Gaming (in) the global downturn

No matter how long you spend in Finland, there will always be new experiences. It is a very similar situation for new entrepreneurs. New situations need new information and solutions. Having lived in Finland for almost  20 years, I know that there are still things that come up where I have absolutely no idea what to do. What I have learned in all these years, is where to start looking for the answer. In the information age, this is one of the most important skills you can have. We don’t need to know all the information at once; in fact, we wouldn’t be able to process all the information even if we heard it. A lot of things are unnecessary until they are necessary. If you arrive in country as a single, independent student, you don’t need to understand the daycare system, and in entrepreneurship, understanding how to take a company internationally is not the first thing you will learn in your entrepreneurial journey. This is the same situation for immigrants and entrepreneurs all over the world. Whole-life Events Just like integration, entrepreneurship is a whole-life event. As an immigrant, no matter what you are doing to subsidise your life, this means two things: You will be creating a whole life for you and your family – not just the hours you study at an institution or work at a job. You will spend your whole life integrating.And in parallel, as an entrepreneur, your time is now not bought by an employer but can now take far more of your daily time to create. You are only stopped by the limits that you impose on yourself. As every new challenge comes your way, you will need to figure out how to address it. Some of the challenges you might find yourself facing as an immigrant are: finding housing accessing healthcare services searching for jobs becoming an entrepreneur finding ways to spend your leisure time learning Finnish or Swedish dealing with emergencies finding and completing further education understanding the primary education system As an entrepreneur, you are seeking help with: concepting an idea testing your ideas learning new software learning how to understand your potential market and customers building a customer base designing and re-designing offers building a website understanding how to utilise different social media channels for selling and brand building accounting deciding which tasks to delegate and which services to buy from others AS previously stated, no one resource will help you in all these situations, understanding where to find these resources that can help you with all of these questions is a very big step in the right direction. Support During Studies When you come to Finland as a student, there is a good chance that you have come alone, and you are ready for all kinds of adventures. You will also be lucky enough to have a general support system that the institution provides. This is great and it can really help you to settle in and find your feet. Then you graduate, a celebratory event which also means big changes in your life. When you are a student there are many services that you do not need to seek outside the institution. It is possible that as an alumnus, you can access certain institutional services, so make sure that you check with your former institution to see what is still accessible for both your immigrant journey and your entrepreneurial one. Staying in Finland After Studying Once you have finished your education, you may be looking for a more permanent job (possibly different than the one you have done while at school if you have been working) or to expand on any entrepreneurial thoughts you may have had during your studies. These, again, are slightly different sets of skills and resources that you will need. A good place to find both information about your new situation in life and even entrepreneurship is the Newcomer’s Guide (pdf) produced by the Cities of Helsinki, Espoo, and Vantaa. The label ‘Newcomer’ is too narrow, in my opinion, for the information that it contains. You definitely need some of this information when you first arrive, but it is helpful to refer to the guide at different stages of your life in Finland. The Newcomer’s Guide also has advice on where to look for different kinds of employment, including entrepreneurship and a review of the startup ecosystem. Being gainfully employed is a huge part of many people’s integration. Sometimes that requires you to start your own company. There is a whole ecosystem in the capital area for this and the guide helps to explain it. In the near future, there will also be an online service that Metropolia UAS and the City of Helsinki are currently developing  that will help aspiring or budding entrepreneurs to find the right path through their entrepreneurial journey. In order to further your understanding of what is currently available to you as an entrepreneur, you can read my previous Various Variables blog post Entrepreneurship – Using Your Skills in Different Ways and this previous blog post by Vejay Nair & Marika Antikainen. My own experience For myself, I reflected on what contexts I have inhabited during these past 20 years in Finland. I have been: a single exchange student (with no dependents) a married person (to a Finn) a degree student a married parent a divorced single parent an unemployed spouse an unemployed single parent a full-time entrepreneur a part-time entrepreneur a temporary employee a full-time employee. It has been quite a journey, but it is one that has new challenges at every bullet point. This diversity and length of experience is also the reason that I feel that I have some insight that can help to guide people in finding the right resources at the right time. All of the situations above have taught me the value of being open and asking for help. Continue To Be Open The common skill that I have cultivated the most being an immigrant and an entrepreneur is to ask for help in order to understand new things. Life is full of things that do not make sense, are just outside of our current skill set, or we need a little time to learn. YouTube videos are a deep resource to anyone who wants to do something new. But outside of online resources, you can ask real people for help to find what you need. Not everyone will be able to help you, but every time you ask, you get a tiny bit closer to the answer. Even if it is just eliminating what is not the answer.

