ScandAsia China - December 2015

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Swedes in Taiwan!

At Stenhus High School you can either attend Pre-IB in English or take the Danish STX og HF exam.Stenhus High School is one of the largest high schools in Denmark offering a big variety of subjects and extracurricular activities.

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ScandAsia is the only magazine that covers all the Danish, Finnish, Norwegian, and Swedish residents in China.

We also publish a ScandAsia magazine in Thailand, Singapore and the rest of South East Asia.

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Daily news and features here:www.scandasia.com

Danish Seamen’s Church Hongkong: Service and Church Lunch

Finnish Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong is delighted to invite you to their Joint Business Community Luncheon at Grand Hall in Hong Kong Convention and Exhibit ion Centre . Finncham Hongkong is honoured to have HKSAR Chief Executive, the Honourable Leung Chun-ying talk to the Hong Kong Business Community at this joint luncheon. Participants will be able to hear Mr. Leung further elaborate on his Policy Address, and learn more about his initiatives and directives for tackling key issues, such as housing, land suply, labour market, air quality and Hong Kong’s competitiveness in the year ahead.

Live in Shunyi: Danish Traditional Jazz Orchestra The Spirit of New Orleans concertWhere: Fella’s, Laiguang donglu, 2nd FloorWhen: 24 January, 20:30 - 22:00 8

Where: Hong Kong Mariners Club, 11 Middle Road, Tsim Sha TsuiWhen: 3 January, 11:00 - 13:00

On Sunday 3 January 2016 there will be held a service and The Danish Seamen’s Church would afterwards love to see you for lunch! The price for lunch is 50 Danish Kroner. Remember to register at [email protected]

The Danish band The Spirit of New Orleans will entertain with an intimate concert at Fella’s in Shunyi. Denmark’s hardest working jazz orchestra will play a repertoire of ragtime, blues, evergreens and own compositions.

The concert will start at 20:30 at Fella’s (8 Laiguang donglu, 2nd Floor)

Please register at [email protected] Price is CNY 150 (No booking CNY 300)

Finncham Hongkong: Joint Business Community Luncheon 2016Where: 1 Expo Dr, Wan Chai, Hong kong, Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition CentreWhen: Wednesday 27 January, 12:00 – 14:00

Companies wishing to reserve a table will have priority bookings on prime table locations.

4 ScandAsia.China • December 2015

News Brief

China group signs Finnish Santa Claus brand rights

Hong Kong Info evening for newly arrived Swedes

On 27 October, an information evening, with a surprise performance of song Group Vocal Six, was arranged for newly

arrived Swedes in Hongkong. Some of the longer residing Swedes also shared their experiences.

Consul General of Sweden in Hong Kong, Helena Storm and her family is also “newly arrived” and here got an opportunity to meet many people from the Swedish Community.

The information sharing was arranged by a number of Swedish Organisations.

Source: Consulate General of Sweden in Hong Kong

On 23 October Finnish Santa Claus Foundat ion and Chinese Daye Transmedia Group signed an agreement

regarding the collaboration and licensing of the rights of the Finnish Santa Claus brand in China, at the residence of Ambassador Marja Rislakki.

Both the two signing par ties and all the participants were excited about the possibilities that the new cooperation offers. After all, Santa is the most famous Finn in the world and everybody love him, especially the children!

December 2015 • ScandAsia.China 5

News Brief

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Denmark’s Foreign Minister Kristian Jensen visited China in later October. Among other things on the agenda included a

meeting with the Chinese counterpart, the signing of Danish participation in AIIB, the opening of the Danish Cultural Centre in China as well as a run on the Great Wall.

Kristian Jensen arrived on 25 October arrived to Beijing for a packed program. Upon arrival the foreign minister switched to running gear in order to climb the Great Wall, before heading towards the 798 Art District, where the minister opened

the Danish Culture Center in China.The following day was packed with meetings,

including, among other things, Yang Jiechi, Council of State for Foreign Affairs of China and Deputy Minister of Commerce Zhong Shan. In the evening there was a meeting with the Asian Infrastructure and Investment Bank (AIIB) President Jin Liqun, where the global economy was discussed.

On the last day of the visit the foreign minister attended a breakfast with Danish business people in China, where he also presented three new Danish growth counsellors who have been

appointed with the purpose of helping Danish companies and Danish-Chinese cooperation within the fields of maritime affairs, environment and food.

