business today & tomorrow

I don’t know about you but I have always thought a hell of a lot of good stuff comes out of a country inhabited by only 9.2 million people, speaking a language very few people care about (a little over 9.2 million people I would guess ).

I have often wondered why, but to be honest never gone as far as looking for an answer, until I read an article in brandchannel.com, Brandinavia: Why Nordic Brands Rule. The article attempts to answer the question “How come the Nordic countries are such a branding powerhouse? (IKEA, VOLVO, Lego, Nokia, Ericsson, Absolut)?”.

The reason given in the article is that Scandinavia is a social democracy where people are taken care of from cradle to death (paid for by high taxes). This means Governments can focus on commercial issues, a focus that materialises in three ways:
-    Low corporate tax
-    Investment actively being encouraged
-    Supporting aggressive export of their products

Before continuing, and in the spirit of total disclosure, I need to mention I’m half Swedish (in case my last name has not given it away). I will therefore focus my comments on Sweden for no other reason than it being the only Scandinavian country I know intimately having lived there for 15 years.

I very much enjoyed the article, it was well written and informative, however I do question its focus on brands.

To me this is not a story about branding, but about creativity and innovation. What is interesting about Sweden is not the amount of famous brands it has given birth to, but how innovative it’s products and solutions are. Yes I agree that this innovation has lead to the creation of many famous brands, but more importantly they changed entire industries (the article mentions this but not in the sense of disrupting industries). IKEA revolutionised the furniture industry, H&M the clothing industry, Tetrapak the packaging and delivery industry etc.

(Tetrapak)

I believe a more interesting question to be, what makes the Swedes so creative and therefore innovative (to be discussed later)?

I also question the author’s Government support explanation. Although I would agree that the social democracy argument goes a long way to explain the successful go to market of products, and eventually the existence of strong brands, I feel this is very much an economic argument. The truth is it does not explain the actual initial innovation, especially as it was there long before Swedish businesses had the commercial support from their Government (We invented the safety matches in 1844, the commercial vacuum cleaner in the early 1900’s).

Personally I believe that the Swedish culture has more to do with the success of its products.

Having lived in Sweden for a long time, trust me when I say creativity is not what jumps out at you when you spend time with its population…and yet there it is!!!

So how come it’s there, in abundance? A long discussion with my father over breakfast lead to the following conclusion, it’s the Swedes practical side, and their constant search for practical solutions, that feeds this creativity. IKEA was born because the founder Kamprad wanted to ship a chair to someone but did not know how to package it, hence taking the legs of…and not because he wanted to disrupt the furniture industry. Skype was born because Niklas Zennström and Janus Friis were looking for a practical way to benefit from the Internet (in addition to making some money)…and not because they wanted to disrupt the telecomms industry.

Ok so this explains why great ideas are generated. But how come these ideas have such mass appeal? Again the answer I believe (and my dad too) is cultural. Sweden is a collective society, a society that always thinks of the group, and how to benefit that group. It’s therefore more likely that the ideas generated, and what is subsequently developed in terms of products and service, will be of benefit to many (satisfying a collective need), and by that rational sell in great numbers.

And finally, it does help that Swedish design, like the article mentions, is second to none. Again the answer is cultural. Swedes are very simple, honest and straightforward people. Yes is yes, no is no, what you see is what you get, there are no frills! And that is exactly what Swedish design is like, simple and pure (which again tends to have a mass appeal).

(Skandium, design store on Marylebone High Street.)

So what should we learn from the Swedes that we can bring to our innovation efforts? Actually three little things, nothing we did not already know, so incredibly obvious, yet three things that prove hard to achieve (unless you are a Swede of course).

1.    Don’t be creative for creativity’s sake (is there a practical use for your product or service?).
2.    Think of the user, the people when you create (can you imagine a day when a large group of people will use your product or service?).
3.    And while you’re at it, throw in a bit of good taste into what you create, it never hurts!!!

Lycka till (Good luck!!!)

Brandinavia: Why Nordic Brands Rule, by Barry Silverstein, July 13, 2009 issue

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