been missing the theater, which
I really enjoy.
Finnish-Polish relations
Julia Morta: As the Ambassador, you
have taken part in many events promoting
Finnish culture in Poland. What do you
think Poles could learn from Finns in terms
of the approach to life and business?
Juha Ottman: I don‘t know if Poles could
learn much about the approach to life
because I think that we are very similar,
down-to-earth and nature-loving people.
But perhaps, in terms of business, we tend
to have flatter hierarchies in Finland.
Communication in Finland is also much
more informal. What Polish employers could
perhaps learn is to trust people more and
give them more liberty. Besides that,
I believe Poles could work on reducing
bureaucracy. Another thing I miss here is
a higher level of transparency. For instance,
in the public sector your contacts do not
share their mobile phone numbers so easily.
In Finland, everything is on the ministries’
websites. You can find each ministry’s
organizational chart with phone numbers
starting from the desk officers up to the
ministers. To sum up, I would say Poles
could give employees greater responsibility,
apply flatter hierarchies and increase
transparency. To some extent, Poles are
also less systematic in organizing venues;
there is more improvisation, last minute
changes and a lack of communication.
Julia Morta: Finland has been named the
happiest country in the world by the
United Nations-sponsored World Happi-
-ness Report for the fifth year in a row.
Could you describe in just three words
what is the secret to Finns' happiness?
Juha Ottman: I would choose nature, trust,
and equality. Nature, because I think that
we have easy access to it. Even if you live
in big cities, there are many green areas.
Finns are very down-to-earth people and
truly cherish nature. Trust, in the way that
we trust each other and have a high level
of trust in public institutions. Contrary to
many other European countries, Finns trust
our national institutions more than the EU
institutions. I would also say that Finnish
people are quite honest. The third word,
equality, because Finland is quite an egali-
-tarian society. A good and free-of-charge
education system is a part of this. Gender
equality is also at a very high level in Finland.
I find equal opportunities very important
for the feeling of happiness. The high
standard of living is also important, but it is
not all about the money.
Julia Morta: On the other hand, what do
Finns think about Poland? Do you believe
there are any common misconceptions?
Juha Ottman: Yes, there are still some
old-fashioned perceptions of Poland.
As good news often means no news,
the Finnish media tended to reporting
negative issues, such as aims to limit
women’s rights to sexual and reproductive
health, demonstrations in support of
women’s rights, abuse cases in the Polish
Catholic Church, the rule of law dispute
with the European Union and attacks on
the rights of sexual minorities. However,
the war in Ukraine and news about how
Poland has been helping Ukraine and
Ukrainians has gone a long way to changing
the perception of the country to be much
more positive. Tourism, which is picking up
again after the pandemic, has also changed
Poland’s image a lot. Everybody who has
visited usually likes Poland for the reasons
I described – you have wonderful cities,
great places to visit, friendly people and
good quality price ratio of services. It is
also safe here compared with many other
countries. From the business side, Poland
is also experiencing very rapid economic
growth and enjoying the status of an eco-
-nomic tiger in Europe. This has been
noticed by the Finnish media.
Julia Morta: Would you encourage Finns
to visit Poland, either for tourism or to
explore business opportunities?
Juha Ottman: Definitely, I recommend it.
I think that Poland is a very lucrative market.
At the same time, small companies planning
to enter the Polish market sometimes
underestimate how competitive and
international it is. You have to do your
homework properly. Poland is a fast-growing
market and I strongly recommend that
Finnish companies come here. Poland is
also an excellent tourist destination.
Having said that, as an Embassy we would
like to see more Poles in Finland and not
just the other way around.
Julia Morta: How have political, cultural
and economic relations between Poland
and Finland improved during your term?
Juha Ottman: I would say that political
and economic relations have been stable
and are picking up after the pandemic.
We had several high level political visits
to Poland last year, though I do not see
a substantial increase in Finnish-Polish
cultural relations. The Embassy is not so
involved in cultural promotion and there is
no Finnish cultural center in Poland, because
we do not have any funding for that. There
are other things bringing us closer, especially
the fact that Finland decided to join NATO.
I noticed that, when it comes to the approach
to Ukraine and Russia, we are more or less
in the same boat as Poland. Before the war,
Finland maintained high-level bilateral
relations with Russia, which was not always
well perceived by Poland. I also believe
that our future NATO membership will
enhance Finnish-Polish cooperation in the
areas of security and defense. We have
noticed how supportive Poland has been
with regard to our NATO accession and
I feel that Poland is truly happy that we
have finally decided to join the alliance.
Julia Morta: Do you expect that
Finnish-Polish cooperation will likely
strengthen during the next few years?
Juha Ottman: Definitely in the foreign and
security policy sectors, but also in business.
The fact that Finland will eventually join
NATO brings many opportunities, also
bilateral ones.
Plans for the future
Julia Morta: Would you like to visit
Poland again in the future?
Juha Ottman: Yes, certainly, in a private
capacity as a tourist. But I am also confident
that at some point my profession will bring
me back to Poland.
Julia Morta: What are your other plans
for the following years?
Juha Ottman: From Warsaw I am going
to Brussels, where I will be working in the
Permanent Representation of Finland to
the European Union for the next four years.
I will be dealing with the external relations
of the European Union as the Finnish
representative in the Political and Security
Committee of the Council of the European
Union. After that, I will go back to Finland.
Julia Morta: Thank you very much,
it was a pleasure talking to you.
Juha Ottman: Thank you.
EXPLORE FINLAND IN POLAND 31

Mannerheim and his
Polish connections
Anna and Jukka Soisalon-Soininen met in
1989 in Warsaw, at the time when the
Berlin wall was being brought down.
She, as a journalist, was planning to follow
perestroika in Russia; he, as a lawyer, was
just starting to help Finnish companies find
their way in Poland. Things changed when
they decided to start their life together.
Throughout the years, they have been
involved in a variety of business, education,
tourism and media projects. Many Finnish
companies, including Nokia, Nordea, Partek,
Lemminkäinen and Panda, have at some
point used their services, either in making
their first contacts in Poland or in promoting
their brands. Anna and Jukka’s activities in
recent years have concentrated on media
work and tourism in which Jukka’s dream
has been a trip “Following the steps of
Mannerheim in Poland.” Finally it has
happened. This trip led to a photoexhibition
that was presented in several
Polish cities in 2017, as a part of the
“Suomi 100” project. The material collected
for the exhibition proved to be so abundant
that it formed the background of the book
“Mannerheim Puolan vuodet” published in
2020 in Helsinki by Readme.fi. Now came
the time for the Polish version.
Mannerheim Statue in Helsinki
Photography by A. Jędrzejewska
32 EXPLORE FINLAND IN POLAND

Mannerheim – Unknown Polish Years
Poles know C. G. Mannerheim mainly as
the architect of Finnish Independence and
the hero of the Winter War, but many of
them have never heard about the years
1909-1916 which he spent in Poland as
an officer in the Russian Army.
The book covers not only the seven years
that Mannerheim actually spent in Poland,
but also reveals his friendships and contacts
with Poland and Poles, which continued
until his death in 1951.
Poland in Mannerheim’s Eyes
The book presents Poland as it was seen
through Mannerheim’s eyes. We read about
life at the turn of the century in the remote
border town of Kalisz, which was a melting
pot of Polish, German, Jewish and Russian
culture; we visit Novominsk, which was so
proud of its historical tradition; and finally
we come to Warsaw, at the time considered
to be the most European city of the entire
Russian Empire. This was a “Little Paris”,
which even Mannerheim’s sister Sophie
mentioned in her letter after visiting him.
The book has received many positive
opinions in Finland, including from the
world of academia. ”The first remarkable
book about Mannerheim in several
decades,” writes Professor of History,
Martti Turtola.
The authors of the book shed new light on
the importance of the years Mannerheim
spent in Poland. His experience in that time
influenced his way of thinking. The articles
in the book reveal how wide and deep his
Polish connections were. Indeed, he writes
in his memoirs that the years he spent in
Poland were the happiest years of his life.
Happiest – ok, but why?
For some Finns reading this book, it was
a revelation to understand how Polish
patriotism and Polish traditions were
cultivated in the homes and palaces in
spite of severe repressions. How different
was the status of the Grand Duchy of
Finland and the Polish Kingdom under the
rule of the Tsars. For some, it was a surprise
to see how rich Polish aristocracy was, and
how widely connected with the European
royal courts.
On the other hand – an often asked question
is – how was it that Mannerheim, an officer
of the hated Russian Army, managed to
become a most welcome guest of Polish
aristocrats. Mannerheim being a patriot
and Finnish baron was simply one of them.
In the inter-war period he was asking about
the news of his friends on every occasion
when receiving visitors from Poland.
He also maintained close relations with
Polish envoys, which set the scene for
Polish-Finnish diplomatic relations. During
WWII, Mannerheim used the Red Cross to
investigate how his friends were doing
and used every effort to help them when
arrested by the Gestapo and thrown in
German camps.
For many Poles, who remember about the
Finnish strategic alliance with Germany
during WWII, it is revealing to find out in
the book the facts about Mannerheim’s
strong position towards Germany and his
refusal to follow German wishes. We cannot
forget that Himmler received a negative
answer to his request to deliver Finnish
Jews to Germany by the blunt comment:
”Wir haben keine Judenfrage.”
The memories of descendants of
Mannerheim’s friends bring back the
atmosphere of life in the aristocratic
palaces, with their grandiose receptions
and their love for horses and hunting, which
Mannerheim shared enthusiastically. He is
recalled warmly in their families still today.
How close the relations must have been if,
even in the middle of the First World War,
Mannerheim is not forgotten to be invited
to such a private, family event as the
wedding of one of his Polish officers.
The love and respect Mannerheim
experienced from his subordinates is also
shown when, in 1942, Mannerheim received
a very personal letter from his former uhlan,
the conductor of his regiment’s orchestra,
who addresses him like a father and brings
to light the most private memories of the
time in Warsaw.
Few people now remember about the Polish
Legion in Finland, which played an important
role in 1917-18 in Wiborg, during the time
of the Finnish War for Freedom. Many
interesting details come to light when we
learn that Maria, the wife of Mannerheim’s
best friend, Count Adam Zamoyski, was
involved in the legion’s activities, and was
even awarded for this.
Many little facts found during the authors’
research in public and private archives find
some connection with the history of Europe
and add to the personal biography of the
biggest Finnish hero of them all – Marshal
Mannerheim.
The authors admit that they were lucky to
have high class specialists, historians, writers
and journalists contribute articles to this
publication, and that they were able to
obtain access to private sources of
information. Contemporary members of
aristocratic families agreed to write accounts
based on their personal memories about
how Mannerheim was received by their
ancestors. Thus the access to unique
sources of information in Poland and
Finland made it possible to make this
book something truly special.
Obelisk in memory of Marshal Carl Mannerheim
at the Cathedral of Holy Spirit in Warsaw
Mannerheim in Poland Today
Even if knowledge about Marshal
Mannerheim is not sufficiently widespread
in Poland, there are many signs of respect
towards him. The first place to meet
Mannerheim is on the fence of the Finnish
Embassy in Warsaw, where there is
a permanent exhibition displayed on
several plates with information about him.
In Warsaw, there is a memorial stone
erected in the courtyard of the former
garrison orthodox church of St. Olga,
where Mannerheim’s Uhlan regiment was
stationed. After the independence, it was
turned into the Catholic garrison church
of Marshal Pilsudski’s soldiers.
Mannerheim has been honored with
a memorial plaque in Kalisz where he
served, as well as a memorial stone in Spała,
where Tsar Nicholas II had his hunting palace.
There are Mannerheim memorial rooms in
the Palace of Uniejów as well as in the
Palace of Dernałowicz in Mińsk Mazowiecki.
In addition, a decoratively carved wooden
pillar has been erected in his memory in
the courtyard of the Uhlan Museum.
The publication of “Mannerheim - polskie
lata” is scheduled for the 156th anniversary
of Mannerheim’s birth, June 4th, 2023.
We are pleased to announce that,
in cooperation with the Finnish Trade Guild
in Poland, we are preparing a special offer
of pre-orders for the members of the
guild. The offer will be available soon.
Jukka and Anna Soisalon-Soininen
Jukka Soisalon-Soininen
jukka.soisalonsoininen@gmail.com
+358 50 501 54 50
EXPLORE FINLAND IN POLAND 33

Vistula Sauna
The hottest place by the Vistula river is back!
With the reopening of Sauna Wisła, the sauna
season in Poland has begun for good.
Sauna Wisła is the most unique place, where
you can regenerate your body and relax.
Located at the picturesque Czerniakowski
Port, it is the facility with the longest
opening hours in Warsaw. Sauna sessions
start at six in the morning and continue until
late night.
For fall and winter, the sauna operator -
Miami Wars - has prepared sessions with
a sauna master, respiratory therapy classes
and a service "Morsuj i Saunuj", i.e. sauna
session and transfer by ship to the Saska
beach, where you can swim under the care
of a lifeguard. During the spring period,
there will also be Sup Yoga classes at Port
Czerniakowski.
To celebrate its return, Sauna Wisła prepared
an entire day of free sauna sessions which
took place on November 24.
Sessions at Sauna Wisła start everyday
in the following hours:
6/7.30/9/10.30/12/13.30/15/16.30/18/19.3
0/21/22.30/00.00.
One session includes 1.5 hours stay
in the sauna zone.
Individual entry costs PLN 45 (1.5h)
or PLN 350 (the entire sauna for 1.5h).
You can book your spot at
www.saunawisla.pl
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NEW & EXPANDING
COMPANIES
on the Polish market
Poland has come a long way from
decaying as a Soviet satellite to
becoming one of the fastest growing
economies in Europe over the last
three decades. Fun fact: it was
the only European country to avoid
recession following the 2008 crisis.
Moreover, Poland was called a “tiger
of Europe” even before joining
the EU and becoming the largest
beneficiary of its funds.
With a population of 38M, a talented
labor pool and a stable economy, Poland
is attracting investors from all over the
world. There are currently as many as 500
Finnish companies operating in the country,
including around 80 with production sites
there. If you have been wondering which
Finnish businesses have expanded to
Poland just this year, here are some stories
about their journeys, lessons learned
and plans for the future.
Warsaw, June 2022
Photography by A. Jędrzejewska
NEW & EXPANDING COMPANIES 35

