Record number of young people in Helsinki tried their hand at summer entrepreneurship

This past summer, a record-breaking 143 young people in Helsinki took part in the City of Helsinki’s Youth Summer Entrepreneurship programme to try their hand at entrepreneurship. The programme offers young people aged 15–29 the opportunity to develop and test their own business ideas in practice and explore entrepreneurship safely with guidance and support.

The City of Helsinki offers participating young people who complete the initial training a business voucher worth EUR 300 to cover the initial costs of setting up a business. Participants do not need to have a business idea ready to go or any previous experience of running a business; the most important thing is a willingness to learn.

“Young people’s interest in entrepreneurship has grown significantly. The places available in the summer entrepreneurship programme were filled in record time, which tells us that more and more young people want to find their own ways of working and make the most of their skills,” says Erja Rossi from the Youth Entrepreneurship Services of Helsinki Employment Services.

Over the summer, the participating young people developed their business ideas from a wide variety of starting points. One wanted to solve an everyday problem by using technology, another wanted to turn their hobby into a career and a third wanted to develop a service for which they had identified a demand in their neighbourhood.

“Low-threshold entrepreneurship schemes give young people the opportunity to test their own ideas and practise entrepreneurial skills in the real world. In addition to the opportunity to try things out, young people need to be provided with easily accessible guidance, support and encouragement so that they do not have to take the first steps alone,” Rossi points out.

From an idea of your own to a working service

Emilia Huikko and Agathon Westin set out to build a service called Dyne, which is aimed at providing centralised access to information about restaurants, bars and events. The idea for the service arose from their personal needs.

“We were often wondering where to go for a meal or what new things there were to do in the city. The information was scattered across social media and maps instead of being available in one place.”

When it comes to entrepreneurship, Huikko and Westin have been inspired especially by the opportunity to make their own decisions.

“The best thing about being an entrepreneur is the freedom. You get to decide for yourself what to do and how to spend your time.”

At the same time, they have learned that building a business takes time. Entrepreneurship requires a lot of hard work and planning, and you end up having to deal with issues that you might not immediately think of.

“There are many different things to take into account, such as data security, the GDPR and taxes.”

From hobby to business

Photographer Anna Oikkonen decided to build a business around her long-standing hobby. Her interest in photography began when she was a child, and buying her own camera gave her the chance to try her hand at entrepreneurship in practice.

Anna photographs people and events, and what has particularly appealed to her about working as an entrepreneur is the freedom.

“It’s wonderfully liberating to be able to make your own decisions, but it requires setting priorities and planning.”

At the same time, she has realised that expertise alone is not enough if you cannot communicate it to others.

“Promoting yourself and putting yourself in the spotlight is really important. Nobody is going to just come and offer you work, so you have to take the initiative.”

Anna was also surprised by just how much guidance and support is available to young entrepreneurs.

“It’s a relief to know that I can get help if I find myself in a difficult situation.”

Customer interactions make all the difference

Luukas Laine found his business idea surprisingly close to home. His textile cleaning service was born when he tried out a spot cleaner that he found in storage on his own bed and realised that there was a demand for such a service.

Through his business activities, Luukas has learned, above all, the importance of customer service.

“The customer experience is hugely important.”

According to him, the pillars of a successful business are honesty, trust and a good first impression.

“The way you interact with a customer is really important. You have to build your customer’s confidence and trust. The first meeting is really important, as that’s when the customer realises that you know what you’re doing.”

Luukas was surprised at how interested customers are in what he does. At the same time, he has realised that running a business takes time and commitment.

“Your business will eat up all the time that you decide to give it.”

Perseverance is key

Milja Jurvanen creates content for social media, particularly in the fields of tourism and music, as an entrepreneur. She was inspired to become an entrepreneur by her teacher’s encouragement and took part in the summer entrepreneurship programme to further develop her skills.

Milja’s experiences especially highlight the sheer volume of work and her tenacity.

“You’ve got to work your butt off to make it as an entrepreneur.”

On the other hand, she, too, has realised the same thing as many other young people who have taken part in the programme: there is more help available than she had expected.

“The most surprising thing about being an entrepreneur has been just how much support and assistance is available to budding entrepreneurs, especially young people.”

According to Milja, when you are just starting out, it is important to accept the setbacks as well.

“But you also need to be really persistent and not get discouraged, even if you get a lot of rejections at first.”

The most important lesson of the summer: have the courage to try

A common message emerges from the young people’s accounts: entrepreneurship has not only brought freedom, but also responsibility. It has taken courage to promote your own expertise, engage with customers and constantly learn new skills. Many of the participants say that they were surprised by the wide range of skills that an entrepreneur needs to have and how much time it takes to develop a business.

At the same time, the summer has strengthened the participating young people’s belief in their own abilities. According to the participants, they have learned that you do not need to know everything in advance: the most important thing is the willingness to try, learn and ask for help when needed.