Jaana Huhtanen, who founded the company Jaana Huhtanen Design that manufactures 100% Finnish knitwear, found help in her company’s international development from the Häme Smart Growth project’s sprints.
Jaana Huhtanen Design has manufactured knitwear already since 1999, so she has gained extensive knowhow of the industry for decades. The life of an entrepreneur can be very busy though, and a little help in business development is always welcome. That is why Jaana decided to take part in the sprints of Häme Smart Growth project where the international students of HAMK International Business solved her business challenges and gave her advice on how to develop her business operations.
The sprints are short student projects, where the entrepreneur gives the students a business development related challenge, that the students then work on in groups with the help of a teacher.
Help with social media and website, and expanding abroad
Jaana took part in two sprints, the first one focusing on digitalization. There the students helped Jaana with social media marketing and made plans on renewing the company’s website. In the second sprint, the students looked at new markets for the company abroad.
Jaana Huhtanen Design has had foreign customers for a long time, but there could always be more. There is a lot of interest for the Finnish and Scandinavian design in the world, but reaching the correct customers isn’t always easy. The students looked at some potential new markets and focused their research onto a couple of the most promising ones. Then they prepared a plan on how to increase sales in those markets.
“The students were working very hard, and I got a lot of material that I can utilize in the future”, Jaana praises.
Unexpected benefits
Jaana has found other benefits in the sprints as well. “I’m a private entrepreneur, even though I do have wide networks. This means I mainly work alone. It was very refreshing to work with the hardworking students, it gave a lot of energy and boost to my work! The research that the students did gave clarity to my plans and ideas”, she sums her experiences.
Jaana found her way to the sprints through the Kohti kansainvälistä menestystä trainings that have been organized by Linna Business Development. They are a part of the Häme Smart Growth project, like HAMK’s sprints. “I warmly recommend taking part in such projects. My experience was rewarding in every way!” are Jaana’s greetings to other entrepreneurs.
The sprints have been executed as a part of the Häme Smart Growth project that is partly funded by the European Union. It is a joint project between Linna Business Development and Häme University of Applied Sciences. A programme called Kohti kansainvälistä menestystä is developed for entrepreneurs during the project.