As the last item on the program Kristian Jensen met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi. Afterwards he signed the AIIB agreement, before departing for Denmark.

Source: Embassy of Denmark in China

Danish Foreign Minister on rollercoaster China Visit


News Brief

Finnish design pop-up store in Hong Kong

Hong Kong’s first Finnish design pop-up store serves design lovers at PMQ from 09 October to 08 November 2015. The shop offers beautiful

collections of sleek tableware, fabulous jewellery and handmade yoga totes and dog accessories designed by three Finnish women living in Hong Kong.

SAARA tableware collection’s designer Satu Vuorio wanted to create modern everyday design with the right mix of utility and contemporary feel. SAARA was first launched in Finland in 2008 and now returning to the place where she was created – Hong Kong. Satu Vuorio is a fashion- turned home designer, who treasures her Finnish roots and sees Hong Kong as home since 1992.

Inspired by Hong Kong surfing-village Shek O’s colors, vibrancy and atmosphere, Shek o Dog Department’s collection is designed to offer edgy, stylish and high-quality accessories, which make both dogs and humans happy. Riina, a Finn, and her two Hong Kong rescue dogs Iida and Hulda founded Shek O Dog Department in August 2014. Their goal is to offer creative and playful dog accessories to suit individual needs and tastes. Riina has lived in Hong Kong since 2011.

Karma Links is a collection of inspirational jewellery with urban bohemian feel. Gemstones paired with pearls, sterling silver and gold plated charms create beautiful jewellery pieces that are to be worn alone or generously stacked together for more impressive look. Originally from Finland, the founder, Nina Pahlman relocated to Hong Kong in 2006. In 2012, she began creating and crafting jewellery and Karma Links jewellery line was born soon after. In her designs, she employs the use of natural materials handpicked from all over the world to create casual yet beautiful pieces for everyday wear.

Source: Finnish Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong

Visit Finland roadshow Beijing

Hasselblad Group, the leader in high-quality professional cameras, and DJI, the world’s most-innovative

aerial technology company, announced on 5 November a corporate partnership through DJI’s acquisition of a strategic minority stake in Hasselblad. DJI joins Hasselblad’s Board of Directors.

The partnership will allow opportunities and new ways of combining the technical knowledge and inventive spirit of the two industry leaders in their respective fields.

“We are honored to be par tnering with DJI, the clear technology and market leader in its segment,” said Perry Oosting, Hasselblad’s CEO. “DJI and Hasselblad are equally enthusiastic about creativity and excellence, and we are looking forward to sharing technical expertise and paving the way for future innovations.”

“Hasselblad and DJI share a passion to provide creative people with cutting-edge, inventive technology to help them take visual storytelling to the next level,” said Frank Wang, DJI’s Founder and CEO. “With this partnership, we combine our strengths to further push the borders of what’s possible in imaging technology.”

Hasselblad and DJI will each focus on their individual strategic directions and related growth opportunities, with marketing and branding platforms continuing to delineate the two companies. Hasselblad cameras and equipment will continue to be handmade in Sweden, and DJI will continue to make products in Shenzhen, China. The partnership further establishes DJI’s leadership in the professional camera technology space.

DJI recently launched the modular Zenmuse camera system, including the Zenmuse X5 Pro and the Zenmuse X5 Raw - the world’s first Micro-Four-Thirds camera optimized for moving in space.

Hasselblad has a histor y of aer ial photography, with its technology used in space on several NASA missions, including the first landing on the moon and several of the Apollo missions. Over the course of the company’s 75-year long history, the majority of Hasselblad’s business has focused on traditional medium-format cameras and photography equipment. In recent years, the company has made meaningful investments and announced significant product launches within the aerial arena, making a partnership with DJI a natural progression of the business.

Hasselblad forms strategic partnership with DJI, China

In late October a Visit Finland roadshow Beijing event gathered the key Chinese tour operators and Finnish tourism

related businesses. Ambassador Marja Rislakki opened the event by noting that the overnight stays Chinese visitors in Finland grew over 40% from January to July this year in comparison to the same period last year.