About to break and
enter a new market?
Transformation needs action. If you are looking for a partner with a
serious passion for building new, disruptive digital experiences that
move you forward, whatever it takes – a partner that sees every
Monday as an opportunity to do something great, then let’s talk.
Vincit.com
36 NEW & EXPANDING COMPANIES

All aboard the Efecte express
– key elements in a successful integration
Efecte is a growing SaaS business
helping service organizations
digitalize and automate their work.
In 2022, Efecte acquired InteliWISE,
a Polish Conversational Artificial
Intelligence (AI) company. As Efecte
already had well-functioning
partnerships with several software
developers in Poland, it was well
acquainted with Polish culture, with
its high-quality talent and similar
working styles.
The drivers of successful integration
One of the main criteria driving the
acquisition process was the cultural fit
between the two companies. The team,
leadership, and key stakeholders from
both companies met several times to
ensure a unified ambition. A key element
in solidifying a common culture and
strengthening the togetherness was
bringing the teams together, both
physically, at a town hall event in Poland
and in Efecte’s HQ, as well as virtually,
on a joint Slack channel.
Integration streams also played an important
role throughout the process. Starting from
Day 1, leaders formed a core integration
team and focused on creating clarity,
confidence, transparency, and regularity
in the companies’ communications. Efecte
assigned a designated person in the new
position of Integration Manager, which
was another crucial step in the process.
This ensured that someone was in charge
of all the integration streams, implementation
timeframe, communication, and spirit
throughout the journey.
Efecte also set common clear targets for
the process. The first remarkable milestone
reached was the launch of the first joint
product at a record speed of less than three
months at Digitalize & Automate 2022.
Through the InteliWISE acquisition, Efecte
established Poland as one of its direct
markets. Since the acquisition, Spondeo
has been a great help in guiding the
company through the practices and
policies of the Polish market.
The integration project is still ongoing and
next year promises to be no less eventful,
with joint strategy execution plans for all
functions. Efecte is looking forward to
starting the new year together with
the team, which continues to grow.
www.efecte.com
info.pl@efecte.com
+48 227 656 000
Ursynowska 72, 02-605 Warsaw, Poland
NEW & EXPANDING COMPANIES 37

Fazer
When Karl Fazer opened his first café
in Kluuvikatu, Helsinki in 1891, his
goal was clear: to make food with
a purpose and to bring moments of
joy to people. At that time, no one
would have believed that young
Karl was creating something that
today is one of Finland’s most
successful and iconic companies.
Over time, that first café in Kluuvikatu
grew into a confectionery business
and eventually an international food
company. Fazer has also recently
started to expand in Poland.
The Food Experience Company
Fazer is an international Food Experience
Company – a billion-dollar business with
thousands of employees. The company
creates meaningful food experiences and
moments of joy. By combining its heritage
with fearless creativity, Fazer is innovating
the sustainable food solutions of the future.
Bakery, Confectionary and Lifestyle Foods
Fazer is Finland’s leading producer of
chocolates, sweets, and biscuits. The bestknown
brands include Kismet, Tutti Frutti,
Dumle, Geisha, and Karl Fazer Milk Chocolate.
Every year, the company produces 13 million
Karl Fazer Milk Chocolate tablets. Fazer
Lifestyle Foods offers modern consumers
a variety of non-dairy products, breakfast
products, and smoothies.
Fazer also operates 130 (as of the end of
2021) shop-in-shop bakeries in Finland
and in Estonia. Shop-in-shop bakeries are
real bakeries inside grocery stores, where
fresh bread is baked by hand every day.
A forerunner of innovation and
sustainability
Fazer Café Kluuvikatu in Helsinki
A step into the future: Fazer to strengthen
its operations in Poland
To strengthen Fazer’s presence on the
Polish market and to further its strategic
priority of growing in Northern Europe,
the company has decided to establish its
own sales organization in Poland through
a new commercial unit.
Poland is one of Fazer’s prioritized markets
and in line with the company’s strategy.
Fazer has now decided to strengthen its
local operations in the country. From the
beginning of August 2022, Fazer will serve
Polish retail through its own sales organization
– Fazer Poland. Fazer Poland is a One Fazer
unit that will especially support the develop-
-ment of Fazer’s presence on the Polish
Fazer Café Kluuvikatu in Helsinki
market. It will be led by Michał Wójcik and
the office will be in Warsaw.
Fazer has a long history in Poland.
The company has been present on the
market since the beginning of the 1990s
and its high-quality chocolates, sweets,
biscuits, oat products and bread are
renowned and cherished by customers.
Brands like Karl Fazer, Dumle, Geisha,
Fazermint, Liqueur Fills and Fazer Willja
are especially valued by Polish consumers.
Fazer will do its very best to grow and
cherish these brands in the future. With
Fazer Poland, the company is adding an
eighth country to its operating markets.
Contact:
contact.fazerpoland@fazer.com
Sustainability is at the core of the company.
Fazer’s main priority is ensuring the sustain-
-able management of cocoa sourcing,
securing profitable farming and improving
the cocoa community’s well-being.
Fazer factory in Vantaa
38 NEW & EXPANDING COMPANIES

Gebwell
The world will not be changed by a single
individual. Nor will it be changed by words
alone. To achieve a cleaner future, we need
to work together and tackle and solve one
challenge at a time. Gebwell is known as
a company whose heat pump and district
heating products can be enjoyed with a clear
conscience. For us, using clean heat is a way
of taking a stand and adopting a positive
approach to combating climate change.
We understand that today’s world provides
us with unparalleled opportunities.
The energy sector is undergoing
a transformation, while people are
becoming increasingly interested in the
well-being of the environment and ways
of contributing to a better tomorrow.
Gebwell Ltd., founded in 2006, is a Finnish
company specializing in environmentally
friendly heating and cooling solutions for
buildings. We design and manufacture
devices for connecting buildings to district
heating as well as utilizing ground source
heat in the heating and cooling of buildings.
Our product selection comprises district
heating and cooling substations, heat
pumps and energy accumulator tanks.
Our headquarters and production facilities
cover an area of 20,000 square meters,
located in the ‘heating capital of Finland’ –
Leppävirta in Northern Savolax.
The company’s administration, sales,
procurement and product development
are located there. In addition to Leppävirta,
we also have sales offices in two big cities:
Tampere and Vantaa.
We have subsidiaries in Sweden and
in Poland. In Sweden there is a sales
organization of some ten people, while
in Poland we also have production.
Gebwell’s new factory near Gdańsk
Gebwell’s new factory near Gdańsk
Gebwell’s new factory near Gdańsk
Gebwell Sp. z o.o.
Gebwell Sp. z o.o. was founded in 2009 and
has since established a strong presence on
the Polish district heating substation market.
Ten years after starting operations in Poland
it has become clear that Gebwell became
one of the main market leaders and now
delivers its products to the biggest heating
companies all over Poland. At the same
time, Gebwell Poland, in cooperation with
its new partners, started to deliver its
products to neighboring countries.
All those activities and continued growth,
led to the decision to build a new factory in
Northern Poland, which would be Gebwell’s
main production facility for Eastern and
Central Europe.
Beside difficult times, mostly due to Covid
restrictions, we are pushing ahead with our
investment plans and on September 1,
2022 a new Gebwell factory was opened
near Gdańsk. The facility covers 4,000
square meters and, as we are a specialist
in environmentally friendly heating and
cooling solutions for buildings, our new
factory is equipped with Gebwell Taurus
heat pumps with a total heating capacity
of 200kW and the additional function of
cooling both office and production spaces.
With our focus on solutions, quality, and
an individual approach, we firmly believe
that our green solutions will be even more
appreciated in the coming future.
Gebwell Sp. z o.o.
www.gebwell.pl
biuro@gebwell.pl
+48 588 882 333
NEW & EXPANDING COMPANIES 39

Pagero
Pagero, headquartered in Gothenburg,
Sweden, has over thirty offices on six
continents and serves customers in more
than 140 countries. The company provides
a Smart Business Network that connects
buyers and sellers for automated, compliant,
and secure exchange of orders, invoices,
payment instructions, and other business
documents.
With an open network and a wide range of
value-added apps, Pagero helps businesses
streamline their order-to-cash and purchase-
-to-pay processes while unlocking the full
potential of accurate and reliable business
data. All of this regardless of location,
industry, size or systems.
Pagero’s solutions for streamlined
operations
●
●
●
●
E-invoicing – digitally exchange
invoices with all your customers and
suppliers.
AP and AR Automation – receive all
your invoices electronically, straight
into your financial system, and send
all your invoices electronically from
a single platform.
P2P and O2C Automation – digitize
your order, delivery, and invoice
handling and increase end-to-end
control of the purchase-to-pay and
order-to-cash processes.
E-invoicing compliance – achieve
compliance with local requirements
everywhere you do business.
Pagero Poland
Andrzej Pijanowski
Country Manager
andrzej.pijanowski@pagero.com
+48 532 536 512
40 NEW & EXPANDING COMPANIES
Digitalization redefining the business
landscape
The business landscape is characterized by
a strong wave of digitization worldwide.
The push by governments to introduce
electronic invoicing and various tax reporting
models has to do with a desire to reduce
the VAT gap and streamline their economies.
In recent years, this trend has also been
noticeable in Poland, which is now taking
the next step by introducing a nationwide
B2B e-invoicing mandate in 2024.
To enable the transition, a new centralized
platform, KSeF (Krajowy System e-Faktur),
is currently being introduced, affecting all
businesses registered for Polish VAT.
The environment is already live and, as
of 2024, all invoices should be sent and
received via the platform. Pagero’s offer
will connect customers to the KseF and
ensure that technical and invoice format
demands are being fully met.
Andrzej Pijanowski, Pagero’s Country Manager in Poland
Pagero’s established operations
in Poland
In light of the regulatory landscape, Pagero
has recently established local operations in
Poland. “As providing solutions for e-invoicing
and e-document exchange is our core, it’s
only natural for Pagero to establish local
operations,” says Andrzej Pijanowski,
Country Manager for Pagero Poland.
“Mandatory e-invoicing is just around the
corner, and a significant digital transformation
lies ahead for Polish companies. Hence,
we want to bring our business closer to
the customers, enabling us to give them
better support to make a smooth switch.”
“After some busy months, the business
operations are now up and running, and
a physical office is to be opened in Warsaw
soon,” Pijanowski continues. “Pagero’s Polish
customer base has grown substantially over
the last few years and we are pleased to be
able to offer them our services from a close
distance. Going forward, we will continue
expanding our network of customers and
partners, establishing a steady foothold
to build upon. Observing the national
demand and current development, we see
a potential for rapid growth also in the future.”
Buying and selling should be easy
“There is a clear need for the services
we provide, which help digitize financial
processes, not only among Polish companies
facing e-invoice requirements, but also
among multinational businesses that are
likely to be affected by similar mandates in
other countries. With the help of Pagero’s
cloud-based open network, all parties can
communicate digitally with each other and
meet the existing legal requirements on
a global scale. No matter where you are
located, buying and selling should be easy.
And that is what Pagero will help you
accomplish.”
.

Renta
Renta Group is one of the leading equipment rental companies in Northern
Europe. The company was established in 2016 in Finland. Renta currently
operates in Sweden, Norway, Denmark, and Poland. It provides a wide
range of construction equipment and related services.
In 2015, a small group of experienced
equipment rental professionals,
in cooperation with the private equity
investor Intera Partners, created a modern
and non-traditional equipment rental services
concept. The goal was to become a major
player throughout the Baltic Sea region.
The founders of Renta saw a clear demand
for a new type of operator in the area.
From day one, Renta was built on
a strong set of core values: understanding
the customers, entrepreneurial attitude,
reliability and innovation. The strategy and
actions of the company have been based
on these values ever since. Renta’s local
depots are the cornerstone of its business.
The local professionals are the ones who
truly know the local customers. Renta
gives depots the responsibility, trust and
permission to make their own decisions
and deliver solutions to their own
customers – with a local touch and
an entrepreneurial spirit.
Renta offers a variety of products and services:
• Equipment rental – the available
equipment includes, for example:
aerial lifts, hand-operated construction
machinery, earthmoving machinery,
excavators, air compressors & tools,
power generation & climate control
equipment, safety equipment, and
fuel tanks.
• On-site facilities – designing and
manufacturing on-site facilities and
temporary spaces.
• Scaffolding and weather protection –
renting and installing scaffolding and
weather protection for projects
of all sizes.
• On-site services – providing installation
and design services for construction
sites: electrical and lighting services
for the construction site, heating and
drying, installation of on-site facilities
incl. walkways, maintenance services
for facilities, electrical, drying and heating
equipment, storage services, project
planning, and transport and lifting.
Renta’s growth in Poland
Renta Group Oy established a subsidiary
in Poland in September 2019. The company
appointed Tomasz Walawender as Country
Manager and a member of the Renta Group
Management Team. The Polish branch was
founded with the plan to build a nationwide
network of outlets and become an important
player on the local rental market. According
to Kari Aulasmaa, CEO of Renta Group,
the Polish rental market is significant and
one of the largest growth potentials in
the Baltic Sea region, which is Renta’s
targeted area.
In April 2020, Renta made a symbolic
move in developing its activity on Poland’s
rental market by opening the first rental
depot in Katowice. Within a few weeks,
Kraków and Wrocław joined the network.
Gdańsk, Gdynia, Łódź, Poznań, and
Warsaw were chosen as subsequent cities
for Renta’s expansion in the country.
In 2022, five more outlets were established
in Rzeszów, Bielsko-Biała, Bydgoszcz, Lublin
and Szczecin, which means that Renta is
currently present in 13 Polish cities. This is
not the end of the company’s growth in
Poland. After Renta entered the Polish
market, the company announced that it
would be opening at least 20 rental depots
and was looking around for acquisition
opportunities.
.
www.renta.com
Finland: +358 40 511 6445,
kari.aulasmaa@renta.com
Poland: +48 506 555 035,
tomasz.walawender@renta.pl
NEW & EXPANDING COMPANIES 41

