Utua year 2023
The turn of the year is a time for small-scale accounting for many. Both for companies and for people personally. Here at Utua, we also started to look back on the past year and at first we felt like there was something worth mentioning in our calendar entries... and there it was.
At the beginning of the year, we continued to renovate our premises, which were renovated with respect in the spirit of the old house built in 1811. Among other things, we were able to move our warehouse from Sievi to Raahe, from where our packages now travel around the world.
We switched our e-commerce platform from MyCashFlow to Shopify, which was no small feat. There were many steps to go through before the store was up and running again. Those of you who have done the same at some point will know!
We also launched an exceptionally large number of bag collections, and to our delight, vegetable-tanned leather in particular became very popular and established itself alongside nappa , nubuck and grain leather. We also invested in designing business bags in particular, and received a lot of praise from their users.
At the beginning of August, our staff grew by one new employee to five. We welcomed Merja, who has been an advertising agency entrepreneur for a long time, to join us, bringing with her her own expertise in graphic design and content production.
In September, we took our bags to Tampere to be displayed at Miela. Miela is a Finnish design and sustainable consumption store. The selection includes around 100 Finnish brands and its aim is to bring Finnish products closer to customers. This way, our bags were also available for customers who shop in Tampere to try out and purchase.
In November, we opened a window to the world when our international online store utuabags.com saw the light of day. This way, we reach bag fans also outside our country's borders. Scandinavian, classic design and manufacturing within the EU are of interest not only here in the Nordic countries.
The coming year
We are turning 10 this year! And we will celebrate this milestone this fall, right on time for our founding. Please be patient and wait...
Until then, we intend to continue to be the torchbearer of responsibility and implement this in many ways.
One example is our support for young people. Every year, we offer work-study and internship opportunities to numerous students so that they can participate in the operations of a small company and bring their fresh insights to us. The benefits are mutual.
Our thoughts are already on the coming summer. This area of Old Raahe, Pekkatori, Langin Kauppahuone and Utua is a significant tourist destination. We look forward to hearing the jingle of doorbells, the murmur of foreign language conversations, longing sighs and the admiration of our beautiful seaside town when people visit here.
And you, who are reading this now: If you haven't been able to visit Raahe yet, please do so as soon as possible.
We warmly welcome you to our charming historical city and the leather-scented atmosphere of Utua!