The Finnish Foreign Ministry, the Embassy

in Beijing and the Consulate General in Shanghai have contributed to the growth by opening visa application centres in Beijing and Shanghai and developing their services in other means.

Source: Embassy of Finland in Beijing


News Brief

Finland travel store in Hong Kong

Premium Target! Travel Expert launched Hong Kong’s first Finland themed travel store at their Causeway Bay branch showcasing winter pleasures and activities of the Land of Santa. Ms Iras Ko, founder and

CEO of the company (red dress in picture) told that Finland is the first European destination to be singled out in their campaigns for the Premium Holidays category.

Source: Consulate General of Finland in Hong Kong


Team Finland China deliberates in Hong Kong

News Brief

Beijing Inauguration of new Detection Technology factory

Finland’s new ambassador to China presents her credentials

On 7 October Wu Jianghao, Deputy Director General of the Protocol Department in China received the Copy

of Credentials from New Appointed Ambassador of Finland to China H.E. Marja Rislakki. She is the new Head of the Finnish Embassy in Beijing as of 1 October 2015.

Before arriving to China Marja Rislakki served as Finland’s Cyber Ambassador. She has also worked as the Deputy Permanent Representative and Ambassador at Finland’s Permanent Representation to the European Union, with responsibility for COREPER I issues.

She has also served in Finland’s embassies in Madrid, London and Brussels.

Marja Rislakki began her career at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs in 1983 where she has held various positions relating to, for example, trade policy and EU affairs. At the Department for the Americas and Asia, she served as Head of the Unit for North America.

Detection Technology’s new factory in Beijing was inaugurated on 4 November. The new 4 000 m2 facility is located in

the Southeast Beijing Business Development Area (BDA). The building of the new factory started during the second quarter of 2015 and the facility will be fully ramped up by end of November. The majority of the employees have moved to the new facility from DT’s old Beijing factory, which is now being closed down.

Detect ion Techno logy des i gns and manufactures high performance, advanced, reliable and cost-efficient X-ray imaging components and systems for medical, security and industrial applications. DT’s detector solutions are used by more than 150 customers in more than 40 countries.

Source: Finnish Business Council Beijing

On 20 October Team Finland China network deliberated in Hong Kong on future trends, how to better serve

Finnish companies and ways to clarify our narrative to attract more investments from Greater China.

Team Finland in ChinaThe Team Finland network promotes Finland and its interests abroad: the internationalisation of Finnish enterprises, investments in Finland,

and the country brand. The Team Finland operating model brings together the key actors and services in these fields. The core of the network consists of the publicly funded organisations operating in these fields, such as the ministries, Finland’s network of diplomatic missions, Finpro, Tekes, national culture and science institutes, Finnvera, Finnfund, and the regional internationalisation services, built upon the ELY Centres.


News Brief

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Danish industrial design pavilion presented in Shenzhen

Swedish Formula 3 driver wins

Swede Felix Rosenqvist during the race weekend 19-22 November become only the

second driver in history to win the prestigious Macau Grand Prix.

Felix defending his 2014 triumph in the finale to claim his second consecutive victory in the world’s most prominent junior single-seater race.

T h e u n o f f i c i a l w o r l d championship of Formula 3 race is recognized as the single most difficult at junior level in the world, and is determined on the streets in the town center ; a unique race in a unique environment.

Star ting at pole position the pendulum then swung back and for th over the race, Felix edging away from driver Leclerc on some laps and the Monegasque closing in on others, with the gap between the two sitting at roughly two seconds all the way until the chequered flag.

Felix raced in Macau for the first time in 2010, and was placed already really good with a seventh

place in qualifying and a ninth place in Sunday’s final. In 2012 he finished second behind the Por tuguese António Félix da Costa after a thrilling battle for victory, and last year he won ahead of Austrian Lucas Auer.

Felix is not the only Swede who won the Macau Grand Prix. First out with this feat was Rickard Rydell, who triumphed in the race in 1992. The dignity of the races is reflected not least by those drivers in previous years kine ups: Ayr ton Senna, David Coulthard, Mika Hakkinen, Michael and Ralf Schumacher, Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel, only to name a handful. Even Stefan Johansson - currently an advisor to Felix - have competed in Macau, and reached the podium in 1984.