Creating better Mondays – Vincit in
Poland
How can two digital pioneers build on their
already considerable success? By joining
forces! The July 2022 merger of Vincit and
Bilot brought together a pair of entrepre-
-neurially driven IT consultancies. Bilot
delivers top-of-the-line SAP expertise for
Vincit, a leading modern custom software
developer based in Finland. The merged
companies have continued under the Vincit
name, which has received Great Place to
Work certification in Finland and Europe
numerous times.
Vincit was founded to create a workplace
for the best digital talent where it doesn’t
suck to come in on Mondays. Fifteen
years on, Vincit sees “Better Mondays” as
a bigger promise – not just for its employees,
but for customers and the planet too.
The company believes in this approach
because of the nature of their work as
a consultancy: by affecting their customers’
businesses, the potential beneficial impact
is multiplied dramatically.
Why does Vincit work in Poland?
Bilot has been operating in Poland for the
past six years, and Vincit is interested in
Poland for one simple reason – the country’s
ultra-high level of IT consultancy and
software talent. Vincit isn’t alone in recognizing
this value, as a lot of IT companies see
Poland as a strategic location for recruitment.
But perhaps Vincit has a slightly different
angle than many of the large IT players.
For Vincit, the goal is not about nearshoring;
it’s about finding a gateway to the best
talent in Europe that will enable more growth
in Europe and the US. Another advantage
for Vincit is that Polish digital professionals
are already used to working with Nordic
companies, which makes onboarding and
working together easier.
Cooperating across borders
When it comes to digital professionals in
the modern workplace, Vincit believes that
location no longer matters. While they have
a local presence in the countries they work
in, Vincit also feels that the people with
the best competencies can be combined
into multicultural teams to serve a wide
range of customers. This is a big benefit
for customers, who get access to the best
talent for the task at hand. It’s also a benefit
for employees, as it means they can work
with a variety of co-workers on interesting
projects around the world.
Looking to the future
Given the level of talent and ability to work
across borders, Vincit is looking to continue
expanding its Polish operations. The company
offers its employees a Nordic approach to
work, which means a strong focus on their
work-life balance and a working environment
where they can actually look forward to
turning up on a Monday. For Polish digital
professionals and developers, working
with Vincit also means access to interesting
cases on an international scale.
Vincit
Interested to learn more about Vincit?
Visit www.vincit.com
or reach out anytime at:
info@vincit.com
+48 22 185 5464
42 NEW & EXPANDING COMPANIES

Wiima Logistics
Wiima Logistics is one of the leading
4PL providers on the Finnish market,
with an active and well-diversified
customer base comprising many
well-known companies from various
industry segments. The customer
base includes, for example, manufac-
-turing, import-export, marine, and
wood processing companies.
The company was established in 2010 and
has employees at multiple locations around
the globe. The founders privately own the
company. The annual turnover in 2022 is
approximately EUR 24M.
Fourth-party logistics (4PL) is a service to
make companies’ daily operations more
manageable by delegating the logistics
arrangements to be handled by someone
else. As a neutral logistics service provider,
Wiima manages the logistics process on
customers’ behalf.
Efficient supply chain management gives
a company a competitive edge and
distinguishes it from competitors.
Giving control to 4PL professionals will:
• decrease company freight spend and
cost-to-serve
• increase the number of working hours
available for core business
• bring flexibility and rapid adaptation
to changing market situations
The goal is to have an integrated supply
chain with centralized decision-making,
LSP relationship management, and
end-to end visibility.
Wiima also has a separate project logistics
division. The division serves customers with
various types of demanding international
projects. The service is designed to provide
customers with a one-stop shop for the
entire project logistics setup.
Our project logistics experts handle
customers’ transportation needs through
a single point of contact method. They
optimize and arrange all freight modes –
air, sea, road, rail, courier and oversize –
including customs clearance, last-mile
arrangements, and on-site supervision.
Our digital project logistics management
platform makes the service truly unique.
The platform is designed to provide
project stakeholders with unprecedented
control over their global supply chains.
Entering the Polish market
Wiima Poland offers logistics outsourcing
services and project logistics services to
the group’s customer base locally and
globally. The subsidiary was established in
2022. The decision to open the new office
was based on strong customer demand
from an internationally renowned wood
products specialist company.
This cooperation includes implementing
a continuous logistics process improvement
model and delivering harmonized shipment
data, including CO2 reporting, real-time
tracking and scalable resources to provide
long-term competitiveness for the customer.
The new location supports our continuous
pursuit of a stronger foothold on the
European market. We are confident that
the Polish market also offers unique added
value to our customers. The Polish labor
force is highly competitive in its costknowledge
balance. We wish to leverage
this advantage in our endeavor to make
Wiima’s service provision ever more
attractive to companies globally.
www.wiima.fi
Finland | China | Singapore | Malaysia | USA | Estonia
- 4PL management to match your needs
“All orders and offers are subject to the General Conditions for Transport,
Forwarding and Warehousing of the Nordic Association of Freight Forwarders,
NSAB 2015. These rules can be obtained from our offices and agents.”
NEW & EXPANDING COMPANIES 43

SPORT
Finnish athletes & Sport places
in Poland
Sport is an important element of every Finn’s daily routine. They love
performing, watching and also sharing it with others. In this part, get ready
for exclusive interviews with a Finnish football player and an ice hockey
coach, discover how good Poles are at möllky and read stories about
the Finns bringing golf and padel to Polish cities.
Photography by Petutzki
instagram.com/petutzki
44 SPORT

Finnish footballers in Polish clubs
Robert Ivanov, a 28-year-old from Finland, has played in Warta Poznań since
2020. We asked him some questions about his experiences in the top Polish
football league and life in Poland.
Julia Morta: What are the differences
between playing in a Polish vs Finnish
football club?
Robert Ivanov: Mostly, of course, is
the difference in the quality of players.
In Poland, there is more physicality and
you need to be really strong to be able
to play at the level needed.
Julia Morta: What aspects of training in
Warta helped you improve as an
individual and team player?
Robert Ivanov: Individually, I started to
train more in the gym, meaning that I had
more power in games and training.
As a team player, integrating into the team
speaking English and a little bit of Polish.
And overall, just having a different kind of
locker room compared to Finland and Honka.
Julia Morta: What was your greatest
achievement during your time in Warta?
Robert Ivanov: Definitely coming fifth in
the first season. It was a historical season
in many ways for Warta and it was a great
big pleasure to be a part of it.
Julia Morta: You had played only in
Finnish football clubs before joining
Warta Poznań. What convinced you
to continue your career in Poland?
Robert Ivanov: It was quite an easy
decision to come to Poland. Ekstraklasa
is a big league and there are a lot of big
clubs, so it was definitely a step in the
right direction for me. And, of course,
Warta was very interested in me so it also
helped the decision to come.
Julia Morta: What have you enjoyed
about living here?
Robert Ivanov: The summer is longer than
in Finland! And just living abroad is some-
-thing that I have always dreamed of.
In addition, Poznań is a very beautiful city,
so I got lucky with my first city living abroad.
Julia Morta: Is there anything that has
particularly surprised you about Poland?
Robert Ivanov: I was surprised by how
big Poland is as a country. The traveling
to away games is almost always 4-6 hours.
Julia Morta: What is your favorite place
in Poznań?
Robert Ivanov: I think Wilda is a really
nice place, it reminds me a bit of Helsinki.
Easy going and a lot of good places to eat.
Julia Morta: What do you like most about
Polish culture? How is it different from
what you have encountered in Finland?
Robert Ivanov: Polish food is very good.
Finnish people are maybe better at
speaking English in general.
Julia Morta: What would you bring from
Poland to Finland?
Robert Ivanov: Definitely the food and
cheap beer.
Julia Morta: What advice would you
give to Finnish footballers considering
a transfer to one of the Polish clubs?
Robert Ivanov: That they should be
prepared for the physical difference in
the leagues. And that most likely you will
need to start learning Polish.
Julia Morta: What is your favorite thing
about football?
Robert Ivanov: Being able to live my
dream. Going out every day and just
training and playing is the best thing ever.
Scoring goals and having fun.
Julia Morta: What are your professional
plans for the next few years?
Robert Ivanov: Keep playing until I’m 40
at least. And in the near future I will start
working for my coaching license. Coaching
is something that I find really interesting.
Robert Ivanov
Robert Ivanov was born in 1994
in Helsinki. He is part of the
Finland national team since his
appearance in 2019 in a friendly
match against Sweden.
Ivanov played over 140
games for FC Myllypuro,
FC Viikingit and FC Honka.
In September 2020, he
signed a two-year deal
with Warta Poznań. He plays
as a center back, wearing
the number 4.
Richard Olav Jenses
was born in 1996 in Porvoo. He
was captain of the Finland U21 in
the 2019 UEFA Football Under-21
Championship qualifications.
During his senior career, he played
in Jong Twente, Twente and
Roda JC Kerkrade.
In July 2022, Jenses
signed a one-year
contract to join Górnik
Zabrze. He plays as
a center back wearing
the number 3.
Niilo Mäenpää
was born in 1998 in Hämeenlinna.
After his youth career in
HJK Helsinki and FC Twente,
he played in FC Hämeenlinna,
FC Haka, Inter Turku and
IFK Mariehamn. In December
2021, Mäenpää signed a two-
-and-a-half-year contract with
Warta Poznań and joined
the team in January 2022.
He plays as a midfielder
wearing the number 8.
SPORT 45

26
Finnish
Ice hockey players
in Poland
Victory in the 2022 IIHF World Championship proved that
Finns have a special talent when it comes to ice hockey.
Polish clubs recognize the valuable abilities of Finnish
players. There are currently 26 Finns in eight out of nine
teams who play in the premier ice hockey league in Poland.
Jesse Ahonen 1997, Lahti
Defenseman in KH Energa
Toruń since 2022
Niko Ahoniemi 1996,Tampere
Forward in STS Sanok
since 2022
Erik Ahopelto 1996, Tampere
Forward in Unia Oświęcim
since 2022
Elias Elomaa 1997, Tampere
Forward in KH Energa Toruń
since 2022
Ville Heikkinen 1994, Helsinki
Forward in STS Sanok
since 2022
Olli Kaskinen 1999, Raisio
Defenseman in GKS Tychy
since 2022
Saku Kinnunen 1995, Kuhmo
Defenseman in Cracovia
Kraków since 2021
Markus Korkiakoski 1992, Yli-Ii
Forward in JKH GKS Jastrzębie
since 2022
Niki Koskinen 1997, Iitti
Forward in KH Energa Toruń
since 2022
Tommi Laakso 1997, Helsinki
Forward in Unia Oświęcim
since 2022
Erik Ahopelto
Photography by J. Fiedor (instagram.com/jaroslawfiedorfotografia)
Toni Henttonen 1994, Savonlinna
Forward in STS Sanok
since 2021
Timi Lahtinen 1995, Helsinki
Forward in STS Sanok
since 2022
Niko Mikkola 1997, Oulu
Defenseman in GKS Katowice
since 2022
Samu Suominen 1996, Forssa
Defenseman in Podhale Nowy
Targ since 2019
Eemeli Jeskanen 1997, Hyvinkää
Forward in KH Energa Toruń
since 2022
Matias Lehtonen 1995, Turku
Forward in GKS Katowice
since 2021
Eemeli Piippo 1996, Oulu
Defenseman in STS Sanok
since 2020
Sami Tamminen 1997, Valkeala
Forward in STS Sanok
since 2021
Sami Jekunen 1995, Pieksämäki
Defenseman in STS Sanok
since 2021
Juho Mäkelä 1996, Huittinen
Forward in STS Sanok
since 2022
Teemu Pulkkinen 1995, Kirkkonummi
Forward in GKS Katowice
since 2022
Kalle Valtola 1995, Turku
Defenseman in STS Sanok
since 2022
Jere Karlsson 1995, Turku
Defenseman in STS Sanok
since 2021
Joona Monto 1994, Hyvinkää
Forward in GKS Katowice
since 2021
Dominik Salama 1997, Vantaa
Goaltender in STS Sanok
since 2022
Olli-Petteri Viinikainen
1998, Uurainen
Defenseman in JKH GKS
Jastrzębie since 2022
46 SPORT

