How did you end up in Finland?

Because of ‘love’! I met my Finnish girlfriend in Budapest during an Erasmus study exchange. After we both finished our studies we planned to go for a big adventure. But right at the moment covid-19 started and we had to adjust our travel plans. Eventually we did go to Bolivia and for a while we lived in the Amazon where my girlfriend worked as a wildlife veterinarian. At some point we exchanged the tropical temperatures for the minus 25 degrees in Rovaniemi. First temporarily but very soon we got addicted to the fresh crispy air in Lapland and all the outdoor opportunities. Then we jokingly started scrolling the websites with ‘houses for sale’ and it didn’t take long before we bumped into a dream lake house. After a few nights of camping around the lake, we knew what we had to do; we decided to buy the house.

A nice thing to tell also is that during my studies I did my internship at the Netherlands Embassy in Helsinki! 😊

How did you eventually start your own business in Finland?

During the first year we had a lot of friends and family coming to our place. We organized several sauna evenings and let them experience the thrill of taking an ice-bath. We realized that our guests enjoyed these activities to the fullest and we enjoyed organizing them. We concluded that we  want to offer this authentic experience to more people!

Do you also have experience with running your own company in the Netherlands?

No, I don’t.

What are the major differences and similarities in the field of entrepreneurship between the Netherlands and Finland?

I cannot specifically compare doing business in NL and Finland.

What I do feel in Rovaniemi is that tourist companies are very supportive to each other. They believe that everyone will benefit from good services, great activities and nice  accommodation. There is a need to cooperate. There is a strong belief that by cooperating you achieve more and that it serves the brand ‘Rovaniemi/Lapland’.

The help that I received from Business Rovaniemi was fantastic. There is such a supportive environment for startups. They gave me a good kick-start by supporting in different ways. The same goes for TE-Toimisto, the Finnish employment service. Their means of support are very helpful for me as a starting entrepreneur.

Of course there are several cliches about Finland and Finnish people. And yes, many of them are true. One that I would like to mention is the high level of mutual trust. Once we were in a village in Lapland where we rented bikes. The host specifically asked us not to lock the bikes since the risk of tourists losing the keys is higher than the bikes getting stolen. 😊

Do you have any tips for other Dutch, or international, people who want to do business in Finland?

Putting effort in learning the language is highly appreciated by the locals. Especially since the Finnish language is so difficult. It helps breaking the ice when you start the conversation. At the same time you gain a certain level of trust and they feel that you are here to stay.

Make use of the numerous services that are available to help entrepreneurs starting/growing your company.

A peek into the future: where do you see yourself and your company in 5 years?

That’s a good question! 😊 For now we plan to stay here for the foreseeable future, expanding our business with different activities and grow our social media channels. We want to keep the company small scale and simply follow our hearts and passion. We want to keep on enjoying the beauty of Lapland! With my girlfriend being a vet, it is likely that we will be joined by a small husky at some point…