Employment may be difficult to find for some newcomers to Finland. One of the ways to make sure that your skills continue to develop or are utilised is to become an entrepreneur. There are different kinds of entrepreneurship in Finland. Many factors will determine if you want to try entrepreneurship, but it is always worth considering even if it is not your first choice. As mentioned, there are different forms of entrepreneurship; the two most common forms are a sole entrepreneur (toiminimi in Finnish) or a limited company (Osakeyhtiö in Finnish). Other options exist as well such as becoming a light entrepreneur and a freelancer. Each have their own rules and regulations. For more specific information on these forms of entrepreneurship, you can visit the Uusyrityskeskus (New Business Centre) in your city, or you can check out more information in the yearly guidebook that the Uusyrityskeskus creates. All of the initial information that you will need to consider becoming an entrepreneur is included in this comprehensive pdf guidebook. It is also available in Swedish and Finnish. The 2019 version of the guide is also available in Russian, Arabic, Chinese and French on the Uusyrityskeskus website. These will still be helpful because the information does not change too much year on year. Remember to always double check it – especially if it is about taxes, pensions, or anything that you need to pay. These numbers can change yearly. What Will I Sell? There are different ways to become an entrepreneur. In this section, we will look more closely at four different ways to become an entrepreneur. Your own situation and skillset will determine which route you take. You can have an idea that you have created yourself, you can decide to create a consultancy to sell the skills that you already have, or you can even purchase a business that already exists. Consulting Others A consultancy is when you take the skills and education that you already have and sell those to customers. A consultancy is a service business which means that you provide expert services for customers. Consultancies, in general, do not sell products. Buying an Existing Business As current entrepreneurs wish to retire, there are more and more businesses in Finland that require new owners. Purchasing an existing business is a solid way to become an entrepreneur if this is what you want. The companies already have customers and there is a defined market for them. It is also possible that a fresh pair of eyes will find new ways to make the business grow and modernise. This is sometimes referred to as Business Transfer or Business Acquisition The Federation of Finnish Enterprises (Suomen Yrittäjät) has a unit dedicated to this specific way of becoming an entrepreneur. They even run some information sessions about it. You can see all the information that they have on this topic on their website. Your Own Idea You may even have your own idea of what you can do. This can be a café, an import/export business, selling crafts that you make, etc. The possibilities are endless. You can even decide if you want to do this entirely online or in a physical shop. Possibilities exist to do this by yourself or partnering with someone else. Often this kind of entrepreneur is called self-employed. Create a Startup A startup is a term that has been confused over the years and is sometimes used to describe starting any kind of company. But this would be incorrect. A startup is a company that is intended to be scaled pretty quickly. Most likely, this means that it is a tech-based company. Finland’s capital area, which includes Helsinki, Espoo, and Vantaa, is well known for its startup ecosystem and has produced quite a few tech startups. Finding an Idea There are many ways to find an idea for starting a business. Below I have listed five ways to begin exploring how to find your idea. The outcome of this brainstorming will fit into one of the four categories in the previous section about what to sell. 1. Let Go of Originality There is a place for original ideas, but it is rare to have one. Someone somewhere will have thought of the same thing either in part or as a whole. That is ok. Having ‘competitors’ means that there is already a market for that service or product you are considering. Google was not the first browser and Apple was not the first phone maker. 