How do you coach
ice hockey champions?
Teemu Elomo is a Finnish former
professional ice hockey player who
competed in a total of 387 regular
season matches in SM-liiga. He has
also played abroad in Hungary,
Denmark, France, Kazakhstan,
Slovakia and Sweden. After the end
of his career as a player, hecoached
in Sweden and Norway. In 2022, he
took the role of head coach at KH
Toruń in Poland.
Julia Morta: What are the differences
between the approach to ice hockey
in Poland compared to Finland?
Teemu Elomo: In Finland, the team is
built by roles – offensive player roles and
defensive player roles. So everybody has
a role in a team that brings out the best
in the player and helps the team the best
possible way. Here in Poland, it is more
about getting the best possible players
that fit in your team’s budget.
Julia Morta: Finland is the world champion
of ice hockey. What qualities do Finnish
players possess that makes them so
effective?
Teemu Elomo: In Finland, already from
a young age the players belong to teams
that have professional and full-time coaches
– not parents or volunteers, but professional
coaches. This is a huge thing because the
best possible teachers help to train players
early on how to be a good athlete. I would
say that this is the reason why Finland, year
after year, has a good national team and
new fantastic players pop up every year.
Julia Morta: What do you personally
like most about ice hockey?
Teemu Elomo: What I like the most is the
competitiveness, speed and physicality
of the game. A good hockey player has to
have balance, strength, power, coordination,
mental toughness and so on. It is the
hardest game on the planet and it is not
for everyone.
Julia Morta: You have a successful, over
20 years long career as a professional
ice hockey player. What is your favorite
memory from that period?
Teemu Elomo: I have a lot of great memories
from my long career. All the championships
I won, my first national team game, getting
drafted to the NHL… But my favorite is when
we won the World Junior Championship
on home soil in Helsinki in front of 13,000
people. Yes, that is the one.
Julia Morta: What are the main values
you attempt to convey to your team as
a coach?
Teemu Elomo: Be a coachable player.
If you are not a coachable player, you are
going to have a very short career. This is
number one. Additionally, always be
present and try your hardest because hard
work will always pay off. It is also important
to respect your teammates.
Julia Morta: Is it more beneficial for
a team to win a game easily or to lose,
but learn a lot about what needs to be
improved?
Teemu Elomo: Both, but in the long run
I would say it is better to learn from a lost
game and move forward as a stronger team.
Julia Morta: Is there anything that really
surprised you about Poland?
Teemu Elomo: Maybe that the level of
hockey is much better than I expected it
to be. This is maybe the biggest surprise.
Julia Morta: What do you like most about
Polish culture? How is it different from
what you have experienced in Finland?
Teemu Elomo: My favorite thing is that people
are very friendly and helpful here in Poland.
Finnish people are more closed and quiet. I am
different, but that is because I have lived outside
Finland for 15 years in many different countries.
Julia Morta:What is your favorite place
in Toruń?
Teemu Elomo: The ice hockey rink of course.
But, in my free time, I also like to walk
around the old town and along the river.
Torun is a beautiful city.
Julia Morta: Would you encourage Finnish
players to join Polish ice hockey clubs?
Teemu Elomo: Absolutely. In Finland you
are a full professional only in Liiga. Other
levels are semi-professional and there are
a lot of good players there. If they came
to Poland, they could be full professionals
and max out their potential.
Teemu Elomo, the head coach at KH Toruń in Poland
SPORT 47

Sand Valley Golf Resort’s history has its
roots in the early 2000s. That was when
Timo Hulkkonen came to Poland with the
intent of selling the heating systems his
company, LPM, was producing. Timo’s first
partner in Poland was Alexander Wellenger,
back then a CEO of Opec Gdynia. In the
late 1990s, the idea of building a golf course
was dreamt up by Timo’s eldest son, Kai
Hulkkonen. Timo, on the other hand, saw
the golf project as a way to give something
back to Poland, because it had given him
so much. He and his family are still the main
owners of Sand Valley. The Wellenger family
joined the project as minority shareholders
offering much needed local support to this
complex and large project. In fact it was
Dariusz Wellenger, the son of Alexander,
who found the site in Paslek. Kai and the
creative team decided that the project
should be called Sand Valley and, after
years of planning, the construction finally
started in 2006. As one might expect,
it was not an easy project, but after many
ups and downs, by 2009 the course
started to be finally ready.
THE ROAD TO
Sand Valley
Golf Resort
48 SPORT

Antti Pohjonen joined the project midconstruction
during the summer of 2007,
with the aim of helping his brother Kai and
starting the real estate part of the project.
The brothers worked together for years,
but by late 2010 it was clear that Kai "had
to build more courses." In the spring of
2011, Kai moved on and has now built
many well-known projects in Europe,
including Pärnu Bay. Antti, on the other
hand, felt right at home in Poland even
though Sand Valley was far from a functioning
business. "In the spring of 2011, the course
was still not fully finished, there was no
entrance road to the site and there were
only a handful of members. Foreign golf
tourism didn't exist, phones were cut off
and I didn't speak a word of Polish, nor
did I play golf myself. On top of that, we
had no restaurant and the business was
losing money every day," Pohjonen says.
That being said, he also thought, "it shouldn't
be so difficult to make this work."
From there on the philosophy was quite
simple as Pohjonen saw it: "It was clear for
me from the get-go that it would be easier
to invite foreigners to visit us in Poland
than it would be to tell Polish people what
a golf ball is. Sand Valley should be a resort
where we concentrate on taking care of
the people and their needs." Finland was
the natural first market and by 2012 there
were some houses, the course started to
look better and there were also a few villas
where people could stay. There was light
at the end of the tunnel. Paul O'Connor
joined the team in 2012, and over the
coming years so did many other rising
stars. The foreign market quickly became
Paul's main responsibility and the bread
and butter of what Sand Valley was focused
on doing. Before the pandemic, Sand
Valley was hosting thousands of happy
golfers every year.
Then came Covid-19. To understand what
this meant to Sand Valley, Pohjonen said
that "naturally it took us by surprise, as it
did everyone else. As a golf business with
around 40 workers and having 80% of its
income coming from abroad, it hurt us even
more than one would think. We survived it
thanks to our amazing team, which is still
together, some well-timed governmental
grants, fast booming Polish business, and
of course the real estate frenzy that can be
even credited to the pandemic." During
the two-year period, Sand Valley went from
just over 100 beds to now offering more
than 200. Significant investments were also
made in the maintenance equipment and
the spirit inside the company is better than
ever. "We hear it all the time from our
visitors, our staff really makes them feel
comfortable and relaxed in their own laid
back positive style that is hard to explain
in any other way than saying – Feel free
to Join our Atmosphere," Pohjonen says.
Sand Valley Golf Resort is where Polish
Dream Golf exists. It is located close to
Gdańsk airport, from where there are daily
flights from Helsinki and Turku. A TOP100
course in Europe and the best in Poland,
Sand Valley is sure to surprise you during
your stay. The onsite accommodation and
extras are designed to offer the perfect
relaxation after your round: sit back in
your private jacuzzi, recharge your body
in your own sauna and take a swim in
your private pool – at Sand Valley,
you can do it all. Once ready for
dinner, let our staff pamper you
with our freshly cooked international
cuisine and legendary customer
service – Get ready to create new
memories with us and book your
holiday today.
www.sandvalley.pl
Sand Valley 23, 14 - 400 Pasłęk
+48 552 482 400
info@sandvalley.pl
SPORT 49

Mölkky stole the hearts
of Polish players
What is Mölkky?
Mölkky is a Finnish throwing game, similar
to bowling or pétanque. The word “mölkky”
has no actual meaning, it was probably
inspired by the Finnish word pölkky,
meaning block of wood. Mölkky is a game
that requires both skill and precision,
as well as strategic thinking!
Basic rules
Mölkky in Poland
The Polish Mölkky Federation associates
over a dozen Mölkky clubs and coordinates
Polish Championships and Grand Prix series.
Local clubs often organize regional competi-
-tions. Representatives of Polish clubs also
take part in international tournaments.
In 2022, the team of Dwunastka Warszawa
(“Dwunastka” means twelve – the highest
number on the pin) took 14th place at the
World Championships and 7th place at the
European Championships.
Near future
Warszawska Liga Mölkky
We want to continue playing and promoting
Mölkky. Next year, Warsaw is hosting the
European Championships. If you would
like to play with us or help/support us,
check out our FB (Polska Federacja Mölkky,
Stowarzyszenie Mölkky Dwunastka), visit
molkky.pl or contact Rafal Wesolowski
(r.wesolowski@molkky.pl, +48 604 684 084).
Before starting the game, place twelve
numbered pins in a special formation and
mark a throwing line three to four meters
away. Take turns in knocking down the
numbered pins with the Mölkky. After each
throw, the pins are stood up again in the
location where they landed. The scoring
system is simple: when you knock down
only one pin it scores the amount of points
that is marked on that pin, when you
knock down two or more pins, it scores
the number of pins that were knocked
over. The first player to reach exactly 50
points wins the game. If you exceed a score
of 50 it drops back to 25. If you miss all of
the target pins three times in a row you
are eliminated.
www.facebook.com/molkkydwunastka
www.molkky.pl
Rafał Wesołowski
facebook.com/molkkydwunastka Finland: +358 40 511 6445, kari.aulasmaa@renta.com
r.wesolowski@molkky.pl
tomasz.walawender@renta.pl
+48 604 684 084
50 SPORT

The first padel court in Poznań
A conversation early in June.
Juha:
"By the way, can you play
padel in Poznań?"
Tuomas:
"No, but I have been thinking
of establishing a court. I have
few locations in mind already"
Juha:
"Perkele, shall we?"
Tuomas:
"Why not? Lets ask the city if
they could lease us a place".
End of June:
A meeting with the City of
Poznań to present the idea.
Tuomas gave a presentation
in Polish, so either they liked it
or they pitied us so much that
they gave us a try.
Early July:
The City of Poznań suggested
a few potential places.
We liked the idea of Rataje
very much, as the location is
in the middle of tennis courts
and a sports ground, making
it easy to manage.
August:
Handshakes; lets do it!
September:
Ordering the court, preparing
contracts, establishing a com-
-pany, signing an agreement
with The City of Poznań.
October:
Ground works started
and finished.
November 15th:
The grand opening.
The first padel court in Poznań, POSiR Rataje
Padel rackets
Our huge thanks to the City of Poznań for trusting three
foreigners. From the very first meeting to the grand opening
took four and a half months.
The grand opening, 15th November 2022
Photography by A. Jędrzejewska
POSiR Rataje
Osiedle Piastowskie 106A
SPORT 51

Business
This section will introduce you to the complex and fascinating world of
business in Poland. Learn all you need to know about the Polish economy,
discover tips and stories from experts with decades of experience in
the market and find out which Finnish companies are currently growing
the fastest in Poland. As a bonus, you will find a special Ukrainian feature too!
Weronika Gidel-Asunmaa & Tomasz Wnuk
Spondeo team meeting, photography by A. Jędrzejewska
BUSINESS 53

Economic
indicators
in Poland
VAT
Tax rates
CIT
General indicators
36 700
32 300
25 000
23% 19%
Base rate
Base rate
Source: www.podatki.gov.pl/en/
Annual percentage change in GDP (%)
Purchase Power
(adjusted GDP per
capita) (EUR, 2021)
Source: EUROSTAT
EU avg
Finland
Poland
7,50
5,00
2,50
0,00
-2,50
2014 2016
2018 2020 2022
*2023 figure is the average of forecasts in November 2022
Source: Central Statistical Office
Purchasing Managers'
Index (PMI)
Source: IHS Markit
53,8 42
Nov 2021 Nov 2022
Annual inflation (CPI) (%)
20
15
10
5
0
-5
2014
2016 2018 2020 2022
General
government debt
in relation to GDP in 2021
Source: Central Statistical Office, EUROSTAT, Trading Economics
53,80%
Source: CEIC Data
Monthly inflation (CPI) (%)
Euro vs. Polish zloty
20
5,00
15
10
4,75
4,50
4,69
5
4,25
0
Jan 2018 Jan 2019 Jan 2020 Jan 2021 Jan 2022
4,00
Jan 2016 Jan 2018 Jan 2020 Jan 2022
Source: CEIC Data
Source: European Central Bank
Reference rate (%)
8
6
4
2
0
Oct 2021 Jan 2022 Apr 2022 Jul 2022 Oct 2022
Number of small and medium-sized
enterprises (SMEs) (2020)
80 076 small
1 881 620 micro
14 501 medium-sized
3 110 large
Source: CEIC Data
Source: European Comission, EUROSTAT
54 BUSINESS

billion EUR
billion EUR
Foreign trade
& investments
Unemployment
& salaries
Leading export partners (bn EUR, 2021) Annual unemployment rate (%)
100
75
81,9
20
15
50
25
0
16,8 16,3 14,5 13,2
2,6
Germany Czechia France UK Italy Finland
Source: Central Statistical Office
10
5
0
2005 2010 2015 2020
Source: Central Statistical Office
Leading import partners (bn EUR, 2021)
60
40
20
0
59,9
42,5
17 14,3 11,7
2,4
Germany China Russia Italy Netherlands Finland
Exports of goods and services in 2021 (% ofGDP)
Source: Central Statistical Office
Monthly unemployment rate (%)
8,0
6,0
4,0
2,0
0
Jan 2018 Jan 2019 Jan 2020 Jan 2021 Jan 2022
Number of self-employed people in 2021
Source: CEIC Data
61%
3.11 mil
Source: World Bank
Source: Central Statistical Office
Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) (EUR)
Minimum & average salary (PLN)
27,9 bn
Source: Ministry of Finance
Foreign direct investments in Poland (bn EUR)
8000
6000
4000
2000
0
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
PLN (avg salary)
PLN (min. salary)
PLN 6,935.00*
PLN 3,490.00**
2023
*Forecast of average salary 2023
**Based on the Budget Law
Source: Central Statistical Office, EUROSTAT
Average & minimum salary (EUR)
40
30
20
10
0
2014 2016 2018 2020
Source: Ministry of Finance
1400€ 740€
Average salary Oct 2022 Minimum salary from 1.1.2023
Source: Central Statistical Office, EUROSTAT
BUSINESS 55