Source: Embassy of Sweden, China

During three days from November the 6th to November the 8th seven

Danish design studios were a part of a Danish pavilion exhibiting at the Shenzhen International Industrial Design Fair 2015, where more than 150.000 visitors came and had the oppor tunity to see the Danish companies’ exhibition.

The fair was organized by Shenzhen Indus t r i a l Des i gn Profession Association and had exhibitions on about the latest products and technologies within industrial design such as wearable technology, smart home design and

furniture. Brand planning agencies were also invited to the fair.

The Danish Deputy Head of the Royal Danish Embassy in China Lars Bo Larsen was invited to give one of the opening speeches, and opened the fair together with the Mayor of Shenzhen Xu Qin.

The Danish pavilion had seven Danish design studios exhibiting – including industrial designers such as Seidenfaden Design, Knud Holscher and leading Danish brand communication agency Kontrapunkt.

Source: Embassy of Denmark in China


Taiwan is not among the more popular tourist destinations for foreign travellers in Asia - which also becomes obvious once you get here. The foreign influences are minimal

and the genuine culture and charm are preserved.“Taiwan is a hidden gem in Asia,” says Ola

Ekdahl, a Swedish top chef in the taiwanese capital of Taipei.

The Swedish restaurant Flavors is constantly hovering among the top five spots on the travelsite Tripadvisor’s list of best eateries in Taipei. It is also recommended by swanky Guide Michelin. On top of that, Flavors is also highlighted in a special travel documentary aired on CNN.

But among Swedes, Flavors is practically unheard of.

The man behind Flavors is the Swedish chef Ola Ekdahl, from Lund, in Southern Sweden.

For more than 10 years, he has been living in Taipei where he with great success has been running Flavors restaurant.

Here is being served what Ola Ekdahl calls “casual Fine Dining”. That includes well known Swedish dishes like Västerbotten-pie, meatballs, herring but also Snapas, a small glass of strong liqueur together with bitesized food.

- Taiwanese people are very open-minded, willing to try new dishes and very curious, says Ola Ekdahl and reveals that many celebrities, not only from Taiwan but many other countries in Asia, are among his regular customers.

Flavors is practically unheard of in Sweden. Ola Ekdahl explains this with the fact that Taiwan attracts very few Swedish tourists.

- There are almost no Swedes coming here, and if they do, it’s for a short stop-over, maybe one or two nights, he says.

Many other countries in Asia, not least Thailand, Malaysia and maybe mainland China are

The forgotten ChinaA small but dedicated group of Vikings mark the Swedish presence in the “other” China.

By Michael Töppfer


1. Chiang Kai-shek MemorialThe monument is dedicated to Chiang Kai-shek, the founding father of Taiwan and the one who led the resistance against the communists in mainland China.

He fled to Taiwan and declared the island independent. At the basement of the enormous structure is a museum covering his life.

“Chiang Kai-Shek was suffering from enlarged self-grandiosity. This is one of the most impressive building I have ever seen. The is a must-see in Taipei.”

Find your way: Underground to Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall, then take Exit #5.

2. Martyrs’ shrineThis memorial is built in classic Chinese Ming-style, and dedicated to the 330,000 or so soldiers who died fighting all the wars that led to the birth of the state of Taiwan.

The highlight is the changing-of-guard every hour.

“When the guards throw their rifles in the air, that is really something to see.”

Find your way: Take underground to Dazhi station, followed by taxi or bus 208 or 267.

3. National Palace MuseumThis museum contains the most complete

collection of Chinese art and cultural artefacts in the world. Previously the collection was kept at the Forbidden City in Beijing, but when Chiang Kai-chek left mainland China and the advancing communist troops, he brought the treasures with him to save them from being destroyed by the communists. The collections are enormous.

“It takes two to three hours to walk through here. And yet, only five percent of the collection is shown at any given moment. Every third month, the displayed collection is changed. It would take many years to display it all at this pace.”

Find your way: From Martyrs’ Shrine, take bus #13 or a taxi.

4. Chilin Night MarketAt this large and colourful market one can find anything from cheap things, to clothes, souvenirs, and exotic food. If you have trouble making placing an order, just point at the plate of any other guest who is eating something that looks delicious, the the chefs will prepare it for you too.

Food is so cheap you can easily afford to try a few different dishes.

“At this market, the Chinese food tastes better than in mainland China.”

