Arvo Sijoitusosuuskunta is an investment cooperative with 23 000 owners and a history spanning over a century. Known for its long-term, hands-on approach, Arvo played a key role in the merger and development of Leden Group, and its sale to Hanza Holding in 2024. Trailmaker was utilized twice during that time, and, according to Arvo, it helped Leden Group achieve exit readiness faster than it would have otherwise.
Arvo is a business growth enabler operating both with private equity and junior loans. Arvo focuses on established small and mid-sized businesses, contributing minority investments. Arvo was listed in the cooperative segment of the Nasdaq First North Growth Market Finland in 2023.
The company has a long and eventful history. Founded in 1914 as a co-op providing telephone services around Oulu-Kokkola area, Arvo operated in several fields before transforming into a fully-fledged private equity firm in 2012. A distinctive feature is that Arvo invests capital from its own balance sheet rather than through a managed fund.
“Our chosen role is to be a minority investor with investments typically ranging from 1 to 5 million euros, sometimes more. This scope is quite exceptional in the Finnish investor market. And because we invest from our own balance sheet, we have the freedom to be a patient investor, unbound by fund-imposed deadlines”, says CEO Jari Pirinen.
As a private equity investor Arvo provides active support to its portfolio companies to help them achieve growth and create value for Arvo’s owners.
“We aim to increase the value of our investments over the long-term with relatively modest investments. This allows us to be agile and creative with our approach”, Pirinen says.
One of Arvo’s success stories is their role in the formation and growth of the Finnish-Estonian metal-based contract manufacturer Leden Group, established through a 2021 merger, and its subsequent sale to Hanza Group in 2024.
Following the merger of four manufacturers, Arvo s engaged Trailmaker to help the new owners align on common goals and define the steps toward Leden Group’s growth.
This strategic process set the company’s growth plan in motion, later reinforced by a second round of Trailmaker sessions with the Leden Group leadership team.
In late 2024, after many of the goals were reached, Swedish Hanza Group acquired Leden Group.
“The Trailmaker processes helped us achieve a shared vision of Leden Group’s path to success. My estimation is that it helped Leden Group achieve exit readiness a year or two earlier would otherwise have been possible”, Pirinen says.
Arvo sees Trailmaker as a powerful tool for kick-starting change and corporate restructurings.
“For us, Trailmaker has clearly proven its value. We will definitely work with them again in similar situations,” Pirinen concludes.