Weronika Gidel-Asunmaa
You might have heard that Poland has
a large, well-skilled labor pool. Although
this is true, the quest for top talent remains
fiercely competitive. There are outstan-
-ding professionals all around, but they
often feel satisfied with their current
employment conditions. What can
convince them to consider another job?
The most effective solutions include:
a higher salary, new benefits, safer work
conditions, remote working option,
a Scandinavian work culture and,
of course, a more attractive position
and job title itself.
Before you start recruiting in Poland, it is
important to know that the same tactics
that work in Finland might not necessarily
prove as effective here. You will need to
use different sourcing platforms, new
techniques and perhaps even adjust job
titles to acquire the right specialists.
My advice? Prepare well to avoid
unpleasant surprises. To gain a significant
competitive advantage, your company
needs a cutting- edge talent acquisition
strategy. The good news is, we can help
you with that.
Here are ten things I learned during
more than a decade of recruiting Polish
talents for various Scandinavian
companies:
1. Recruitment is also sales.
We, as the recruiters, have to sell ourselves
to the candidates. Then, we need to sell
your company as an attractive employer.
Finally, you need to sell yourself.
2. Recruiting requires
detective work.
We put a lot of effort into generating long
lists of candidates based on our search
map and keywords, which have to be very
selective and partially written in Polish.
3. No copy/paste!
Another crucial thing is to always send
approach messages that feel personal and
thoughtful. The best profiles, especially
in IT, receive several messages every
week, so our aim is not to be another
annoying recruitment company sending
formal messages based on templates.
4. Resignations are effective
from the end of the month.
It does not matter whether a person resigns
on the 1st day or the 30th, in Poland the
starting date of the notice period will run
from the 1st day of the subsequent calendar
month. This is why a lot of contracts are
signed at the end of the month, and your
competitors will be trying to close the deal
during that time. A candidate is usually
taking part in at least a few recruitments,
so make sure not to lose them because
of late decisions.
5. You need a combination
approach - ads on job
boards will not be enough.
Using multiple recruitment strategies (ads,
LinkedIn Talent Search, recommendations,
etc.) is a must. More than 80% of our hires
today are found by direct search or recommen-
-dations. Poland currently has a record low
unemployment rate (around 2-3% in 2022,
accoring to Eurostat), meaning there are
many passive candidates who do not go
through job boards. However, combining
direct search with publishing ads allows
you to find the best talent from the entire
spectrum of candidates. Some of the most
recommended job portals are Pracuj.pl,
OLX, RocketJobs and NoFluffJobs (IT).
6. Insufficient pay is often
a dealbreaker.
In Poland, talks go to salary early on,
especially if the candidate comes from
direct search. It is important to find out
early if you are both on the same page.
It can be also useful to remember that
candidates usually talk about net income
when asked about their salary
expectations.
7. Poland is no longer
a cheap labor pool.
In some cases, salaries reach the EU
average and some can even be higher
than in Finland. At the same time,
the range of salaries is still wide. The base
remuneration is around EUR 650 and top
managers are increasingly paid better
than in Finland. Salaries in the Warsaw
area are approximately 25% higher than
the Polish average.
8. B2B contracts are quite
common, especially in
sales and IT.
Having a B2B contract means that a person
runs their own sole-trader company, sends
you monthly invoices and covers social costs
themselves. However, the Polish government
has been attempting to increase the tax
base of sole-trader companies.
9. Employees expect
benefits packages.
Multisport and private health insurance are
standard benefits. Other perks include
things like social packages or covering
commuting expenses. A hefty benefits
package can make a world of difference –
still, a person is unlikely to choose a job
based solely on the perks.
10. Job titles do matter.
Managerial positions are always in demand,
which is important to consider while choosing
the name of a position. For example, if the
title in Finland says coordinator, in Poland
you might want to look for people that are
managers. On the other hand, if a person
has a manager title in Poland, there is less
interest in going back to coordinator.
We know that keeping track of all these and other rules of hiring talent in Poland may
sound overwhelming — but it does not have to be. Contact us, we are eager to help
you build your dream team! weronika@spondeo.fi

Business Finland:
An accelerator of global growth
Business Finland is a Finnish governmental
organization for trade, travel and investment
promotion, as well as innovation funding.
It is part of the Team Finland network,
collaborating closely with Finnish
embassies, consulates and other public
actors supporting Finnish companies
in building their global partnerships.
Business Finland’s office in Warsaw covers
not only the Polish market, but also the
broader CEE and Baltics region, making it
a hub for Finnish companies interested
in exploring business opportunities in
this part of Europe.
Our activities focus on identifying business
opportunities for Finnish industry and
attracting the attention of local companies
and stakeholders to Finnish solutions,
technologies, and best collaboration
practices. We are actively networking with
Polish partners to identify room for Polish-
Finnish cooperation. Our aim is always to
look for win-win opportunities, where
Finnish offerings could add significant
value in terms of meeting the local needs.
Finnish and Polish companies interested in
mutual partnerships are welcome to
contact us. With expertise in fields such as
cleantech, digitization, smart industry and
many others, Finland can be a trusted
partner to the Polish economy.
We provide Finnish companies with market
advice, access to business contacts and
high-value networks, internationalization
and innovation funding. We provide both
individual and tailor-made services, as well
as group business promotion activities
under the Team Finland umbrella.
Our experts in Poland are specialized in
industries with large potential for Finnish
offering, such as energy, healthcare, ICT,
manufacturing and mobility, but are also
available to answer requests related to
various fields.
During 2022, we provided a number of
valuable business connections to Finnish
companies in the manufacturing sector.
We supported Finnish industry 4.0
technologies suppliers in dialogue with
potential industrial customers during
the Polish-Finnish Smart Manufacturing
Business Mixer in Kraków, the MSV
International Engineering Fair in Brno,
as well as Finnish Automotive Industry
4.0 Day at ŠKODA Auto. Given the
importance of the battery industry for
the Polish economy, we have been
continuously helping Finnish suppliers
to connect with the battery manufacturing
ecosystem in Poland and arranged the
Finnish battery delegation to the New
Mobility Congress in Łódź. We have also
analyzed business opportunities for Finland
related to the decarbonization of Polish
industry and initiated B2B dialogues for
Finnish companies in this area.
In the energy sector, Business Finland
supported the organization of the Polish-
Finnish Nuclear Industry Forum developing
industrial ties between Polish and Finnish
companies and research institutes in
a context of the Polish Nuclear Energy
Program. We also co-produced a water
business workshop in Lithuania, presenting
Finnish water solutions to directors, chief
engineers and ecologists from the Lithuanian
water sector.
We are a trusted partner in the dialogue
on important issues, like, for example,
the decarbonization of transport.
Our advisor, Piotr Hajdecki, moderated
discussions between business leaders and
public administration at the “Nordic
Conference: Decarbonizing the Transport”,
powered by NESTE.
In the healthcare industry, we carried out
special research on Polish medical
marketplace platforms creating an extra
opportunity window for Finnish companies
– suppliers of medical equipment. Business
Finland joined Innovatorium – the largest
R&D event in Poland – which took place in
Poznań. It was an excellent opportunity to
promote Finland as a well-known harbor
for leading clinical institutions and
advance data science expertise.
New investments driven by plans for the
European Union Recovery and Resilience
Facility in the Baltic States were presented
in an inclusive report describing related
healthcare investments opportunities
during a webinar in September 2022.
Contact us if you are interested in business
opportunities between Finland, CEE and
the Baltic region:
businessfinland.fi/en/locations/europe/
poland
Finnish battery delegation to the New Mobility Congress,
September 2022, Łódź
Nordic Conference: „Decarbonizing the Transport”
powered by NESTE, May 2022, Vilnius
Finnish trade mission to the MSV International
Engineering Fair, October 2022, Brno
Finnish smart manufacturing seminar at the MSV
International Engineering Fair, October 2022, Brno
Anna Łomża
Senior Advisor (Manufacturing & Mining, ICT,
General Market Advice)
anna.lomza@businessfinland.fi
+48 500 826 560
www.businessfinland.fi

Markku’s reflections
on 40 years in
Finnish-Polish business
Markku Ekholm was nominated as a CEO of Suomen Unipol in the spring
of 1993, after working 10 years in the company. It means that 2023 will mark
his 30th year as CEO and his 40th year spent in Finnish-Polish business.
Markku Ekholm
Suomen Unipol was founded in 1979 by
Markku’s father Jorma and Jussi Mäkynen.
In 1985, the company became 100%
owned by the Ekholm family after Markku
bought out Jussi’s shares. A majority share
in the company was sold in 1991 to Algol
Oy and CIECH SA. This rare Finnish-Polish
joint venture structure is still in place.
Suomen Unipol was founded to represent
the Polish company CIECH in Finland.
At the time it was one of the monopolies
in the Polish trading sector. In the 1990s,
CIECH started to buy up state-owned
factories and slowly transform into the
publicly listed company it is today.
The company has now imported more
than 3 million tonnes of products from
Poland to Finland and traded almost
everything from dynamite to aspirin.
The main focus has been in industrial
chemicals by leading Polish suppliers.
This year (2022), the company aims
to reach EUR 25-30 million in sales.
Tuomas Asunmaa: Markku, this is quite
a unique story about Finnish-Polish
business. When was your first time
in Poland?
I have been traveling to Poland regularly
since 1985, around 7 or 8 times a year, so
it must be around 300 visits in total. In the
past it was easier to calculate as everything
was stamped in the visa.
Tuomas Asunmaa: How was it to do
business in the 1980s during communist
times?
At the time, trading in chemicals was, in
my understanding, different to most other
sectors, as it was very organized and
significant for the whole economy.
For example, CIECH had the most skilled
employees – including both education and
language skills. This also meant that they
had an exceptional number of women
working there.
The culture of trading was in order back
then and promises were kept. We initially
had more challenges on the customers’
side – we had to convince Finnish buyers
that the quality, production stability and so
on are better than the reputation of Poland
at that time; it was only a few years after
martial law was declared.
Tuomas Asunmaa: How was Warsaw
back then?
Well, there were of course money changers
in every corner. Outside of the Palace of
Culture and Science there was a huge trading
market – farmers selling their products out
of trunks, etc. Everyone was buying stuff as
there was hyperinflation and money was
burning in pockets, so it was better to buy
something real. We also ended up importing
soap and washing powder from Finland to
Poland after the stores sold out of them
and the government issued a tender.
We also imported plastic bags from
Finland to Poland to the Pewexes selling
foreign items for foreign currency.
These inflation figures we have now are
nothing compared to the 1980s and 90s.
Tuomas Asunmaa: Has much stayed the
same?
Of course! Polish hospitality has always
been there. Even though times were tough
and Poland was much poorer, it was always
nice to visit – Polish people really make
the country! Also the food has always been
great, although the menu is getting a bit
lighter nowadays.
Tuomas Asunmaa: Was it easy to operate
as a Finn in Poland?
For me it has always been easy to deal
with Polish people. During the 40+ years
of our company we never had any court
issues with the Polish side. In the early
1980s there were lots of people in the
working environment who remembered
the war, knew Finnish history in WW2 and
the common enemy we had. They were
happy that at least someone managed
somehow with Russia. Remembering that
time and how it was in Poland, we Finns
should appreciate where we are. We also
tend not to know how Poland was before
the war – it was a developing country
with a stock exchange and everything.
This background is behind the current
fast growth of the Polish economy.
Tuomas Asunmaa: Did the pandemic
and war bring back any memories from
the past?
Some things are similar – like of course
the price changes, it is getting a bit out of
control now, and in our sector the demand
is also high as clients want to get rid of
Russian products. Logistics is also difficult,
but it is not like back when communication
was tough, telex lines were not working,
mail was being opened and the phones
were off or tapped – sometimes they even
said “we are listening, but keep talking.”
On the other hand, business has always
been good in Poland.
Tuomas Asunmaa: Do you have any
tips for those who are thinking about
the Polish market 40 years after you?
Nowadays there is certainly tough competi-
-tion in all sectors. You need to do your
homework and be competitive no matter
what you are planning to do in Poland. It is
also no longer a place where you can look
for huge cost savings in labor, but you can
find a great market and business opportuni-
-ties. I have never regretted that my link
to business is Poland.
Markku Ekholm | Managing Director
Suomen Unipol Oy | Karapellontie 8 | FI-02610
Espoo | Finland
+358 500 400 734
markku.ekholm@unipol.fi
www.unipol.fi
58 BUSINESS

Real-life questions and
doubts about software
development
nearshoring
Real-life questions and doubts about
software development nearshoring
The software development market is
going in a direction where:
• mid- to senior-level expertise is hard
to find;
• budgets are getting tighter due to
the uncertainty of the world today.
This leads to a situation where companies
that have never used any nearshoring
services are considering taking that step.
At its best, nearshoring offers software
consultancy at a price that equals a
senior in-house developer but with zero
recruitment cost. On top of that, using
software consultancy services enables easy
upscaling and downscaling based on your
development needs.
We are constantly in touch with companies
looking for a partner to help them build
their digital services. Not all of them have
experience using nearshoring, and we hear
plenty of questions and doubts about how
it would work. Here are some of the questions
we have encountered in real-life contacts
with companies from a number of business
areas. We have the experience, but the
questions are universal.
Isn’t it challenging to stay in touch when
the whole team or a part of it is abroad?
Typically, the same ways you would use
to stay in touch with a local team are used
with a team abroad. Almost all of us already
have some experience working remotely
with colleagues, and this is no more difficult
than that. This is especially true if your
nearshoring setup is a team extension,
a partially local and partially remote team.
It is best not to even think about the other
part as a separate team, but to simply treat
everyone as equal team members. Use the
same ways of working, the same communi-
-cation channels and the same tools.
Are there any language issues?
Fluent English skills are a must-have for
a consultant in the nearshoring business.
On the customer’s side, at least in the team
working with the nearshoring partner, English
has to be the working language. At Polar
Night Software, we can also serve our
customers in Finnish regarding starting
cooperation, project planning and customer
contact at the management level.
Are there cultural differences in ways
of working and communicating?
A cultural understanding of the customer’s
environment is a plus. It helps if the partner
already has customers from the same
country. The cultural differences in working
life between Finland and Poland, at least
when it comes to IT, are minimal. In your
daily work, you barely notice any.
Are nearshored consultants brave
enough to ask questions, or do they
always say yes?
A good consultant will give their view on
your plans and technical architecture and
raise questions about any issues proactively.
The ability to do this depends on the
consultant’s experience and personality.
This is why your partner should emphasize
this already in the recruitment process.
Polar Night Software is a Finnish-
Polish company that offers software
development nearshoring services.
Most of our customers currently
come from Finland. We deliver web
applications, mobile applications
and integrations. We also do team
extensions and help our customers
build their services and products
with their development teams.
Contact
Henri Jääskeläinen
henri@polarnightsoftware.com
+48 731 407 479
BUSINESS 59

