Finland is searching for the immigrant entrepreneur of the year, is it you?

Suomen Yrittäjäat, the organization of the Finnish Entrepreneurs, is searching for the immigrant entrepreneur of the year. Is it you, or someone you know?

The organization has published in its website the terms and conditions to participate in this competition, which intends to bring successful and exemplary entrepreneurs to the fore. The winner will be chosen among five finalists and the prize will be 3,000 euros provided by the pension company Elo.

"We are looking for doers who, in spite of language barriers and a different operating environment, have succeeded, created something new in their fields, and shown an exceptionally entrepreneurial attitude,” explained Aicha Manai, network manager at Suomen Yrittäjät.

A business must be profitable

In order to win this award, an entrepreneur’s business must be profitable and have growth prospects.

Creating a business from nothing is not a simple task, especially for someone operating in a strange environment. Hence, the drivers of the award have decided to recognize the work that many immigrants do in this area. “It takes a lot of courage to start and run one’s own business. Everyday life is full of all sorts of challenges,” Joni Tikkanen, Chief Marketing Officer at Elo, said.

The idea for organizing the competition came from immigrant entrepreneurs. "As someone who’s worked in Finland for a long time, I know that running your own business is hard, particularly for entrepreneurs. There are a lot of people out there running low-threshold businesses, but they are not seen or noticed anywhere,” Ali Giray, Chair of the Suomen Yrittäjät immigrant entrepreneur network, said.

“For immigrant entrepreneurs, language difficulties and finding the right knowledge increase challenges, as the survey carried out by Suomen Yrittäjät shows. At the same time, they have a strong appetite for growth and often operate on international markets,” Aicha Manai remarked.

Participation requirements

• The entrepreneur must be born outside of Finland.
• His or her native language cannot be Finnish, Swedish or Sami.
• The entrepreneur must be an exciting example for other immigrants and entrepreneurs in general.
• The entrepreneur has registered a business in Finland which has been operational for at least three years.
• The entrepreneur and his/her business have an unblemished reputation.
• The business has the requirements for continued success and its finances are in order. The entrepreneur and business have met their tax and other statutory duties as an employer and an entrepreneur.
• A pair or team of entrepreneurs may participate in the competition. A single-person business may also be nominated.

Candidates to this award may be nominated by 20 November in Finnish or English.

If you are interested in nominating any entrepreneur you know or even yourself for this award, you can do it by accessing the official form of the organization of Finnish Entrepreneurs HERE