Find your way: Underground to Jiantan station, followed by a short walk.

5. Long Chan TempleThis beautiful and popular temple located in the working class district of Taipei was built in 1738 in fujian-style. Walk around inside the temple and watch as worshippers light candles and pray for luck and prosperity.

“The area where the temple is located is really exciting. Walk around and study the surroundings. It’s magnificent and very colourful.”

Find your way: Underground to Longshan Temple station, exit 1

much bigger travel destinations for Swedes.Ola Ekdahl finds that a bit strange.“Taiwan is one of a few countries in Asia

which has preserved its original culture and not having had it destroyed or diluted by Western influences. Anyone who travels to Singapore or Hong Kong can clearly see the British heritage as the former colonial power, and if you travel to Thailand, western influences are everywhere, he says and continues: “But Taiwan is truly preserved as it has always been.”

At first glance, Taipei is a modern, clean and efficient city with state of the ar t public transportation, nice pavements and many parks. People move on bicycle, traffic is light and vandalism and graffiti are almost unheard of.

“Taipei is probably one of the safest cities on earth. Crime figures are extremely low and pickpocketing almost non-existent, Ola Ekdahl says, and recalls the many times he has seen people riding a motorbike leaving their bags on the motorbike while going inside a store for some shopping.”

“When they return, the bags are left untouched. No one takes them,” he says.

He explains that Taiwan is also safe for women.

“Women can easily return home at night without the risk of being harassed by anyone.”

Ola Ekdahl came to Taiwan after meeting his future wife while they were both studying hotel management in Switzerland.

The couple first moved to Sweden, where they initially worked at Svaneholms Castle in southern Sweden. After a few years, they wanted to try their luck in Taiwan.

Now he hopes more Swedes will discover this exciting island.

“There is plenty to see and do here in Taiwan.”

Master Chef Ola Ekdahl’s 5 recommendations for Taipei

continue story


Elias Ek, 42, from Sundsvall in Northern Sweden, ended up in Taiwan after studying in the US where he met a taiwanese girlfriend.

He followed her back to Taiwan in 2000, and founded a call-service company. Today, he is the CEO of Enspyre, selling B2B-services, and with some 40 staff and an office in central Taipei.

Elias Ek meets ScandAsia in an office overlooking a busy area of Taipei. It’s well after normal office hours but a few staff are still working.

“Most of our staff work a lot and don’t even use their vacation, even though my company offers them well more than we need to according to the law. Even though I have been here for more than 15 years, I am still very Swedish and want my staff to take a long vacation to relax and recharge batteries, but almost no one does. They prefer to work and get more money instead,” he says.

Taiwan is a modern and rich country in Asia,

with a well functioning system for social security and other benefits for the citizens. But it seems many employees have been slow to adapt to the environment.

“My female staff don’t even go on maternity leave, even though we offer our female staff three months. They rather quit working and leave the company,” he explains.

Elias Ek has been somewhat of an entrepreneur from a very early age. In his teens, he was a radio DJ in Sundsvall, and when the broadcasting market was deregulated in the end of the 80s, he tried to bid on a frequency to set up his own radio station - but was beaten by giants like major international broadcasters.

“I guess I was a bit young. I was only 18,” he smiles.

He eventually went to study in the US, and ended up with degrees in both marketing and TV- and radio-production.

Taiwan’s entrepreneur guru is a Swede

A few Swedish tourists do actually come to Taiwan every year. ScandAsia manage to track down two of them.

Ewa Törnroth, 54, from Kungshamn in Sweden is visiting Taiwan with her daughter Johanna Fägerhag, 22, from Gothenburg in Sweden.

Together they have crisscrossed the island during two weeks, and visited national parks, beaches and done a lot of shopping.

“I think Taiwan is a very exotic place. There is a lot to see in a fairly limited area, the sights are concentrated so you never need to travel far, says Ewa Törnroth and reveals that she hasn’t really been to many other places in Asia before.”

“I can really recommend Taiwan. It is truly a unique place and not very touristy,” she says.

Her daughter is just as happy to recommend Taiwan for fellow Swedish travellers.

“It is very easy to travel here. Everyone is so nice and kind and it is very clean. It is very easy to use the underground and you never need to worry to make a mistake. Everyone is prepared to come and help if you have a problem,” says Johanna Fägerhag.