Our tips for your
investment in Poland:
• Be aware! Seek competent and
trusted Polish legal and tax advice
and professional assistance. This will
save you time and effort. The Polish
legislation and practical approach to
regulations is very different than in
Finland and you might be surprised.
• Be smart! Think about the legal
and tax framework in advance. It is
not so easy to change a system once
it has been put in place.
• Be patient! Sometimes simple
matters take a lot of time to solve
and require some extra effort. In Poland,
we have many governmental reporting
and compliance systems and they are
not all connected - you need to get
used to this.
• Be open! Ask questions and share
plans. It is harder to provide provide
with tailor-made advice without an
open approach.
• Be organised! Think about what
you want from your Polish entity and
how to make it happen under Polish
company law. What works in Finland,
might not necessarily work in Poland
when it comes to corporate governance.
• Be bold! There are plenty of
opportunities to make good acquisitions
in Poland as the first generation of
owners in SMEs starts to retire. Instead
of organic growth, consider skyrocketing
your business through an acquisition
in Poland.
• Be careful! Tax compliance is
a serious thing matter. You should not
be late with reporting duties and you
have to follow required compliance
principles.
Ecovis Legal Poland Tax
and Law Firm - the most
experienced partner
for Finnish companies
investing in Poland
Ecovis Legal Poland is a well-established
law firm with more than 20 years of history.
In recent years, Ecovis Legal Poland has
worked on various multi-million-zloty Finnish
investments involving production activities
as well as mergers and acquisitions. We have
assisted more than 50 Finnish companies
starting to conduct business in Poland.
We provide comprehensive assistance for
businesses in the following areas:
• Company law and contracts
• Foreign companies entry support
• Investments, mergers and acquisitions,
• Tax advice on domestic and
international taxes
• Litigation
• Negotiations and mediation
• Legal due diligence on projects and
companies
• Labour law
Your contact person – Piotr Pruś, a partner
at Ecovis – actively participates in the
Finnish business community in Poland,
supporting it and performing several
functions at the Finnish Trade Guild (FTG)
and the Scandinavian-Polish Chamber of
Commerce (SPCC). He has 15 years’ of
experience in serving Finnish companies
investing in Poland. Piotr has assisted in
greenfield, brownfield and M&A deals.
Ecovis
What is Ecovis?
Ecovis is a global consulting firm with its
origins in Continental Europe. It has almost
9,300 people operating in more than 80
countries. Its consulting focus and core
competencies lie in the areas of tax consul-
-tation, accounting, auditing, legal advice
as well as M&A deals. A particular strength
of Ecovis is the combination of personal
advice at a local level with the general
expertise of an international and interdisci-
-plinary network of professionals.
Ecovis Legal Poland Multan, Pruś
& Partners Law and Tax Firm
9A Belwederska Street, 00-761 Warsaw, Poland
warsaw-law@ecovis.com
Contact person:
Piotr Pruś / Partner
piotr.prus@ecovis.pl
+48 691 409 091
www.ecovis.com
www.ecovislegal.pl
60 BUSINESS

Espeo
Software
Espeo Software was born out of
an appreciation for the Finnish work
culture. Everything started 14 years
ago, when the owners – Sylwia and
Paweł Rogowicz – returned from
Finland with the idea of starting
a company that would share
Finnish values.
At Espeo Software, we enjoy working with
Finns. We appreciate their “matter-of-fact”
approach, professionalism, and tech-savvi-
-ness. But what about the Finns themselves?
Aren’t the cultural differences between
the two nations too great? According to
Aki Inkeroinen, managing director of
Espeo Oy, the Polish and Finnish work
cultures are actually quite similar and can
be summed up in three catchphrases.
Straight into business
Let’s look at the numbers. Finland has
approximately 5.5 million residents, while
Poland has 37.7 million. With the growing
importance of digitization, the Finnish
market has work for more than 14 thousand
developers, but it is impossible to fill
this need locally. Luckily, Poland, being
a European Union country with its abundance
of software houses, is a great place to start
the search.
Espeo Software has many skilled senior
developers with impressive portfolios of
projects. As IT and programming are the
preferred majors in many Polish high schools,
new people are constantly joining their ranks.
However, it is not just about the numbers
and our Finnish clients speak very highly of
the skills of our UX/UI designers and archi-
-tects and the excellent work they deliver.
No useless chat
Some nations enjoy small talk. This may
cause their decision-making processes to
take ages, as chit-chat tends to be a huge
part of business discussions. At Espeo
Software, we do not waste any time.
Polish developers focus on the task at hand
rather than commenting on the weather.
And, with a high English fluency level and
strong soft skills, the meetings go fast and
help clients stay on top of the current
project state.
Finns appreciate the “let’s do it attitude”
that Polish developers have. It makes
cooperation seamless and efficient - just
how we like it.
“Let’s do it!”
Aki Inkeroinen
There’s one thing about speaking our minds
that Finns really appreciate. Developers at
Espeo Software are not afraid to criticize
and comment on their clients’ ideas. It may
sound counterintuitive or impolite, but
from the Finnish perspective, if a client
comes to a software expert, they expect
the best possible results. And sometimes
that requires a whole different perspective.
Polish developers do not have a problem
with saying “Hey, I think it could work
better if we did this another way.”
When it comes to Polish-Finnish techno-
-logical cooperation, it seems the warm
feelings are mutual. After all, the only
thing separating Poland and Finland is
the sea – which might be vast, but not
impossible to cross.
Would you like to talk about our experience?
Or maybe you would like to see them for
yourself? Please take a look at our website
– espeo.eu. And if you’d rather talk to
a real person – someone with a real Finnish
perspective – then don’t hesitate to contact
Aki himself!
Aki Inkeroinen
+358 50 556 4911
aki.inkeroinen@espeo.eu
BUSINESS 61

Rafał Kania
Hydroline factory in Stargard
Rafał Kania has 10 years of experi-
-ence in managing teams and organi-
-zations in the automotive, foundry,
and metal processing industries.
He worked in an international cor-
-poration as well as in large family
businesses with Polish and German
roots. He currently runs the Hydroline
factory in Poland.
www.facebook.com/HydrolinePolska | www.hydroline.fi | Metalowa 19, 73-102 Stargard | rafal.kania@hydroline.fi | +48 663 703 717

Martti looks back at 20 years
in factory management in Poland
Martti Aromaa
Reka Rubber factory in Dopiewo by Poznań - drone view, source: Reka Rubber
Martti Aromaa
Managing Director 2001-2022
martti.aromaa@rekarubber.com
+358 400 743 540
www.rekarubber.com

The largest manufacturer
of lanyards in Europe
Marketing Festival - TED Gifted
TED Gifted factory in Plewiska by Poznań
www.tedgifted.com
info@tedgifted.com
+48 61 307 23 45

A Finnish accounting
company in Poland
Maria Onikki-Górski
www.leinonen.eu
Leinonen Poland Sp. z o.o.
Piękna 68, 00-672 Warszawa
+48 22 623 84 18
leinonen@leinonen.pl

Housing in Poland with a Finnish twist
YIT, the largest Finnish construction company, has completed several new projects in Warsaw and Gdańsk in
recent years. We asked Tomasz Konarski, the CEO at YIT in Poland, about the company’s Finnish connections,
plans for expansion in Poland and the situation on the Polish real estate market.
Tuomas Asunmaa: How do you use your
Finnish origins for local promotion?
Do buyers value your background when
making a decision to purchase?
Tomasz Konarski: In our communications
with customers, we emphasize the company’s
connection to Finland from the beginning.
The philosophy from the north of Europe
on developing urban space, taking into
account both human and environmental
needs – with the slogan “More life in
sustainable cities” – corresponds to
modern trends and needs. Our clients
appreciate this, which is evident in the
interest in our projects.
Finnish design is more than designing
ordinary objects. It is a creative energy
that balances the austerity of space with
colorful and natural micro-scale. This is
a way of life that values functionality,
natural and unforced simplicity. Northern
design is also a marriage of innovation
and technology that is gaining increasing
recognition in Poland as well.
Tuomas Asunmaa: Have you brought
any typical Finnish house inventions or
standards to Poland? Are there plans
for any saunas in apartments yet?
Tomasz Konarski: Housing construction
standards in Poland are different from in
Finland (in Poland, we build in a more
traditional way – cast in situ – while in
Finland prefabrication is dominant).
However, in our projects, we introduce
proven solutions such as functional,
spacious and illuminated rooms, natural
materials and well-thought-out common
areas and green spaces, developed in
accordance with our proprietary “More
Life in Yards” concept.
These are characteristic of the Finnish
style inherent in YIT developments around
the world.
We adapted the idea of placing a sauna
in a flat in our projects in Poland – Nordic
Mokotów, located in Warsaw, is a good
example. The bathrooms in the units were
designed so that their residents could
easily install a sauna in them. We are
considering implementing this solution
in our future investments.
Tuomas Asunmaa: Do you usually hire
Finnish or Polish architects to design
your real estate in Poland?
Tomasz Konarski: As a rule, investments
in Poland are designed by Polish architects.
For example, one of our current flagship
Warsaw projects, Aroma Park, was designed
entirely by the KAPS Architekci studio.
The result is a unique housing development
that alludes to the history of the plot on
which it is located. The project, which
combines the revitalization of the historic
buildings of the former Henryk Bienenthal
yeast factory and new spaces, is proof that
Polish specialists are excellent at their craft
and worth trusting.
An exception on the Polish market is our
mixed-use project in Gdańsk – the Żurawie
– where we invited Professor Rainer
Mahlamäki, co-founder of one of Finland’s
most recognizable architectural studios –
Lahdelma & Mahlamäki Architects – to work
with us. In Poland, he is known, among
other things, for the award-winning design
of Warsaw’s POLIN Museum of the History
of Polish Jews. Mahlamäki designed
the investment with the help of Polish
teams from LATERGRUPA ARCHITEKCI
and GCK. This cooperation resulted in
a unique project with an industrial character,
referring to shipbuilding halls, ships, sea
and dunes, all blending perfectly with the
architecture of the Młode Miasto district.
Thanks to the success of this team, we are
considering further interesting international
collaborations in the future.
Tuomas Asunmaa: Are you planning
to expand to other cities in Poland?
Tomasz Konarski: Yes, we have even
already taken specific steps to enter more
cities, in addition to Warsaw and Gdańsk.
Kraków has now become our target, where
YIT has acquired two pieces of land for
more than 700 apartments.
In addition, we are strengthening our
presence where we have been active
before: in Warsaw, we have enriched our
portfolio with two locations for about 600
apartments and in Gdańsk with three
locations for about 500 apartments.
To sum up, our existing land bank has
recently been enriched by more than
80,000 sqm PUM and 1,800 units.
Tuomas Asunmaa: The number and total
value of new mortgage applications fell
by over 70% y/y in August 2022.
How are the market conditions affecting
YIT in Poland? Are you in a less affected
segment?
Parkur Residence in Warsaw
66 BUSINESS