2. Use Your Skillset As mentioned above, you have a bunch of skills that can be utilised. You just need to thoroughly analyse them to identify how you might package them. What do you know well that others do not? What can you do easily that others need help with? These types of questions will help you to understand what your unique selling point is. 3. Solve a Problem or Identify Underserved Needs We walk around every day being irritated by things that we feel do not work well or are not fit for purpose. Are any of these things fixable by you in a way that you could monetise? Use your irritation to create a sellable solution. The same principle can be applied to underserved needs. Can you see that a certain product is missing that you have seen other places? As someone coming from outside the country, there are places where you can imagine a different way or product for doing something. Different cultures solve problems differently and this new perspective could help to find gap in the market. This gap may be filled using something that you know about that others do not. A great example of this is the Finnish astiankuivauskaappi (dish drying cabinet). It even has its own Wikipedia entry. 4. Build on Products or Services That Already Exist Sometimes you see a product or service that could be extended or improved with an independent addition. When iPhones started coming out, independent retailers began to provide all kinds of covers for them. This was something that they could see that people would need since they were very expensive and needed protection, but it also allowed people to personalise their phone as a statement. You could be an expert in Excel spreadsheets and you could decide to sell courses in how to increase productivity with that tool, or you could create an e-book that has a glossary of ‘hacks’. 5. Ask Family and Friends Asking family and friends what they think you do well or even analyse what it is that they ask for help in from you is a great place to start your exploration. Sure, you may help them for free because they are your family and friends, but would there be a market for turning those skills into something you can sell. Maybe you create simple websites for your friends so that they can display a portfolio or even for their business. Support for Entrepreneurship Once you have come up with your idea, it is time to start thinking seriously about testing your idea and figuring out how you will create your business. Some decisions will be about what kind of funding you will need to make it happen. In the beginning, it is a good idea to ‘bootstrap’ which means to try to make it with as little outside funding as possible. But that does not mean that everything should be done on your own. The Startup Grant (StarttiRaha) Even though the name seems that it is only for startups, the Startup Grant, can be used for almost all types of companies. There are some types of companies that they will not give the grant for, but you should check with the Uusyrityskeskus to find out if your company idea is eligible. The Startup Grant is intended for helping new company owners cover basic needs during the starting up phase of the company. This means that if you receive it, it is approved for 6 months and then you are able to apply to have a second 6 months. It is important that you do not register your company before you are given approval for this grant. Help to Become an Entrepreneur There are many organisations out there that want to help entrepreneurs. Many times, the help is providing information, but it can also be with things such as: Registering the company Giving advice before and after you have started it Industry specific advice Mentoring Idea development and more There are many organisations that can help: Business Helsinki Business Espoo Yritys Vantaa Suomen Yrittäjät Startup Refugees The Shortcut Kiuas For more information about organisations that can support your entrepreneurial development, you can check out this previous blog post by Vejay Nair & Marika Antikainen. Becoming an Entrepreneur as a Student There is even a way to get help if you are a student. At many universities and universities of applied sciences in Finland, you will find courses and units that focus on helping students to become entrepreneurs. At Metropolia, this is the Turbiini pre-incubator programme. This course allows students to earn credits for developing their ideas and for learning the skills needed to become an entrepreneur. In 2023, 175 students went through the Turbiini course and already in 2024, there are 118 students signed up for the course in the first half of the year. The course is run in Finnish and in English. If you are not an official Metropolia student, then you can apply to take the course through Metropolia’s Open University. Blogger Pamela Spokes works as a Service Designer in Metropolia’s RDI team. Originally from Canada, Pamela has years of experience in university admin focusing on international recruitment, marketing, and the international student and staff experience. With a Bachelor’s degree from Canada, a Master’s degree from Sweden, an MBA in Service Innovation & Design from Laurea UAS, and her AmO from Haaga-Helia UAS, she is well-versed in being a global citizen. She has lived in Finland for more than 15 years and is also an entrepreneur.

