CORNERSTONES
A few words
Miscellaneous

I am a father (with the prefix “Grand”, too), a husband, and an entrepreneur in that order. And, that list also reveals my core values quite well.
Originally, I was a husband first, then I became an entrepreneur, and finally a father. In addition to my longest project -being a husband- I have had many different entrepreneurial projects.
As an entrepreneur, I have had a small transportation company. My trucks worked for the food and beverage-, paper- and environmental industries. In addition, I had at the same time a service company selling maintenance services to an international oil company.
As I retired from trucking and sold the trucks, the service company re-shaped itself into a consulting firm, working mainly for a Stockholm-based logistic company and a leading Finnish real estate renter.
The next entrepreneurial step for me was a company running two convenience stores. Unfortunately.
From storekeeper, I became a partner in a real estate agency working as a licensed realtor.
As a realtor, I constantly got brutally shocked about the ignorance of home buyers.
A couple of people with similar mindsets found each other and established a company to provide professional assistance for home buyers. Off duty, I have been an ice hockey player for a significant amount of time. And a racing driver. And as they say: Those who can’t do it, wind up to teach it. That applies to them both: I was a goaltender coach for a kid’s ice hockey team playing in the junior league. And probably took that a bit too seriously. When racing myself in a one-seater Van Diemen, I also participated in the management of a stock car racing team. And my son started racing go-karts. After a quick calculation of the events in the upcoming season on the edge of one spring, I received rather bitter comments from my loving wife. As a result of that feedback, I gave up my racing, quit the stock car series, and concentrated on my son’s racing. And probably took that a bit too seriously.
But that’s ancient history! Today I only race in our yard with a lawn mower and fool around with our grandchildren. In addition, I also like to go to gigs to see great live music.
Business Owner

Entrepreneurship seems to be the only way I can work. Whether I’m running my own company or working as an employee, it always feels like it’s “my company” I’m working for.
It all started when I realized I wanted to do my work differently—more efficiently. I began to question the process and suggested improvements. My proposals were well-received, the job got done, customers were happier than ever, I made more money, and I spent less time earning it. Everything was great until jealousy reared its head. The rest of the staff wanted what I had, even though their contributions hadn’t changed. I was forced to abandon My Way.
So, I started my own company. This gave me the freedom to use my methods. I was still doing the same work but with better quality and profit. The jealous ones were welcome to follow suit, but most didn’t.
My first venture was a transportation company. It grew, and around the same time, I became a father. Wanting to spend more time with my family, I started another small business that wasn’t as time-consuming. This side firm provided maintenance services for an international oil company.
Later, the oil company was sold, and I didn’t want to work for the new owner. The recession of the ’90s hit the trucking industry hard, so I became an employee for about eleven years. The company I worked for was sold a couple of times and eventually became part of a huge multinational corporation, and my responsibilities were taken care of from abroad.
During this time, I converted my maintenance company into a consulting firm, still largely focused on logistics with a strong technological angle. My main customer, a Stockholm-based logistics company, lost its business (as I warned them!), and I couldn’t find a replacement.
So, I became a storekeeper, running two convenience stores and employing about ten people. This was a franchising deal, and it was an experience I don’t wish to repeat. Being a franchisee felt like exploitation. Despite receiving awards and increasing sales (not to mention customer satisfaction), I was left stranded in the end. No good deed goes unpunished for a franchisee.
The next step was the real estate business. I joined an established company as an employee, earned my realtor licenses, and then became a partner. I have to admit, I was a joke as a realtor. Despite being recognized for my commercial thinking and sales orientation, I often found myself advising buyers against purchasing certain apartments due to issues like poor financial situations of the condominiums, poor management, and huge renovation debts. Most of these problems were evident in the documentation, but unfortunately, very few people could understand the papers and numbers
Fortunately, I met a couple of like-minded individuals, and we established OUN Oy, a unique office providing professional assistance to homebuyers. The timing for such a disruptive approach was probably the worst possible, given the pandemic and the brutal war by a rogue country next to us, which caused a rise in mortgage interest rates and inflation. My co-founders gave up and vanished, but I kept developing the service, believing that better times are coming.
With anticipation, I wonder what the next chapter on my entrepreneurial path will be…
Working For A Man

In addition, for working in my own company, I have been an employee too. Down the line, I have collected quite a few jobs under my belt. Such as
- cleaner
- builder
- waiter
- trucker
- salesman
- consultant
- vending manager
- development manager
- business director
- realtor
- warehouse worker
- fork lift operator
- account manager
The first three occupations took place when I was still in school. After school, I applied for a driver’s position, mainly because they promised to take me back after I completed my military service. (And man, I tell you as a professional truck driver, it was pretty hard to convince my commanding officers that I would serve better as a clerk than a driver (because the mandatory service time for drivers was longer than it was for clerks!).)
For the next about ten years, I spent running two companies.
Then I became a salesperson for a leading Finnish brewery. But I only held that occupation for a couple of months, because I proceed first to be a distribution manager, vending manager, and eventually, development manager. Another 11 years went by.
Then, after some entrepreneurial bumps, I wound up to be a realtor. But that wasn’t a job for me, even though I became a partner in a real estate company, too. Soon, the idea (again) of my own company related to the industry came alive.
By that time the finances was pretty hard. And due to the disruptive approach to a conservative business, I had to find some way to get by. Preferably a job that I could easily jump out as soon as my business starts to thrive. And a warehouse worker was just such. But then they realized that I was able to drive trucks, they made me a driver. Again! I even found another employer to work for as a driver, because the first one seemed to… Well, their business was way too slow to be secure. In the new company, I shifted from a truck to office to work as an account manager. However, that working environment turned out to be relatively toxic, literally and figuratively speaking, sorry to say.
So far I have had both blue and white collars to wear. Any work is good work, I think. And since I’ve been measured to be at my best when there is a lot on my desk, I don’t complain about the color of my collar. While writing this I wear a black hoodie and jeans, and I feel comfortable!
What’s Next To The Moon?

Although I’m not on the moon, but I’m not at the end of my journey either. Therefore, I’m always interested in appealing suggestions! So if you have one, please reach out!
A quick recap of me:
Curious about anything new
Development is in my spine
Commercial thinking
Solution-oriented selling
Digitalizing – love trees & hate papers
Love to get my hands dirty
I have always been interested in streamlining operations, including sales processes, websites, logistic operations, etc. I’ve been measured to be at my best when I have enough stuff on my desk. I may not know everything yet, but I’m keen to learn! I have been thrown into water before but still remained undrowned.
My history has thickened my skin, and I don’t start to shake easily. If you have a business that should be -more or less- redefined, and you value experience and a tough attitude, reach out and check if I could be any help for you!
