Liiveri has launched a collaboration with Leader Östra Skaraborg. Thanks to this, we offer entrepreneurs and communities study trips to an area in southern Sweden known for tourism, local food and a concentration of creative industries. Read what we could learn from our neighbors and sign up. A genuine interest in cooperation is enough, no other travel snacks are needed. Instead, the abundance of things to bring home will surely reward you:
You can learn branding from the Swedes. If there is one thing the Swedes are superior at, it is marketing. In a brand empire, marketing is so commonplace that everyone knows how to do it. And when branding permeates products, services, villages and the entire culture, trade flourishes and the countryside bursts with vitality. Local strengths are also well-known for being commercialized. For example, 125,000 tourists visit the small village of Hornbårga in Skaraborg in the spring to marvel at the gathering of tens of thousands of cranes on a nearby lake. Then the entire village lives off the cranes: there are crane cafes, crane hotels, crane art and crane souvenirs.
You are enthusiastic about thinking globally but acting locally. Sweden knows how to combine international business and responsibility. Östra Skarabor is particularly home to small food companies that utilize local natural resources in the most sustainable way possible. Growth is not sought by competing with each other, but by making products for international markets. Strong roots are used to push abroad, utilizing local stories and responsibly produced raw materials.
You understand why it's worth investing in quality. Finland and Sweden are similar in one respect. In neither country can you compete with bulk products. However, when it comes to quality, the Swedes are ahead of us Finns. For example, the tourism entrepreneurs of Östra Skaraborg have long worked together to develop the area to a level that is also suitable for foreign tourists. This is despite the fact that the largest customer flow still comes from Finland. However, quality must already be visible in both services and marketing, otherwise international customers will have to be forgotten in the future.
You will see examples of nurturing creativity. Östra Skaraborg is known as a hub for creative industries. That's why there are plenty of wild ideas and things to see. Local artists and craftsmen make a strong contribution to the vitality and regional development of the entire area. We could also learn from this in South Ostrobothnia. When creativity and local expertise are valued on a practical level, things that seem incredible can work. For example, in the municipality of Hjo, which has 6,000 inhabitants, no fewer than two profitable craft shops are thriving.
Östra Skaraborg is located between Sweden's two largest cities, Stockholm and Gothenburg. The area is also surrounded by two of the country's largest lakes: Vänern and Vättern. Liiveri is organizing two group trips to the area for representatives of communities and associations in autumn 2019 and spring 2020. In addition, eight individual study trips will be tailored for entrepreneurs, aspiring entrepreneurs or community representatives. Liiveri will pay for the travel expenses for individual trips. Accommodation is also paid for on group trips. Registration for the first group trip to Östra Skaraborg 29-31 August 2019 is ongoing. Get to know to the program and register by.
For more information: International Coordinator Paula Vannesluomaan, tel. +358 50 466 5015 or paula.vannesluoma@liiveri.net.