Norwegian e-commerce giant Komplett Group has launched its first online store in Finland. The company was attracted to its Nordic neighbour by its e-commerce market and easy business environment.
Finland has a reputation as a tech-savvy nation, and this can also been seen in its growing online shopping numbers. Now Finns have a new way to meet their shopping needs as Komplett Group, the largest e-commerce company in the Nordics, has opened its first online store in the country.
“Positive economic signals, consumers who are used to shopping from foreign online stores, and an e-commerce sector that has the most growth potential among its Nordic neighbours make Finland an interesting venture for us,” says Ville Polvinen, Online Sales Manager, Finland at Komplett.
In Finland, Komplett will initially focus on consumer electronics and computer components with the potential to expand later. The company has also introduced its speciality, Komplett PCs, to the Finnish market. The company sells over 33,000 of these custom-built computers annually.
“These PCs are tailored according to the customer’s requests and assembled in our facility in Norway,” Polvinen explains. “They have already proven to be a big hit Finland as well.”
The Finnish expansion adds to Komplett’s portfolio of 17 online stores across Denmark, Norway, Germany and Sweden. In 2017, these online stores attracted 1.9 million customers and reported revenue of 910 million euros.
A land of opportunity
Komplett Group has come a long way from its humble beginnings. The company started as a computer and PC accessory store in Norway in 1996, and now has online stores for everything from car parts and furniture to baby products and cosmetics. In Norway, it also operates as an online pharmacy.
Komplett’s decision to expand to the Finnish market was planned carefully. Polvinen says the time was finally right last year and Komplett.fi soft launched in October 2017. A more significant launch push was organised in November in time for run up to Christmas.
“Black Friday was an especially memorable day for us at Komplett Finland, when we really got to see the positive reception from Finnish online shoppers,” Polvinen enthuses. “We surpassed our revenue goal for the day by hundreds of thousands of euros.”
Polvinen cites development of the Finnish e-commerce market as the key driver behind Komplett’s arrival in the country. It also saw opportunity. While Finland boasts a very high percentage of internet and mobile users, Finns still shop online less than their Nordic peers.
“Another interesting insight relating to the Finnish market is the relative popularity of ordering from foreign online stores,” Polvinen says. “As a new player in the market, this makes entering Finland easier for a foreign company like Komplett.”
Marketplace expansion
Aiding the launch was the fact Komplett didn’t have to do all its Finnish legwork alone. Regional development agency Helsinki Business Hub (HBH) helped the company connect with industry associations and networks in Finland, provided information on the market and introduced the company to service providers.
“We got a great response [from HBH],” says Erik Johannesson, Country Manager, Finland at Komplett. “The initial scope of establishing a [physical] Finnish office changed during the process, but thanks to the contact with Helsinki Business Hub we know our way around now.”
Komplett has also been impressed by the ease of doing business in Finland, says Polvinen: “Finland is year after year ranked at the top of various international rankings, from quality of life to innovation, and naturally this is also reflected in the business environment.”
Next Komplett will focus on building its new Marketplace model, which allows third party retailers to sell goods through its online store. The first Komplett Marketplace was launched in Norway in late 2017 and its initial success has prompted the company to roll out Marketplace to all Nordic countries, including Finland, in the next few years.
“The rise of the marketplace as a retail model online is a clear consumer megatrend, as evidenced by the success of global giants like Amazon and Alibaba,” Polvinen says. “We are excited to build upon the strong foundations we laid [in Finland] in 2017.”
