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“Losing a partner is the worst thing I have had to face”, Mikko Parkkila – CMO & Co-Founder at Radientum

In December 2015, Mikko Parkkila co-founded Radientum – a consultancy/engineering company focused solely on antenna design and support services. They have experts in simulation-driven designs capable of simulating antennas for very complicated products with an excellent match between simulated and measured results. The company has generated profitable results from the very first financial year.

“Being a mompreneur is not easy but it’s one of the best decisions I’ve ever made” – Anna Juusela, Founder & CEO of We Encourage

Can a movie change your life? This is the case for Anna after watching a documentary about forced marriage which made her so frustrated and angry that she decided she must do something about it! The only problem was, she did not know “how”. Anna thought until the age of 50, she might figure out some ways to help the girls and women. But then another event happened, which totally changed her plan!

“Do not give up unless you are doing something stupid” – Lari Pihlajapuro, Founder of Shipit

Persistence is a key trait of any entrepreneur and Lari is no different. After many months of dedication and numerous business plans, he has kept the focus on always improving and using setbacks as learning points. Lari shares with us the motto which has contributed to the success of his business – everything can be (and should be) made simple with the right approach.

“Dare to try – Many dreams die because people worry too much about what others say” – Marko Höynälä, Founder of Skiiot, Cmicro & Kipuwex

Are all entrepreneurs innovators? The answer is yes with Marko’s case. Massive layoff sounds dreadful at first sight, but it turns out to be a good thing for this natural-born inventor. After 15 years of being an employee, Marko’s decision to pursue entrepreneurship was finally catalyzed when his company fired 650 people, including him.

“I work harder to prove to people that they were wrong” – Miikka Sipilä, Co-founder of Stolen Shoes Entertainment

Miikka is one of the “lucky ones” who could turn their hobby into a profession. His story shows that it is definitely not easy, but possible, and in fact, well worthwhile in the long run. As an entrepreneur, building a circle of professional networks is undoubtedly important yet arduous. It’s even more challenging if you are a youngster, having almost no connection, started your career from scratch in a new city. However, with a big dream, hard work, and active participation in several events, Miikka has made his own way to get to where he wanted to be.

“Being an entrepreneur is the fastest way to get something done” – Antti Merilehto, Founder of AI Strategy Company

“Different technologies are soon like Finnish lager beer – it all tastes the same”. Antti writes, coaches, and gives speeches about one of the hottest, most discussed topics – Artificial Intelligence. But that’s not all about him. Besides the speaking style of an author, he has the mindset of a businessman, the heart of a soldier, and the world view of a politician.

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“It does not feel right in the beginning, until you gain momentum” – Tan Lay, Video Marketing Consultant

“A video is not a product” – We did not expect to hear this at all from a video producer. But after Tan shared with us the insights about the traditional film industry and today video marketing production, we are completely convinced. Tan only started his entrepreneurship journey after settling down in Finland for six years. Before that, he worked for a TV production company and struggled with the language barrier. However, instead of complaining, he accepts the fact that without Finnish, he shouldn’t be hired as an employee in a Finnish firm and moved on to set up his own business.

“My motto is that, you have to show your capability and value first by doing work for free” – Vanitsri Tirkkonen, Founder of The Finnish Thai Association ry

Vanitsri is a type of people who can make you feel at home right from the first meeting. During the talk, we could see it’s the care for Thailand, her home country that has lightened and kept glowing the fire of patriotism in her heart. “Patriotism is a thing difficult to put into words. It is neither precisely an emotion nor an opinion, but a state of mind.” Vanitsri chose to show her love for Thailand by concrete actions. All major works she has been doing in her career share the same purpose – to promote her nation and support her fellow citizens.

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“Owning a business is more stable than being employed” – Alexander Spelman, Founder of Spelman Media

Alexander just celebrated his 20th birthday 3 weeks ago. Coming from an international family where his father is Russian and his mother is half Estonian half Russian, he became an entrepreneur at the age of 16. But make no mistake, age doesn’t define him and age “really doesn’t matter”, as Alexander shared in his story. Our interview was supposed to be within an hour but it turned out to be a two-hours insightful talk about entrepreneurship, education and investment. We were amazed by his perspective on life and business. It was beyond our expectations that we learned so much from such a young man.

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