One of Finland’s largest ever mergers and acquisitions, the purchase of Wolt by DoorDash (1), in November 2021 created a huge buzz again around the startup scene in Finland. With such record-breaking deals, it is easy to think that only few extraordinarily brilliant business minds could manage entrepreneurship and founding a startup.   In the best-case scenario, with hard work, a clever idea and some luck, your business can indeed turn into a unicorn like Wolt. However, as an entrepreneur, you set the goals for your business. The unique appeal of entrepreneurship is that it can take different forms based on your interests and expertise.   No matter what your vision for your business is, the Helsinki capital region is an ideal setting for developing your business idea. You certainly have plenty of support available around you.   Should I? Could I? — Plunge into the idea of entrepreneurship  The first step is to ask yourself: could entrepreneurship be something for me? We all start from somewhere, and baby steps are allowed along the way. Your skills and competence will grow by seeking information, experience and feedback.   Once you have your business idea, you can determine the scale of your endeavour. You can start with anything from light entrepreneurship to visionary business-building with global reach. Entrepreneurship incorporates a huge variety of options.   When contemplating the thought, you can explore the forms of enterprises in Finland e.g.   on the InfoFinland website or    in the Guide for Becoming an Entrepreneur on the NewCo Helsinki website.   Polish the key: your attitude  Secondly, as an entrepreneur, you need to be prepared to work on your attitude.   In speaking with business and talent advisors and startup entrepreneurs, three main themes tend to come up: flexibility, openness, and adaptability.    Teemu Seppälä, a Business Advisor for NewCo Helsinki, offers that to be successful as an entrepreneur, you need to find the balance of being open to feedback and confidence in your vision.   Of course, any successful entrepreneur needs to have confidence in their abilities and, in some sense, be slightly stubborn. But as Teemu summarises his experience of working with thousands of startups, "you need to be open to feedback and criticism." This fail-fast mentality fosters quicker development and can help you crystallise your ideas, product, or initiative (2).   Echoing Teemu's advice, Jochen Faugel, an experienced business coach and current Project Planner for the City of Helsinki initiative The Spouse Program, emphasises a similar must: "Learn from others, ask for advice, and appreciate all kinds of feedback; good and bad. Because success is not about having a great concept but your ability to implement it."  Satomi Peltola, one of the founders of the Finnish zero-waste culinary startup Misola, stresses that openness not only represents being open to feedback from others but also a willingness to ask questions. As she says, “The City of Helsinki offers many services and support for entrepreneurs. When getting help, I decided early on not to be afraid of being embarrassed or looking ignorant.”  No matter how well you draft your business plan, surprises tend to come along. "It is critical to be flexible and adaptable when becoming an entrepreneur. Not everything goes as planned, so you need to be willing to adjust to what comes your way.", pinpoints Bahman Doaeian, Co-Founder and Chief Business Officer of the MedTech startup Phonolyser.  Build up your know-how through business advising services Thirdly, like Satomi points out, the region provides you with a wide range of services — thanks to strong national and regional commitment. Discover and utilise these services!  The burgeoning startup scene in the Helsinki region is internationally renowned. The vibrancy of the scene is crucial to the cities in the region as well. Thus, they heavily invest in leveraging their entrepreneurs’ success. In practice, this translates into high-quality public services available for you, free of charge.   For example, the City of Helsinki has committed to being a "hotbed of business opportunity in Europe." As the recently released Helsinki City Strategy for 2021-2025 explains, "Helsinki must be an enticing place for testing out new solutions in an urban environment. We effectively arrange innovation competitions, funds, and other tools."   A vital component of the City of Helsinki's entrepreneurial initiatives is NewCo Helsinki.   NewCo Helsinki is there to help you get started and to support you throughout your entrepreneurial journey. Their business advisors guide from translating your initial ideas into a business plan, starting a business, acquiring funding and even potentially taking your business abroad. You can book one-to-one sessions, join their numerous multilingual events and explore the extensive material bank available to you online.  In the neighbouring cities similar services are provided by e.g. EnterpriseEspoo and YritysVantaa.  The strong commitment reaches through to the national level as well. E.g. Business Finland creates a backbone for success with its services such as funding, support functions and information resources. It has developed for example a Startup Kit and launched with Finnish Immigration Service the Startup Permit for entrepreneurs who move to Finland. National funding is channelled also through TE services as startup grants for new entrepreneurs.   You indeed have plenty to explore.  Unlock the strength of the startup community through networks  You definitely do not have to walk alone as an entrepreneur in the Helsinki region. The local startup community is known for its strong networks and geared to supporting each other to excel. The community is also highly international.  