Made in Scandinavia

photo: morakniv

made in scandinavia

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photo: dale of norway

Feature To have a close connection with both the elements and the products is an important key to company success.

A good environment, better working conditions and greater flexibility are some arguments for linking a business and its production closer together again. Many companies have exciting projects in the pipeline, but where did the traditional craftsmanship go?

TEXT HÅKAN WIKE

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ore and more outdoor companies in Scandinavia have started or at least toyed with the idea of establishing ​​ more of their activities at home. The ambition is high, for a number of reasons, however, the attempts to shake life back into craftsmanship and production on the home front have also had to deal with a problem that is not primarily economical.

After decades of closures, the drain of knowledge has been so great that some of the companies that want to revive the old traditions have had a hard time getting it right. The natural transfer of knowledge between generations has disappeared and even if the will is strong, many times, it can be difficult to find the right expertise. For example, Finnish Nokian moved their rubber boot manufacturing abroad, partly because of a shortage of skills (see separate article). Also, Haglöfs had to look far and wide for suppliers before they were able to get their anniversary bag No: 1 to be completely manufactured in Sweden.

Just over a year ago, Fjällräven began to see if they could produce Swedish wool products, on a small scale, from sheep to finished product, in Sweden.

“Today, most seamstresses who work in Sweden come from other countries where the knowledge and craftsmanship exist to a greater extent. Now,

we have to find ways to increase domestic regrowth because the demand is increasing,” says Elin Lydahl, former general secretary of the Swedish textile industry’s trade association TEKO. “There are forces that want to revive domestic production in Sweden. And the occasional attempts by companies do not arise out of nothing. There is a growing group of consumers who are willing to pay for the added value and higher quality.”

Scandinavian countries still boast a good reputation abroad. The labels Made in Sweden, Denmark, Iceland, Norway or Finland make a bigger impact than Made in China. With this impression behind them, there are also possibilities.

Easier product development There are, of course, those who have long looked at knowledge capital at home as their most important asset. Dale of Norway is working entirely with premium knitted sweaters and jackets, and export most of its production abroad. ”We have all the expertise in the design and knitting here in Norway, and it would be difficult to move production to another country. We would then have difficulty retaining our unique quality,” says Hilde Midthjell, owner of the company. ”Another SC AN DIN AVIAN O UT DO O R N EW S

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➜

photo: gösta fries

photo: morakniv

“A clear national profile photo: dale of norway

can also provide a competitive advantage”

At Woolpower in Östersund the seamstresses mark the garment they made with their own name, as a quality seal.

advantage is that we can quickly switch production to the needs that arise and thereby have much more flexible delivery for our customers.”

A clear national profile can also provide a competitive advantage. Kupilka from Finland markets itself both with the Finnish flag and the label “Finnish Design” since both product development and production takes place in Finland.

“Firstly, it is a position. We want to contribute to Finnish jobs and development at home, but I also see an important argument for our products, due to our location in Finland,” says Laura Kaasinen, export manager at Kupilka.

Their unique material, which is a mixture of wood fibers from Finnish environmentally certified wood and thermoplastics, is a result of close cooperation with other Finnish companies over the past ten years.

They combine to constantly create new products where geographic proximity is an equally important component as the raw material.

Knife manufacturer Mora of Sweden, has been rooted steadily in the Swedish soil since 1891. They also believe that it is essential for product development and production to be close together in order for development to proceed smoothly and to achieve the desired results.

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Mora of Sweden has also found solutions to compete with the volume of certain products. The knowledge about the quality aspects has also made it possible to find cost-effective solutions.

“Much of what we live off of is a good product as well as the reputation we have, even internationally, but we have also been able to compete with some longer production runs, thanks to investments in machinery production,” says Thomas Eriksson, Product Specialist at Morakniv.

Better conditions sell The closeness between a company’s core management and its production facility also provides better opportunities for verification of decent working conditions, non-toxic production and attention to the environment and animals. Hilde Midthjell Dale believes that these factors are increasingly important for customer purchasing decisions, and play into the hands of her and other Scandinavian producers. Several of her colleagues support this view.

“I think that most consumers are aware of the fact that production in Sweden will automatically improve production conditions and quality,” says Per Segerqvist, CEO of Seger, which produces hats and socks in Sweden.

Feature Linus Flodin, President of Woolpower in Östersund, Sweden agrees.

“We have some seamstresses who moved here from Estonia because production there was shut down and moved to Asia. In comparison with Asian countries, Estonia is a high-cost country, but we pay them starting at 20,000 SEK per month instead of the 3,000 SEK that they would earn at home in Estonia.

A seamstress in Bangladesh has a monthly salary of 600 SEK, and we have not factored in how they often work significantly more hours a month, in far worse conditions than in Sweden.”

Value-added at home To establish production functions in Asia or Europe is not necessarily the best solution to secure one’s financial position. In particular, smaller companies that stand out with their products and added value, in one way or another, have a chance to find a position that will hopefully also be economically acceptable.

There is another important and slightly softer profit that comes from working closely to the production chain: the spine, the heart and the soul of the

“Values like spine, heart and

photo: dale of norway

soul are important values, according to trend analyses”

products. Values t​​ hat according to trend analyses are becoming increasingly important when consumers choose brands.

The amount of Fjällräven’s wool products produced from Swedish sheep remains to be seen, but the fact that it is possible to keep the chain in Sweden, at least in a “limited edition”, is being confirmed.

This is something that not everyone believed when they started the process.

“It is important to try, and to dare to test your ideas,” says Christiane Dolva, Sustainability Manager at Fjällräven. “Being close to both the development and the raw material is definitely a great motivator, but to go in and be a partner in the production of raw materials is an entirely new way of thinking. The fact that we do it at home first and then see what lessons we can roll out in other parts of the supply chain, I think this is quite natural.” ●

Nokian Footwear chose Europe over Asia

Some companies in Scandinavia are once again choosing to locate their production in Europe. It is cheaper than at home, but not as far away as China or India.

“We moved the production of our rubber boots from Finland to Serbia and Slovenia in 2003 because contract manufacturing was significantly cheaper than running our own factory. We chose Europe for several reasons, however, one of them was that rubber production has a longer tradition here than in most countries in Asia,” says Laaksonen Päivi-Oivio, Product Manager at Nokian Footwear.

He believes that Asia is no longer the low cost region that it once was, and that it is even easier with quality controls and ongoing development efforts in Europe. On top of this, it cuts transport costs sharply. The downside to the relocation of production is that it requires substantial resources in the areas of logistics, planning, control and replenishment – factors that in some cases are less visible in Europe.

“We would love to have production in Finland, but it is not really realistic for the reasons of cost as well as the fact that expert knowledge about rubber production is disappearing from here.”

SC SCAN ANDIN DINAVIAN AVIAN O OUT UTDO DOO OR RN NEW EWSS

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