Tomasz Konarski: We are a company
listed on the Helsinki Stock Exchange and
investments in Finland account for more
than half of our portfolio. This means the
situation on that market also has a signifi-
-cant impact on investor sentiment, which
ultimately translates into share price dynamics.
In Poland, demand collapsed as a result of
the introduction of drastic credit rating
criteria. The consequences have not spared
YIT either. We have seen a significant decline
in customers relying on credit to purchase
apartments, resulting in lower sales.
Fortunately, we have several projects that
are going well despite the worse results.
Aside from the interest rate hikes, the biggest
problem in Poland is the FSA’s recommen-
-dation from March 2022 adding 5% to the
margin and to WIBOR. Today, in order to
take out a loan, you have to meet the
stress-test criteria of about 15 per cent
interest rates per year. On the other hand,
some of our investments, such as the
Żurawie, are attracting customers who
have excess cash and see buying real
estate as an investment with a higher
rate of return than a bank deposit.
Tuomas Asunmaa: Is the situation in the
real estate market in Poland very different
from other countries you operate in?
Tomasz Konarski: We operate in eight
other countries: Finland, Sweden, Norway,
Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, the Czech Republic
and Slovakia. It is clear that the real estate
situation in various European countries
differs in terms of a number of criteria –
social, economic, legal and other, all
affecting the conduct of business.
However, some common features can be
found. As I mentioned above, the biggest
influence on YIT’s operations is the situation
in Finland, so despite the autonomy in the
local markets, there are various dependencies
between the branches.
Tuomas Asunmaa: What was the biggest
concern about the Polish real estate
market when you started your first
project here? Does it still remain
the main challenge?
Tomasz Konarski: Beginnings are never
easy. Nevertheless, entering Poland in
2015 was a natural step in line with YIT’s
development strategy in Central and
Eastern Europe. In the first months we
faced, among other things, issues with
brand recognition translating into demand,
acquiring land for construction, project
financing and difficulties related to the
activities of foreign investors. With the
growth of the company on the Polish
market and changes in the country’s socioeconomic
space, we encountered new
challenges. They are an inherent part of
doing business, not only in the
development industry.
Aroma Park Lofty, YIT project in Warsaw
Tuomas Asunmaa: Are there any major
differences between local real estate
markets in Warsaw and Gdańsk?
Tomasz Konarski: Each regional market
has different characteristics.
Despite the many criteria that distinguish
local markets, at YIT we offer apartments
that suit the residents of both Warsaw and
Gdańsk. We know their needs and we know
that YIT’s properties meet all the require-
-ments that guarantee an appropriate
standard of living. So we are confident
that they will also appeal to customers
from other Polish cities.
Tuomas Asunmaa: Poles still prefer to
own their apartments instead of renting
them. Do you think this trend could
change in the long-term?
Tomasz Konarski: Poles are still used to
buying apartments. The local rental market
is one of the least developed in the
European Union, although this too is
gradually changing. Despite the increasing
difficulties Polish consumers are experiencing
when trying to obtain a mortgage, they
still consider it more profitable to buy than
to rent. Owned apartments are still treated
as a sure capital investment that can pay
off in a relatively short time. Combined
with rising rents for rental units, I don’t
expect interest in renting apartments to
increase significantly in the future, especially
in the traditional version. However,
an interesting alternative is the PRS sector,
which is bringing a new quality to the rental
market. In the next few years, it can be
expected to develop further in Poland,
which may influence people’s approach
to buying an apartment.
Tuomas Asunmaa: How do you predict
the situation on the Polish real estate
market will change over the next couple
of years?
Tomasz Konarski: Recent years have made
us realize how difficult it is to predict the
Żurawie, YIT project in Gdańsk
market situation. As recently as 2020, we
were optimistic about the future, despite
the prevailing pandemic. Today, reduced
demand is taking its toll on developers’
performance. The current situation is also
affecting the business decisions of institu-
-tional investors. In many cases, they are
refinancing the properties they buy, and it
is currently difficult to obtain adequate
lending levels for rental buildings. Financing
investments using their own capital means
less return on investment. Even rent
increases are not compensating for the
reduction in refinancing levels. The future
of the industry depends on many factors,
so it’s hard to say definitively what might
happen in the next few years. What is
certain is that, as an international company
benefiting from the experience of having
a presence in many countries, we at YIT
are prepared for the challenges ahead.
Tuomas Asunmaa: Are there any trends
in apartment building that are worth
following, i.e. Investors buying
the entire estates?
Tomasz Konarski: One of the most interes-
-ting trends is the strongly developing PRS
sector in Poland. The Polish branch of YIT
already decided to invest in institutional
leasing by partnering with Nordic investor
NREP in 2021. As part of the agreement,
we have sold and are involved in the
construction of more than 1,000 residential
units located in Warsaw. We are currently
developing three of the four buildings and
will be handing over the first two soon.
I believe that the apartments offered by
the companies are a good alternative to
traditional apartment rentals, meeting the
needs of the modern customer. As I men-
-tioned earlier, this trend may become one
of the leading ones on the Polish real estate
market in the years to come.
Tomasz Konarski
CEO, YIT Poland
www.yit.pl
BUSINESS 67

www.htlaser.fi

“Finland's gift to the Polish metal industry”
he says with a smile on his face…
Juha Savolainen
Juha Savolainen is one of just a few
Finnish factory managers in Poland.
Savolainen has over 25 years of
experience in a number of projects
in the metal industry. He currently
runs the Polish operations of HT
Laser in Poznań and is responsible
for the company increasing its
development and expansion
efforts into the European market.
He shared with us some insights
from production management.
Tuomas Asunmaa: You have worked as
a manager in various companies in Finland,
China and Poland. In which of these
countries do you feel the best?
Juha Savolainen: All the countries have
their own pros and cons. I always say that
the number of problems is constant, but
their form changes. No matter where you
are. But seriously speaking… Finland will
always be number one for me of course,
but in Poland I do feel at home. Poles and
Finns think alike about many things.
Tuomas Asunmaa: What are currently
the biggest challenges that you face
and how will you solve them?
Juha Savolainen: I guess I am singing the
same song as everyone else these days:
inflation, interest rates, rising energy and
labor costs, etc. Unfortunately, we are not
in a position to solve these problems.
We just do our best to live with them.
This means constant price negotiations
with our customers and subcontractors in
order to maintain our competitive position
on the market. We also have to be able
to offer a competitive salary level to our
employees. So far we have been reasonably
successful in this. In my book, quality and
safety come first and everything else follows.
Tuomas Asunmaa: How has the daily
work of a factory manager changed
since the pandemic?
Juha Savolainen: In general, we survived
the worst of the pandemic quite well.
A big thank you goes to our staff for this.
They were very proactive and innovative
in finding new ways to keep production
going. Personally, I not see any big
changes in my daily work.
Tuomas Asunmaa: Why did you decide
to work in Poland?
Juha Savolainen: It’s a long story, but I will
try to make it short. I was working for HT
Laser before (2006-2013) and I also managed
one project for HT Laser here in Poznań
in 2012. During my time in China in 2016,
I had a call from HT Laser and the rest is
history. What could go wrong when you
know the game and the players? I knew
what I was sticking my head into.
My family was also voting for Poland
instead of the Far East.
Tuomas Asunmaa: What is your favorite
place in Poznań?
Juha Savolainen: Home and its surroun-
-dings. Citadel Park.
Tuomas Asunmaa: Are there any
differences in management styles
in Poland vs Finland?
Juha Savolainen: I have a feeling that in
Finland we have a shorter chain of command.
This opinion is based only on my own
experience. Personally, I am quite a straight-
-forward and hands-on manager no matter
where I am. I do not have a switch to change
into Polish or Finnish mode in my style or
behavior. However, it must be understood
that there are certain boundaries in the
cultures that should not be crossed.
Tuomas Asunmaa: What are your TOP 3
principles for managing Polish workers?
Know your staff on a personal level,
if possible, and let them know you.
Encourage employees to speak up about
their opinions and participate in different
processes.
Manage possible conflicts properly. Do not
turn a blind eye or try to shirk responsibility.
It does not hurt to take a look in a mirror
every now and then and ask if you have
done your best with regard to the things
mentioned above.
Tuomas Asunmaa: What is your forecast
for HT Laser for the next year? What
kind of scenarios do you have?
It looks like we will do just fine. Most of
our capacity is already sold until Q3 and
the order backlog looks good. There will
be a challenge with capacity during Q1,
but we will manage like we always do.
All the time we are looking for new ways
to increase our capacity to serve our
customers better. Our newest machining
center will be installed in December.
It will significantly increase our CNC
machining capacity and expand our
range of machining services in the future.
HT Laser Sp. zo.o.
Juha Savolainen
CEO
juha.savolainen@htlaser.fi
+48 600 436 789 | +358 40 827 3450
www.htlaser.fi
BUSINESS 69

Leopolis Hotel Lviv
Leopolis building
The Hartwall family is known for the production of beverages, but did
you know that they also own a five-star hotel in Ukraine? We asked Niclas
Diesen, CEO of K. Hartwall Invest and Kateryna Matiushchenko,
GM of Leopolis Hotel, about the history of the hotel, its challenges
during the war and views for the future.
Tuomas Asunmaa: What is the connection
between the Hartwall family and Lviv /
Ukraine?
BBH (Baltic Beverages Holding), which was
owned by the Hartwall family up until 2008,
operated several large breweries in Ukraine,
including one in Lviv. It was during these
times that the connection to Ukraine and
Lviv was established.
Tuomas Asunmaa: Was the hotel a well
planned investment or a dream, or did
it just happen..?
A bit of both. The opportunity to acquire the
land in the old town of Lviv and build a hotel
was not part of a long-term plan. However,
the family had a strong connection to
the city and felt a landmark hotel could be
a great way to restore that connection and
have a reason to keep coming back to Lviv.
Tuomas Asunmaa: Is there any Finnish
twist in your hotel?
The design of the newly refurbished rooms
and facilities was created by a Finnish interior
architect and contains many Finnish design
elements. You can see pictures of the brewing
operations and read about the family history
in our lobby bar. But more important than
physical elements, we like to think that the
way we operate, the atmosphere and service
quality, bears a strong Scandinavian connec-
-tion. Staying at Leopolis should feel like
being at home. And it is because of this
that our customers keep returning.
Tuomas Asunmaa: Does the family have
other investments in Ukraine as well?
We are also shareholders in an agricultural
company that farms and processes potato
starch. The operations are located outside
Lviv.
Tuomas Asunmaa: Has the year been
successful, despite the war?
You have to remember that we entered the
war just as we started recovering from the
pandemic. Despite the war and all the other
challenges, we managed to keep the team
and complete the renovation of rooms.
This was a huge project requiring a lot of
resources, but it became a home to many
guests during the first months of the war,
supporting refugees with humanitarian aid
and, most importantly, keeping the hotel
running and providing a high level of
service as usual. Obviously, we have had
financial losses, like many other companies
in Ukraine, but in this situation people’s
safety and wellbeing has been
the highest priority.
Tuomas Asunmaa: Probably the client
profile has changed? What kind of clients
have you had this year (embassies,
organizations, internal refugees…?
It may seem strange, but despite the war
our key guest profile has remained almost
the same: every week we have both indivi-
-dual travelers from Ukraine, diplomatic
corps (many of those returning to Ukraine
or traveling back and forth), international
organizations, many local and foreign
volunteers who bring humanitarian aid to
the country and choose Leopolis to make
a stop and relax a bit. We are happy to
hear English, German, Finnish and other
languages in our premises – it means that
life goes on and Ukraine has always been
and remains the center of Europe.
Tuomas Asunmaa: How does Lviv look
today and how do you manage the hotel
and the team?
If you do not hear air alarms and disregard
various sandbags protecting historical
monuments and buildings, you might even
believe this is not a city at war. Lviv citizens
and its guests try to live their normal lives,
restaurants and hotels are working, and
you can still feel the spirit of the city. Yes,
there are some power outs now and then,
but candles make the cold autumn nights
even more romantic and cozy. As for the
hotel, the majority of the team is on site, we
have allocated one of our former cellar bars
as a shelter and our guests feel safe and
protected inside the hotel. The owners are
constantly in touch with people in the hotel
and support the team by all possible means.
Tuomas Asunmaa: Going forward, how
do you see the future prospects of Lviv?
We are absolutely certain that, after the
war and Ukraine’s victory, Lviv will remain
and will grow to be not only a nice and
beautiful city, but also a key tourist desti-
-nation for many Europeans and travelers
from all over the world and one of the
largest Eastern-European business hubs.
We already see how it has developed over
the last 10 years and there is even more
potential. We are prepared for this and,
as before, are ready to host both business
and individual travelers in our beautiful
renovated rooms and with our warm-hearted
service. Our location is ideal – all major
landmarks just around the corner – and
service has always been our competitive
advantage. So we are looking forward to
this time and doing all we can to speed
up the victory.
Tuomas Asunmaa: Do you plan to be more
active in Ukraine after the war ends?
We have built a long relationship with Ukraine
and Lviv over more than 20 years and we
intend to keep it that way. If and when the
war ends, there will undoubtedly be a need
for investments and many opportunities
may present themselves.
leopolishotel.com
Teatralna Street 16, 79008 Lviv, Ukraine
hotel@leopolishotel.com
+380 32 295 95 00 | +380 50 371 39 37
Leopolis Library Leopolis Courtyard Suite Leopolis Sky Loft
70 BUSINESS

Our Ukrainian colleagues share their
thoughts about the war
In early February 2022, Spondeo expanded to Lviv, the largest city in Western Ukraine. No one imagined that soon
after, our new team members would wake up to the abrupt sound of sirens. Natalie, Oksana and Tania share
stories about how their lives irreversibly changed on February 24, 2022.
We believed the war would end in
a few weeks
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24
constituted not only the greatest threat
to peace and safety in the world, but also
changed the life of every Ukrainian.
We were preparing. Listening to the news.
But we were afraid to even imagine this
ever might happen. Real war. Like from
historical books or movies.
That morning, my friends started calling
me and saying the war had started. At 4am.
So I got up, opened the window and heard
the first air civil defense siren in my life:
“Attention! Air alarm. Please, take food,
clothes. Help children and old people…”
We are far from the front lines here in Lviv,
but air sirens go off multiple times a day.
I might hear them anytime: while sleeping,
eating or working. They wake me up. It is
so difficult for me to accept there is a war
just a few hundred kilometers from my
home, where russians occupied my territory.
Without any good reasons. The Kremlin
propaganda machine has spent decades
convincing the people that they are the
foremost nation and can do anything they
want. And they did. They started the largest
invasion of real war since the Second World
War. Right here, in my motherland.
I have several friends in Kharkiv and I think
of them every day. They were the first ones
who woke up that morning, who are hiding
in damp basements from russian missiles.
One of them posted the following on
Instagram: “If you read this message,
it means I am still alive.” Some of them
refused to leave Kharkiv. When I see that
they post something on their social
networks, I feel a bit better.
Initially, we believed everything would end
so quickly. But now we are growing older
and wiser. We realize the war won’t end
tomorrow. We have a lot to do. And we
will. But we encourage each other and
the world. And the world encourages us.
The seasons change one after the other,
and I wish February would finally end!
This is the month when the war began, and
is still ongoing, still taking thousands of lives,
still taking away the future of thousands,
but at the same time building what we
have been striving for so long, the free
and great future of our motherland.
My story is about how I faced the very
difficult realities of war. I made the decision
to leave the country. Once I dreamed of
traveling for months, changing countries,
getting to know cultures, living an inde-
-pendent life away from my parents. Under
other circumstances, I would have been
over the moon, but traveling without
a return ticket home is not so much fun.
Spring and summer flew past and I didn't
have time to look around. In March,
I traveled to Poland, in April, May and
part of June I was in Finland and Estonia,
another part of June and July I went to
Canada, and now I am in the USA.
The support that Ukraine is receiving from
abroad is very important. It's nice to meet
passers-by who share your pain and sadness,
and don't forget to remind you that it won't
be long, because victory is getting closer
and closer. Of course, I feel a constant
longing for family and friends, but they are
always with me, in my dreams and in reality.
There is so much more to say, but most
of all I would like to thank those who are
defending Ukraine, those who are fighting,
shedding blood, skipping sleep, living
undernourished, but continuing to defend
our land, in the steppes, in the trenches,
in winter, spring, summer, and now in
autumn. I thank them, because if they
weren't there, I wouldn't be able to talk to
my parents on the internet, I wouldn't hear
the voice of my friends, I wouldn't receive
photo reports about my pet dog Davey.
All this could not happen if not for them.
Life will never be the same
The full-scale invasion struck me very
suddenly. I didn't believe this madness
was possible in 2022. February 24 was
supposed to be a regular day at work and
an evening full of happy activities. Instead,
I woke up in fear for my life. Hearing sirens
every few hours throughout the day and
night made me sleep-deprived. After one
of the missiles passed, I saw the smoke
through my window, coming off the airport
in my area. I couldn't believe my eyes!
It was like a movie that I hoped would end
when I woke up properly. But it felt like
the time dragged on like in some
nightmarish Groundhog Day.
After a few days of helplessness and apathy,
I started to combine my work schedule
with volunteering activities: humanitarian
aid and military netting. Despite having
a chance to go abroad to live in Helsinki
since April, my friends and family have
been living under the same difficulties
since the beginning. In addition, after
a comprehensive strike on electrical
systems in a number of cities in October,
citizens are forced to live in darkness
without electricity and sometimes without
water almost every day. Many have it
worse, in Kherson, Mariupol, Bucha, etc.
Millions were displaced and thousands
were kidnapped to Russia and are trying
to find their way back to Ukraine through
Belarus, Poland and the Balkans.
The war has shown me the incredible unity
of my country against russia. The enemy
wants to eliminate Ukrainians as a nation
and take over full control of our land.
I believe that if our forces hadn’t halted
the russians, they would have their eyes
on the whole of Europe. We know the cost
of freedom, and after hundreds of years of
fighting with them, Europe has finally seen
the true face of that rotten country that is
our unfortunate neighbor.
Natalia
Kachmar
Lviv, Ukraine
Oksana Kets
Minneapolis, MN, USA
Tania Sen
Helsinki, Finland
BUSINESS 71