Networks help you to develop your business know-how and to evaluate your business concept. Check out for example the following ways to build your networks and skills:   Maria 01 campus: The leading startup campus in the Nordics provides its members with the tools, working spaces and knowledge for developing their businesses. The hub focuses on tech startups and investors. Recently Maria 01 was awarded with the Internationalisation Award for the year 2021 by the president of Finland.  Coaching and training services and networking events such as those organised by Startup Refugees and The Shortcut Free entrepreneurship courses such as the Entrepreneurship Course by Startup Refugees and the Aalto University online course Starting Up developed in collaboration with Reaktor, Kiuas, Maki.vc and Aalto Ventures Program Open working spaces, such as Startup Sauna  Startup accelerator and incubator programs and centers, such as Kiuas, Urban Tech Helsinki by the City of Helsinki, Aalto University, Metropolia University of Applied Sciences and University of Helsinki, and Health Incubator Helsinki  Mentoring programs, such as the Mentorisi.fi program (for members of the interest and service organisation for small and medium-sized enterprises Suomen Yrittäjät) And yes, Helsinki is home of Slush, one of the world’s leading startup and tech events. Slush is all about world-class networking with your colleagues, investors and just about anybody interested in new trends.  Are you a student? Build up your entrepreneurship skills already during your studies!  Finally, if you are a student in a Finnish higher education institution, explore the opportunities available to you in your institution. As it happens, also higher education institutions want to encourage entrepreneurship and innovation in their students.   Your time as a student is a valuable opportunity to not just develop your know-how, but to also build up your networks and try out new things with a low threshold.   For instance, the Wolt CEO Miki Kuusi started his startup career already as a student, harnessing the drive of a creative student community to launch the now already renowned startup networking hubs Startup sauna and Slush (3). Having fun with your friends can turn into something meaningful!  Often you have access for example to  entrepreneurship courses and workshops  courses developing your innovation thinking  student entrepreneurship societies  events and hackathons  startup incubator programmes.  Again, the cities collaborate with higher education institutions to encourage entrepreneurship through e.g. joint events, workshops and new initiatives. For instance, in January 2022 the City of Helsinki announced a new network of business incubators collaborating with the region's higher education institutions, Aalto University, University of Helsinki and Metropolia.   As Jussi Laine, Project Manager of the Campus Incubators programme, says, "My goal is to create a framework on behalf of the city that enables sharing best practices between institutions and bringing the city's special expertise close to the institutions’ incubator activities". The Campus Incubators programme strives to create 100 new companies annually by connecting top researchers, the Helsinki region's startup ecosystem, and students in higher education.  Next: write your story in the business ecosystem of the Helsinki region!  To sum it up, you are in the place to be for gathering up the courage and knowledge to start your business.   In fact, the Helsinki region ranks among the top 20 emerging startup ecosystems in the world (4). Precisely the scope of funding for startups, talented workforce and the strong startup network are seen as an asset for the region (5).   There is room for everyone in the Finnish entrepreneurship thinking. While successful startup entrepreneurs can become rock stars of the business world attracting top talents’ eye to Finland, the vast majority of Finnish companies, 93 %, are small enterprises employing less than 10 people (6).   On the other hand, Finnish entrepreneurship is internationalising also in terms of ownership. The number of immigrant-owned enterprises has grown dramatically in the past two decades. Immigrants’ self-employment rate is nowadays similar to natives.  (7.)  Dive in or simply just start by dipping your toes into the ocean of entrepreneurship. By trusting in your own skills and expertise, remaining open to failure, and utilising the resources and networks of the capital region, you can find the style of entrepreneurship that best fits you.  Writers: Vejay Nair is a Project Planner for the City of Helsinki and a Communication Specialist from International House Helsinki. He relocated to Helsinki 5 years ago from San Francisco, USA, and completed his MA in Intercultural Encounters from the University of Helsinki in 2019.  Marika Antikainen is a Project Planner in Metropolia. She works in a collaboration project with the employment services of Helsinki, Espoo and Vantaa-Kerava to increase employment among international professionals in the Helsinki region.  Sources:  Levingston, I. & David, R. 2021. Wolt’s $8 Billion DoorDash Sale Joins Largest Finland Deals. Bloomberg. Published on 10 November 2021.  Giles, S. 2018. How To Fail Faster -- And Why You Should. Forbes. Published on 30 April 2018. Armstrong, S. 2015. The 2015 WIRED 100: Miki Kuusi (No.32). The Wired. Published on 29 Juy 2015.  Startup Genome 2021. Rankings 2021: Top 100 Emerging Ecosystems. The Global Startup Ecosystem Report 2021. Published on 22 September 2021.  Startup Genome: Finland – Greater Helsinki. Viewed on 22 December 2021.  Suomen Yrittäjät. Entrepreneurship in Finland. Viewed on 22 December 2021.  Fornaro, P. 2018. Immigrant Entrepreneurship in Finland. ETLA Raportit – Reports 83. ETLA Economic Research. Published on 13 September 2018.