Former Marimekko CEO Kirsti Paakkanen turns 80

Working class family’s youngest child assumed responsibility for her own life

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By Tarja Ollikainen
     
      Kirsti Paakkanen returned to Finland from her second home in Nice on Saturday. The reason was not a special day: Paakkanen was away for two and a half months, so her home in Espoo required a thorough cleaning.
      In her matter-of-fact style, Paakkanen says that the cleaning project is more important than her 80th birthday. Nevertheless, her phone is ringing off the hook as the birthday girl’s extensive circle of friends all want to congratulate her.
      "I’m not big on celebrations, and I never got the point of using alcohol. I’ll celebrate when I turn one hundred”, she laughs.
      Perhaps that, too, is typical of Paakkanen - an Aquarius. The freedom to do as she pleases.
      “A good friend of mine said yesterday that Pentti Kouri, who recently passed away, was also born on February 12th, and that we both always uncompromisingly chose our own paths.”
      “My life has been brilliant in every respect. I have stayed healthy and I quit working at the age of 79, so big thanks to the Guy Upstairs are in order.”
     
At an early age, Kirsti Paakkanen was forced to find her own path, and she has never tried to conceal her modest background. At the age of 16 Paakkanen moved from the middle of a forest in Saarijärvi to the nation’s capital to start her studies in an evening secondary school.
      “I was the youngest child and my parents, who had me later in their life, would not have wanted to let me go to Helsinki. They said: ‘If you leave now you’ll leave for the last time’. I said: ‘Father dear, I shall now assume the responsibility for my own life!”
      But of course the door did not close behind her. The day she left Kirsti Paakkanen’s father had folded all his money in his fist from where he slipped it into his daughter’s hand. Every two weeks, the provident parents sent five Finnish markkas to their daughter so that she could buy food.
     
In 1945, Helsinki was not an easy place for a young girl from a poor family.
      Paakkanen praises her luck for having met good people along the way, who supported and encouraged her.
      “It was enormously important, for as a child from a poor family I was without any self-regard. I did not have a big magnate father’s wallet to fall back on. I had to build my own life.”
      In building her life Kirsti Paakkanen’s decent home upbringing was of help. She had not been encouraged to gather riches, but not to envy those with wealth, either.
      “When one has received a strong guideline in life, one starts to believe in one’s own gifts and creativity.”
     
At first, besides going to the evening school, Paakkanen sold milk by the litre in an Elanto grocery store. After that she worked in the foreign textiles buying department of the Stockmann department store chain, until she was overcome with the desire to try her hand in the advertising agency business.
      “Without a shred of experience I registered as a jobseeker for a vacant position with the Mainos-Kunnas advertising agency. I must have been something like Number 48 in the queue, and I told them that they wouldn't have to pay me anything until I had proved myself to them.”
      The risk was worth taking, even though Stockmann was ready to give the promising worker a raise.
     
Paakkanen has not shied away from taking risks later in her life.
      In 1969 when she established her own advertising agency Womena, which subsequently reaped various awards in the field, there was a recession going on.
      In 1991, when Paakkanen bought Marimekko, again there was a recession.
      Paakkanen has a certain standpoint even with regard to today’s business conditions.
      “A Finn is a survivor-type, who will I'm sure get through even this recession much better than many others. Temporary lay-offs I understand, but permanent dismissals I would stamp with a big question-mark.”
     
Kirsti Paakkanen gave up her Marimekko involvement permanently at the beginning of the year.
      “I still would have managed, but Marimekko had to change, and I had to make room for the younger generation.”
      When Workidea - owned by Paakkanen - sold the last of its Marimekko shares at the beginning of January, a minor scandal developed.
      Paakkanen is not bitter about it, and observes that she has said what she wanted to say.
      “My strong temperament makes me the queen of the tabloid newsstand fliers, but the secret of my getting a good night's sleep is that I say directly what I feel in my heart. In time, Mika Ihamuotila [the new Marimekko CEO and owner of 13% of the stock] and I will not have any hard feelings between us.”
      “But of course I will be watching with an eagle eye how Marimekko is doing. Over the years Armi Ratia’s legacy became pretty important to me.”
     
     
KIRSTI PAAKKANEN, 80

Kirsti Paakkanen was born on the 12th of February 1929 in Saarijärvi.
     
While working part-time in the late 1940s she went to an evening secondary school and later earned an MAT certificate in advertising.
     
In 1969 Paakkanen set up the Womena advertising agency, which she sold to an American firm in 1988. She first continued as the managing director and later as the chairperson of the company until March 1991.
     
In September 1991, Paakkanen - by this time in retirement and living in France - became the owner and the CEO of Marimekko, then in dire financial straits. She pulled the design house and textiles firm around and continued as CEO until the end of January 2008.
     
The remainder of her shares in Marimekko were sold in January 2009.
     
Paakkanen holds an honorary doctorate from the University of Art and Design Helsinki as well as one from the Helsinki School of Economics.
     
In 2008 Kirsti Paakkanen was awarded the honour of Commander of the Order of the White Rose of Finland.
     
     
Helsingin Sanomat / First published in print 12.2.2009


Previously in HS International Edition:
  Kirsti Paakkanen sells her remaining Marimekko holding (9.1.2009)
  New Marimekko CEO says serious illness led to change of direction (1.11.2007)
  Kirsti Paakkanen to surrender ownership of Marimekko (31.10.2007)

Links:
  Pentti Kouri (1949-2009) (23.1.2009)
  Marimekko
  Marimekko (Wikipedia)

Helsingin Sanomat