When Finnish clothing company Tam-Silk began collaborating with Foppa in December of 2020, the goal was to double revenue. That target was drastically exceeded, and growth has been so rapid that insufficient production capacity has become a positive challenge.

Such rapid growth would not have been possible in any way without collaborating with Foppa, says Tam-Silk CEOJuha Haapasaari.

“Foppa has significantly boosted our revenue. If growth had been achieved solely on the basis of cash flow, we would have had to complete a number of significant funding rounds. This collaboration has been very valuable to Tam-Silk.”

In 2020, the company’s revenue was approximately EUR 2.7 million and the target for this year was raised to EUR 4.5 million. However, the growth has been so rapid that it is already approaching EUR 6 million at this stage. Now the challenge has become more about how to curb growth, Haapasaari says.

“Our production capacity is at its upper limit. We are not able to produce more clothes than what we sold last year. Our factory is physically full and we can no longer accommodate new cutting or sewing areas or new machines.”

Underlying the successful collaboration is the largest strategy shift in the history of Tam-Silk Oy. During last autumn, the company decided to abandon chain retailers altogether and instead invest directly in consumer sales. Professional expertise was needed to help.

Foppa was selected as a partner due to the company offering a flexible media budget based on revenue growth, as well as a comprehensive media strategy. According to Haapasaari, Foppa’s professionalism has been reflected in the right media choices and in building the whole. Now the results speak for themselves, he says.

“With activities having been coordinated and managed from the perspective of the operations in their entirety, and with all choices having been carefully considered, efficiency has risen to a new level. The model has also made it possible for us to keep ownership in our own hands.”

According to Haapasaari, Foppa also offers its partners something that financiers or media agencies cannot provide.

 “They are like a partner to us, not just an investor or a media agency. When we are in the same boat, all solutions affect both and bring added value as well as a risk-sharing aspect. It is important to me that the people of Foppa can be reached whenever they need to. Things have been arranged easily and I have always received a quick response to questions I have had on my mind. I only have good things to say about them”, Haapasaari says.