But one thing isn’t as good as in Sweden: “The food is very different. Everything I have tried has been good, except for the breakfast. It is a bit strange and not as tasty as in Sweden.”

Tourists who made it to Taiwan

But love came across his career and he ended up in Taiwan. Once here, he made one of his best decisions ever.

“ I started an intensive course in Chinese. I studied full time for four months. This laid the foundation for my language skills.”

He now communicates more or less fluently with his staff and customers in Chinese.

“I have seen many other expats here, who never really make an effort to learn the language, and they get stuck in some kind of expatriate lane their whole time here.”

His current beat, selling B2B-services using a call center, is an extension of the first business he founded in Tawian, a front-desk phone answering service for companies.

His current company, Enspyre, even though call-center based, is purely B2B.

“We don’t call peoples’ homes and annoy them late in the evening. We only deal with companies.”

After a somewhat slow start, Enspyre started to grow quickly in 2006, when it went from six to 18 staff. Since then, turnover has been steadily increasing with 20 to 50 percent every year.

Dur ing the course of time, and with experience in starting companies, he decided to write a a book about his entrepreneurial journey.

“There was no literature in this field for foreign entrepreneurs in Taiwan. So I wrote the first book,” he says.

The result was the the book ‘How to start a business in Taiwan’, which became somewhat of a bestseller.

Today he is also offering seminars and courses for foreigners who want to start a business in Taiwan.

Elias Ek says it’s fairly straight-forward to start a company here.

“It takes two months to star t and to cut through the red tape, but it’s fairly easy. And foreigners can own 100 percent of a company here. That is one big advantage with Taiwan compared to some other countries in Asia.”


On 30 October to 8 November 2015 the Nordic Consulates General in Shanghai presented the Nord i c Des i gn and Innovation Week (NDIW) for

the third year, showcasing sustainable Nordic design and fashion, this time with the theme Nordic Spaces. With 10 days of workshops and seminars as well as an exhibition open to the public, the goal was to promote and spread innovations that can improve people’s daily lives, all held in K11 in central Shanghai.

This year’s exhibition Nordic Spaces showed how space could be created and utilized in increasingly crowded urban environments to increase the quality and sustainability of urban lives and to help further creativity and innovation. In the exhibition NDIW brought together the latest Nordic innovations and trends within interior design, urban planning, clean-tech and digital technology.

Each country was responsible for a par t of the larger theme, with Sweden handling the

Digital Spaces part of the week. Panel discussions were held about what Visualisation technology would mean for our future as well as a Hackathon showing how programming can be used in playful and creative ways. The opening day started with a seminar on sustainable fashion and ended with the inauguration of the New Nordic Fashion exhibition, where visitors could have a close look at 16 outfits from Nordic designers and companies - all produced with sustainable materials and methods.

During the Sweden Day a seminar on the latest trends in wearable technology was held, with the intention to initiate a conversation between Chinese and Swedish designers, companies and organizations in the field of wearable technology. Consul General Viktoria Li inaugurated the event and also presented the new Swedish Lifestyle Map, a guide to Swedish lifestyle products in Shanghai.

At the seminar, Qu Xiaoping of the Swedish eye-tracking company Tobii presented the latest insights into eye tracking technology and

Nordic Design and Innovation week 2015 held in Shanghai

advertisement effectiveness. Web and mobile developer Ellen Sundh from Sweden’s Coda collective talked about the capabilities of electronics and connected circuits.

Niklas Bergh, one of the founders of ZoundIndustries (the creators of the Urbanears headphones), shared the story of how a couple of friends created one of the biggest headphone brands in the wor ld. Strategy Director of Yang Design, Xiaojing Huang, talked about the importance of brand identity and trend studies. The last speaker was fashion designer Simon Wang who talked about the connection between wearable technology and fashion.

On the Finland Day, Finnish designers Paola Suhonen (IVANAhelsinki), Bruno Beaugrand (LUMI) and Petri Kähkönen (Golla) created an inspiring dialogue between the Finnish and Chinese Fashion together with the lauded local designer Wang Yiyang (ZucZug). Very often fashion and accessories designers have been inspired by the Finnish nature and the four seasons. Fashion and design from Finland is typically timeless, pure and functional.