Meet
our
Team
Tuomas
Asunmaa
Tuomas is a Co-founder and captain of Spondeo
but also a headhunter, advisor, event organizer,
salesman, controller and business developer.
Tuomas started his journey in Poland in 2005,
and has lived in Wrocław, Warsaw and now in
Poznan since 2015. He likes Polish pragmatism
and never stopping dynamics and enjoys making
some "funny" observations. In free time he is
passionate about music, books, sports and art
and is fighting against the world by ordering 5
Finnish newspapers in a paper format to Poznań.
His biggest accomplishment is that their 7-year
old daughter speaks fluent Finnish and the fact
that 92% of Spondeo sales comes from via
network and recommendations.
Weronika
Gidel-Asunmaa
Weronika is an HR expert, online recruitment,
and headhunting professional with 12 years of
experience. She is passionate to connect
Spondeo’s clients’ from a wide range of
businesses with top talents. You’ll also meet her
in various market entry and consulting projects
with a recent focus on sustainable design and
circular economy. Weronika loves slow-flow
yoga, downhill skiing, Helsinki summers, and
frosty winters of Lapland.
Spondeo is a Finnish-Polish
family company established
in 2014 to help in entering
the Polish or Finnish market.
Our Finnish-Polish-Ukrainian
team of 12 has got you covered
when it comes to top-notch
recruitment services and
market entry consulting.
We are based in Poznań,
Poland - welcome for a visit!
Piotr
Worsztynowicz
Piotr joined Spondeo in 2018 and ever since has
been engaged in sales projects for our industrial
and IT customers. He is a graduate of European
Studies at Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań
and MBA of Georgia State University program
at University of Economics in Poznań. He loves to
spend his time with his family and his three kids
keep him quite busy. When he finally has time for
himself he likes to hit tennis balls and read good
literature.
Andrzej
Wiśniewski
Andrzej joined Spondeo in 2016 with little more
than a general understanding of Finns and Finland.
Since then, he has lauded the people of Finland
for their moral character, originality, and dry sense
of humor. He genuinely enjoys his work, which is
frequently related to cross-border business
development and market entry projects. He
perceives it not only as a way of growth for
companies but also as an opportunity for fostering
intercultural understanding and cooperation.
Regarding his working style: action-oriented,
seeks out the best solutions, has an agile attitude
and thinks outside the box. After work, he enjoys
doing sports, walking the Polish mountains, and
taking the Finnish sauna.
Tomasz
Wnuk
Tomasz graduated from International Economic
Relations with a specialization in International
Business at the Poznań University of Economics
and Business and is currently pursuing a master's
degree in Marketing. Tomasz joined Spondeo in
February 2021 and is now working as a business
consultant on a number of international projects.
Professionally and academically, he is interested
in the concept of sustainable development. In this
regard, he is active in the student club at his
university, serving as vice president. Privately, he is
passionate about fitness and all kinds of good
literature, while his favorite author is David Foster
Wallace.
Anna
Jędrzejewska
Anna is a graduate of Poznań University of
Economics and Business and joined Spondeo in
June 2021. She feels best working on various
projects that require creativity and aesthetics,
such as the design of this publication, or
empathy and understanding of needs, for
example in recruitment projects. She likes to
discover not only new places and cultures, but
also the psychological nature of a human being.
Photography is her new passion. In this
publication you will find some photos of her.
72 BUSINESS

Julia
Morta
Julia Morta is pursuing a Master’s degree in
Management at Poznań University of Economics
and Business (currently at student exchange at
ISCTE Business School in Lisbon). At Spondeo,
she is the manager of executive newsletter and
takes part in various consulting projects. She is
an enthusiast of books, travels and good movies.
In her spare time, she enjoys taking long walks
with her spaniel Leo and playing the harmonica.
Natalie
Kachmar
Graduated from Lviv and Kyiv universities, has
experience of working at Polish and American
companies. Since she has been living in Poland
for some time, managed to learn a bit of Polish
and really enjoy the possibility to improve it with
her Polish colleagues in Spondeo. Has been
working in the company since the beginning of
2022 as a Talent Acquisition Specialist. In her free
time, she likes exploring historical places and
new cities of Ukraine, taking photos and videos.
Oksana
Kets
Oksana is a graduate of the National University
of Lviv, international relations and
communications department. She considers
herself a global citizen, and proud to be
Ukrainian. She is on the position of Project
Coordinator at Spondeo since the beginning of
2022. In her spare time she writes poems, and
reads books as well as watches good movies
and kdramas, paints and embroiders. Her
biggest desires are traveling and exploring the
world, long walks especially with her pet dog
Maltese Davey. And she does love sports such
as swimming, fitness, and workout.
Tania
Sen
Tania graduated with a bachelor's degree in
English lang. and literature from Ivan Franko Lviv
National University. She has worked as an
English lang. tutor, and has done creative
projects for the Lviv Regional Youth Center. She
has experience in sourcing & recruiting and
enjoys learning about web/app design. She
assists Spondeo as a Talent Acquisition
Specialist. In free time likes riding a bike, making
film photos, painting with watercolors, and
watching documentaries about crime or science.
Viktoriia
Sviata
Vika is gaining her degree at LCC International
University in Contemporary Communication.
Previously, she worked as copywriter, market
researcher, sourcer, and a photographer. At
Spondeo, she is working on the website, creates
graphic visuals, and helps with the market
research projects. In free time, Vika is practicing
fine art and graphic design as her hobbies.
Piotr
Gidel
Piotr joined Spondeo in 2022. He is a graduate of
the Department of Law at the University of
Wrocław. Most of his professional career Piotr
has worked in broadly understood HR, from
recruitment and retention to human resources
management - with each and every project
closely related to Finnish market. At work always
goal-oriented and scrupulous yet not
headstrong to the limits. Loves to travel and
meet new people. Big fan of Finnish sauna,
northern lights and rye chips.
Find us on
LinkedIn:
spondeo
linkedin.com/company/spondeopoland
BUSINESS 73

spondeo
Spondeo is a Finnish-Polish family company established in 2014 to help in entering
Polish or Finnish market. In early 2022 we expanded to Lviv, Ukraine and currently we
have 12 team members and we do projects in pan-European scale. Our core values
include transparency, flexibility, and openness to different people and ideas. We are
happy to see the continuous trust of our clients and network - in 2022, 92% of our
sales came from inbounds. We are always open for flexible cooperation models.
Don’t hesitate to give us a try!
Contact:
Co-founder, CEO
Tuomas Asunmaa
tuomas@spondeo.fi
+48 514 615 048
+358 50 5352525
Sales & Lead
Generation as a Service
(Remote) Recruitment
Co-founder
Weronika Gidel-Asunmaa
weronika@spondeo.fi
+48 603 256 526
• New client & RFQ acquisition
• Sales partner network
building
• Full cycle recruitment
• Headhunting and direct
search
www.spondeo.pl
www.spondeo.fi
linkedin.com/company/
spondeopoland
• Events, fairs and study trips
• Recruiter team as a Service
• Sales or Project Manager
leasing
• HR consulting
•
Trusted us:
Go-to-market projects
Consulting & Advisory
• Market research & analysis
• Business partner search
• Early phase kick-off & study
trips
• Ad hoc requests, from labor law
to finance
• Acquisition screening
• Real estate search
• Project Management
• Subcontracting projects
And many more
74 BUSINESS

Finnish production companies
in Poland
FSP Steel Painting
HK Scan
Hydroline
Cargotec
HT Laser
Nordec
Prevex
Reka Rubber
Ruukki
Stofix
TedGifted
Termex Fiber
Seaking
Alteams
Fiskars
Kemira
Arnon
Darekon
Gebwell
Promeco
Wartsila
Pyroll
Stalatube
Scanfil
Uponor Infra
Axopar Boats
Saxdor Yachts
VA Varuste
Xo Boats
Stora Enso
Świecie
Valmet Automotive
Koskisen
Fortaco
Fortum
Teknoware
UPM Raflatac
Walki
spondeo
Paroc
Scanclimber
Eltete
Metsä Tissue
ORAS Olesno
Wipak
Fortum
Heatmasters
Huhtamaki
Lammi Fundament
Miilux
PURMO
Scanfil
Nordkalk
U-Cont
UPM Kymmene
Amerplast
NTM
Teknos
YIT
PKC Group
Tikkurila
MAPS 75

Finnish IT/Tech/BPO companies
in Poland
Norian Accounting
Tieto
Unikie
BestCoders
Etteplan
F-secure
Bilot
Bitcomp
Nordcloud
Avaus Marketing Innovations
In4Mo
Metsä Group Services
Digital Workforce
Eficode
ePassi
Nordea
Polar Night Software
Etteplan
Dunning Kruger & Associates
Nokia
Siili Solutions
Solteq
Tieto
UPM
spondeo
Signal Solutions
Górny
Śląsk
Barona ICT
Amer Sports
Tieto
Frosmo
Iceye
LVS Brokers
Kodit.io
Nokia
Nordea (IT)
Swappie
Teleste
Wolt
Efecte
76 MAPS

Finnish sales offices/services
in Poland
Allstars Engineering
Beweship
Deltamarin
Elomatic
Eltel Networks Telecom
Ensto
Finnlines
Ductor
Europress
Spondeo
Nokia
Kipinä
Kemira
Konecranes
Lago Logistics
Peikko
Ukkone
AFRY
Valmet
Ramirent
BMH Technology
Comatec
Molok
Vilpe
spondeo
Caverion
Lago Logistics
Outokumpu Distribution
Renta
Tamtron
Tactic Games
Ahlstrom-Munksjö
Ahola Transport
Geobear
Greencarrier
Halton
HRX
Kemppi
Kiilto
Kone
Leinonen
Lindstrom
Martela
Metso
Neles
Nokia
Nokian Tyres
Onninen
Orion Pharma
Pellon
Raisio
Nowa Era (SANOMA)
Telko
Valkea Media
MAPS 77

TOP25 Finnish companies in Poland
in terms of sales (mil EUR) (2021, 2020*)
Headcount
Company name
Sales (mil EUR)
140
Stora Enso
659
700
Nokia
476*
1126
Cargotec
358
612
843
UPM Raflatac
Onninen
293
357*
411
Fiskars
281
298
Fortum Power And Heat
213
1844
1285
770
Scanfil
PKC Group
Purmo Group
209
208
200
486
Nordea Bank
188
769
408
307
545
525
53
102
320
486
272
369
403
386
78
Paroc
Ruukki
Metsa Tissue Ktp.
Tikkurila
Nowa Era
Outokumpu
Axopar Boats
Valmet
Technologies & Services
Kone
Nordkalk
Valmet Automotive
Ramirent
Fortaco
Walki
Data source: Krajowy Rejestr Sądowy
70
66
61
54*
49
44
40
80*
80
119
119
117
147
187
100 mil 200 mil 300 mil 400 mil 500 mil 600 mil
78 RANKINGS

TOP10 Fast growers
with sales over 3m€ in Poland in 2021 (EUR/PLN 4,7)
Sales growth multiplier 2020-2021 (%)
Company name
Sales (mil EUR)
194
Koskisen
15,7
134
FSP Steel Painting
5,1
124
Nordcloud
14,5
117
Miilux
6,2
95
Xo Boats
10,7
84
79
Peikko
Pyroll
6,0
8,9
66
Iceye
3,9
62
Fortaco
32,3
60
Kiilto
6,1
200% 150% 100% 50%
Data source: Spondeo’s database;
10 mil 20 mil 30 mil 40 mil
some companies might be missing
www.fspcorp.com

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