Rimita Green Oy from Pietarsaari is a natural cosmetics company founded by a mother and her son. The idea to start this company was born based on Minna Uusitalo’s thinking about the consistency and ingredients of skin care products. What all is absorbed into our blood circulation and bodies from skin care products that we use daily?
Today Rimita Green’s product family consists of different skin and body cleansing and care products, deodorants, and bite soaps. There is a hard competition on consumer goods markets especially globally, but this hasn’t stopped Rimita Green from heading out to export markets. Viexpo’s export projects for groups of companies have had an important role on this journey.
Rimita Green’s and Viexpo’s joint journey dates back to the end of 2010-century when Viexpo had an export project to Norway going on. Although the company did not participate in the actual project, there were free seats to the trip to Norway and they came along to map the market in question. Soon after this Viexpo’s Senior Advisor Carita Pöntiö started to gather a group of companies to the first export project with Japan as the target country. The market in Japan and thinking of all the valuable learnings about export activity that would be gained through the project woke the company’s interest. Rimita Green joined the “Pohjanmaalta Japaniin” (“From Ostrobothnia to Japan”) -export project that was funded by ELY Centre’s rural section (maaseutuosasto) as well as the participating companies.
The project included both joint actions, such as a training about Japan’s business culture, and company specific actions, such as marketing analysis and contact search. A trip to Japan was also carried out. During that there, for instance, an own PR-event was organized in the Finland’s embassy and meetings with potential customers and resellers were held.
According to Rimita Green’s CEO Minna Uusitalo, the project was really successful.
The pre training package and contacting of potential customers was really good. It went that well for us that we got a new importer contact already after the first trip. In additions to contacts the trip and project helped us in getting a good connection to and understanding of the multilayered business model in Japan. We got good product feedback and a confirmation for that our products are pricewise possible on the Japanese markets, Minna Uusitalo comments.
As is characteristic for projects with a group of companies, also the group itself became an important resource. The participants still benefit from it.
We happened to have a great group dynamic. A lot of cooperation has been done after that. We keep contact and we have offered each other support, for instance, during the pandemic.
The organization of the project also gets a lot of praise.
The project was executed extremely professionally and with a business focus. You could see Carita’s (Carita Pöntiö, Senior Advisor at Viexpo) business experience there. She knows what entrepreneurs and companies need.
Having in mind the successful experience, new resellers in Japan and an understanding that presence is important to continue with, Rimita Green decided to also take part in the second Japan project. Planning of that started soon after the first ended, and it is still going on when making this interview. This time Rimita Green’s goal is besides finding new, also getting to meet the customers and resellers that they have gotten. Uusitalo emphasizes that this is important, as successful export business requires that you can first build up trust. This requires time, often years.
In long-term business it is always a question of trust. The longer the physical distance, the slower it is to build up trust, depending, for instance, on cultural and time differences. So, the goal is to start building up a strong bond with the customers whom we have until now only seen via video.
In addition to this, the company has joined the project “Kasvua digikanavista – kohteena Ruotsi” (“Growth from digital channels – Sweden as the target”), which is also for a group of companies. As the name tells, the aspiration is to find growth especially on the Swedish market and with the help of digital channels.
Business is moving more and more online. Although you have a reseller, who has a physical store or a web shop, the first impression comes through your web shop and social media presence. For that, we need support, growth, and development.
Uusitalo experiences, that the export project and Viexpo have had a very important role for their export activities.
Without Viexpo we would not, for instance, be in Japan.
The good trainings and valuable tips have for instance been of help. Moreover, Uusitalo is thankful for the fact that it is always easy to approach and get contact with people from Viexpo.
Viexpo has knowledge and a customer oriented as well as consultative approach. The entirety has worked very well. Things have been taken care of in a business-oriented manner and on a very concrete level, which is very important for a company.
When asked about tips for SMEs who are planning or already doing export, Uusitalo emphasizes that building trust and successful export requires allocation of resources, as it takes a lot of time and money. It is also important to honestly analyze the market and one’s competitiveness there – can we bring added value to the market? The message is also clear for companies participating in export projects:
An important message for companies who join this kind of project is that it is not enough to wait that everything just happens, but you must be doing things yourself and be active.
Click here to familiarize yourself with Rimita Green and their products.