Nordic Design and Innovation Week reached its end with a cloth swap open to the public, promoting themes of sustainability and fashion upcycling. Participants had been asked to bring unwanted but still in good condition clothing and exchange them with other swapper’s clothes – all under the tagline “Your fashion miss can become someone else’s fashion hit”. At the end of the day, all leftover items were handed to H&M to be recycled as part of their Conscious campaign, launched earlier this year in all of their China stores.

The Danish Consulate General in Shanghai also co-hosted seminars at the exhibition on smart cities and simplicity in Nordic design.

Sources: Danish Consul General in Shanghai, Embassy of Sweden China


My task is to facilitate the Danish community in Shanghai and to make its members’ experience here more meaningful and inspiring.”

Anneli Vilu is the Executive Director of the Danish Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai. She sees herself as a service provider ; representing the business interest of its members, sharing useful information with and between them, arranging entertainment, events and trainings, and finally providing a networking platform for all Danes in Shanghai. But how did it happen that an Estonian woman has come to lead this Danish organization in China?

From country life to Copenhagen and finally to ChinaGrowing up in Estonia, Anneli enjoyed her childhood years on the country side, running around barefooted in the summer and playing in the deep snow in winter with her siblings and the other kids from her little Estonian village. Only, when she was 9 years old, her family moved to “the big city” of Türi with 7,000 people.

When she was about to begin her studies at the university, Estonia was breaking out from the Soviet occupation and opening its borders to the outside world – providing new possibilities of exploration for her.

“It was clear to me that I wanted to work internationally,” she tells.

“I grabbed the chance and chose Swedish as a minor, when Scandinavian language classes at university level were offered for the very first time in 50 years.”

On the side-line, she learned Danish at an evening course, and being an industrious student was awarded.

Anneli Vilu: Heading the Danish Chamber in Shanghai Being an Estonian by nationality is no problem for Anneli Vilu when managing the Danish Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai.

By Maria Andreasdottir


“I got a scholar ship from the Danish Democracy Foundation for a 3 month stay at Bornholm Folk High School in Denmark.”

This was the beginning for many years of work as an interpreter and translator, for both, the Danish and the Swedish language, and eventually her career at the natural centre for the Danish business community in China: The Danish Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai.

Moving to ChinaAfter working at the Estonian Embassy in Copenhagen for some years, the Scandinavian-Estonian axes seemed to be too narrow for Anneli, and she decided to add a new language and culture to her package.

“I considered Chinese to be the most obvious to make an effort to learn, since it is the most native spoken one. I started taking an evening course at Studieskolen in Copenhagen, and soon after got a chance to move to China,” Anneli tells.

During her first years in the Far East, she did a lot of different and exciting jobs such as being the Program Director for the Estonian EXPO Pavilion and the Conference Manager at the Nordic International Management Institute. In between, she continued to work as a freelance journalist and translator, and guided tourist groups all over China. Finally, she wrote a book about Shanghai. Meanwhile, she accidentally met a fellow student from Studieskolen Copenhagen, who happened to be a board member of DCCC Shanghai.

“She [the fellow student] invited me to become a member of the chamber.” Anneli says. “I was amazed about the quality and sheer number of really interesting events the Chamber offered, and the network possibilities they provided,” she adds.

Two years later, the position as the DCCC’s Executive Director became available, and she got it.

“I just happened to have the most suitable CV for the job at that time,” Anneli says.

What’s next?Today, Anneli has been living for 7 years in China, and she is satisfied with the Scandinavian environment in Shanghai. She lived in Denmark for only a relatively short amount of time, but the Scandinavian people, language and culture have followed her for more than 20 years, even if she is located at the other side of the world, far away from the Nordic countries.

“From my very first contact with Danes, I felt right away that the Danish mentality and humour fitted me very well. In Shanghai, it fits me even better, as I feel the Danes in China have a special edge of mentality that is a little different from the Danes in Denmark,” Anneli says.

She is also enjoys the city of Shanghai itself.“Shanghai is a very safe city, and I like the

ebullient metropolitan social life and the wide range of cultural events. I never feel alone or bored here.”

She is delighted with her place in life right now. She is still busy promoting, studying, enhancing and exchanging information regarding commercial relations, investments and trade between Denmark and other Nordic countries in China. Even if the secretariat is small, only consisting of Anneli Vilu and the event manager, they have very active and helpful board members who provide lots of inputs, ideas and practical help on a daily basis.

