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Lumoava has followed a successful path for decades

11.4.2024

The world’s northernmost jewellery factory has a long and colourful history. Lumoava Finland started out as a small goldsmith’s workshop and is now one of Finland’s biggest manufacturers of precious metal jewellery.

Majority owner of Lumoava, Managing Director Mikko Pessi is following in the footsteps of his grandfather Eino Räsänen. Räsänen bought a goldsmith’s workshop for 12 000 Finnish marks while he was on leave from the war in 1942. The plan was to provide a living for his family through the workshop.

“We have found some letters sent by military mail in which Eino Räsänen sends instructions to his workers on goldsmithery. That was how information was passed on in those days,” says Lumoava’s Design Director, shareholder Heikki Hartikainen.

Räsänen later also bought Kuopion Kultaseppä Oy and, following a merger, the company was renamed Saurum Oy. In 2022, the company celebrated its 80-year journey and also borrowed its current name from its best-known jewellery brand, Lumoava.

“The brand was born back in 2008 and has strengthened its position in the market ever since. Retailers are especially pleased with the novelty value of the brand. At times, we even struggled a little bit to keep up with the growth and make enough products to meet the demand. Brand building and marketing have required a lot of hard work to retain consumer interest,” says Hartikainen.

Plenty more to do in Finland

Lumoava makes all its products in Kuopio. The company has eagerly invested in new technologies. However, despite the new production methods, making jewellery still relies heavily on traditional craftsmanship where you get to hone your skills and see your handiwork. Hartikainen does not believe that the manual part of the process in this industry will be automated any time soon.

“What’s also great is that Finns still appreciate handicraft.”

Although Lumoava does sell some of its jewellery abroad, due to the Moomin license, for instance, the company is not planning a large-scale global market entry. Standing out from the competition would be hard and would also require financial investments. Looking at the big picture, Hartikainen does not believe that the global market would be more significant for Lumoava than the domestic one. Building brand awareness abroad would require a lot of contacts and local agencies in the target countries.

“We have plenty more to do in Finland as well,” says Hartikainen.

We focus on our collection

The success of Lumoava is based on a combination of determination, enthusiasm and in-house entrepreneurship. Despite some wrong turns along the way, the company has always been able to get back on track. Hartikainen describes the long-running journey of Lumoava as a gentle roller coaster with its own ups and downs.
“There are no quick wins in this industry, but this is a marathon. We have focused on our collection and prioritized our activities, and that has proven to be a profitable strategy.”

Hartikainen appreciates businesses that show tenacity, the ability to envision actions and the courage to develop their products further. Businesses also need to stand out from their competitors beyond price. He has applied these same lessons when developing new products.

“You need to make successful choices to also keep your financial managers happy,” he says with a laugh.

Lumoava’s website: lumoava.fi/en/

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Local and multidisciplinary cooperation

Lumoava Finland works in cooperation with local goldsmiths in the Kuopio region and offers work to freelancers in the industry. The company has also participated in more multidisciplinary cooperation with Kuopio-based Heart2Save to design jewellery that detects and monitors arrhythmia. The piece of jewellery is part of the Awario service that also includes an analytics service and an application. Lumoava is responsible for the design of the jewellery.

“The jewellery is also made at our factory. Its materials are Finnish natural fibre composite and recycled platinum-plated silver. The shape resembles stones that have been worn smooth and round by water,” says Lumoava’s Design Director Heikki Hartikainen.

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Text: Minna Akiola
Photos: Lumoava