The international location marketing company invited 20 representatives of Finnish companies and multipliers to watch the game together. Samy Julien Hamana, Director International Relations & Sports Eintracht Frankfurt and Eric Menges, President & CEO FRM GmbH, welcomed representatives from Suominen Corp, Merus Power, Sievo, Hoxhunt and Valmet Automotive, among others, to the box. Also in Helsinki were Maria Pennanen, co-founder of Accelerator Frankfurt and CEO of Mindclip Behavior Oy, and Niina Hagström, Director Nordic Countries at FRM GmbH. Born in Finland, Pennanen acted as a testimonial for Frankfurt Rhein-Main as a business location. As a native speaker, Niina Hagström was available to answer initial questions from the company representatives.
Eric Menges presented the advantages of Frankfurt Rhein-Main as a business location to the Finnish company representatives and used personal discussions to encourage them to settle in the region: "It is also something special for us to promote Frankfurt Rhein-Main as a business location in such a setting. HJK Helsinki is by far the most successful soccer club in Finland and is comparable to FC Bayern München. Having won 32 Finnish championships, Helsingin Jalkapalloklubi is by far the most successful Finnish club and the only one in Europe where both men and women are record champions. Our region in turn plays successfully in the league of the most important European business locations. Short distances to the world and within the region, internationally experienced specialists and an excellently developed infrastructure make it easy for internationally active companies to arrive here and be successful."
The aim of the event in Helsinki was to expand existing relationships with Finnish decision-makers and to attract further companies to settle here.
From Finland to Frankfurt RheinMain
More than 900 Finns live in Frankfurt RheinMain today. Around 60 Finnish companies have been an important part of the business location for many years. These include companies such as Kemira Germany GmbH, Valmet Automotive Management GmbH and Harvia Holding GmbH in Frankfurt, Kemppi GmbH in Langgöns and Fiskars Germany GmbH in Eschborn.
In addition to the advantages of an international economic region, the Frankfurt RheinMain region also offers a piece of home. Finnish influences are palpable; Frankfurt is home to the largest Finnish community in Germany, which organizes the traditional Christmas bazaar every year in the run-up to Christmas. SISU Radio broadcasts a program entirely in Finnish every Sunday on the Frankfurt city radio station "radio x". The Finnish-German Trade Guild is a popular meeting place in Frankfurt for all those who contribute to the promotion of economic contacts between Germany and Finland. The Trade Guild is a platform for Finns working in business in Frankfurt am Main and the surrounding area to integrate more easily in their host country by exchanging information with other Finns and Germans. In addition, the Handelsgilde aims to promote relations, information flow and awareness of Finland in Germany. The German-Finnish Society, in turn, brings Finnish culture to Germany through concerts, readings, lectures and exhibitions.