There is even a little Estonian community in Shanghai which Anneli is very fund of, and she is also involved in keeping the Estonian flag high.

“My roots are in Estonia and one day I will go back there. I don’t mind to have the next phase in my life in an environment closer to nature. In my heart, I am still a country girl,” Anneli admits.

I considered Chinese to be the most obvious to make

an effort to learn, since it is the most native spoken one. I started taking an evening

course at Studieskolen in Copenhagen, and soon after

got a chance to move to China.

Estonian Anneli Vilu, the Executive Director of the Danish Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai, is seen here together with her German-Belgian husband.


‘Slush’ may be a word with little or no meaning to most, but in Finland Slush is a huge thing, and that is increasingly also growing worldwide. Today Slush is one of the leading technology and

start-up events gatherings, where speakers of innovation, entrepreneurs and investors meet to bring ideas to life and make business. In just four years Slush has grown to become the largest venturing event in Europe. It has also gained enormous popularity outside Europe, which the inaugural China version of Slush proved on 13 October 2015 (earlier in the year the event also took place in Japan).

S lush is bui l t for entrepreneur s by entrepreneurs, and it is meant for growth companies of all stages and industries. It brings the relevant investors and companies to the same place and makes sure that the right companies meet the right investors in one-on-one meetings.

Investors, meet the top tech companies! Slush has become a central hub for established companies and brands that are interested in emerging technology. The event offers a unique platform for product launches, open innovation challenges, networking events and the likes

In strongly suppor ting Slush, the Finnish

Finnish Slush makes ideas grow in AsiaBy Maria Andreasdottir and Joakim Persson


Finnish Slush makes ideas grow in AsiaBy Maria Andreasdottir and Joakim Persson

Prime Minister Juha Sipilä attended the Beijing version to encourage Chinese entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurship is increasingly progressing in China, and every year millions of Chinese establish new businesses. Being the central hub for established companies and brands that are interested in emerging technology, Slush can be a great suppor t when star ting up a new company. The event brings relevant investors and companies to the same place and makes sure that the right companies meet the right investors in one-on-one meetings.

The purpose of the Slush World events mirrors the philosophy of the main event: to help the next generation of great world-conquering companies forward.

The two-day conference had a clear mission: “China is becoming an international centre of innovation. We want to encourage Chinese start-ups and youth to become the new international pioneers for the global stage,” says the Slush China CEO Lauri Tammi.

Slush-China could not have chosen a better person for the opening address than Risto Siilasmaa. not only is he the Chairman of Nokia and has made Finnish business history, but he has also been part of Slush right from the early

stages. In his speech to Slush-China he mentioned that still, even he could not foresee the force that Slush could bring about in the global start-up community and beyond that.

His stated that Slush is not just Finnish, but truly an international event.

The Ambassador of Finland in China, Marja RislakkiIn, also spoke, emphasizing how important it is to collaborate in innovations.

“In today’s world, no one can innovate alone or in isolation”, she said.

Another speaker at Slush-China was the President of Intel China, Ian Yang. In his speech he told the audience how innovations in China have changed during the past 10-20 years. According to Ian Yang, the whole scene has changed with the geographic scope moving from few cities to the entire nation, the industrial scope from ICT to all the sectors, and in terms of creators of innovations, from experts to basically anyone interested and committed. Additionally, the funding and support for the innovations by the government and other entities has become more strategic and strong.

Slush China event included activities on several stages, including the main venue, pitching competition and Slush Café. A Finnish-Chinese

innovation forum star ted out the activities at Slush Café.

The Chinese co-organizing par tners of the event included ZPark, Tsinghua University Science Park, Nordic Science Park, and Modern Sky. ZPark, situated in the “Silicon Valley of China” or Zhongguancun, has been one of the key organizations in the Finnish-Chinese innovation cooperation for a long time. ZPark has a business unit in Finland that helps Chinese companies to establish themselves in Finland and it hosts FinChi Innovation Center in Zhongguancun that provides support for Finnish companies that aim for the China market.

An increasing amount of Chinese participants were also expected to the Slush main event that was held in Helsinki on 11-12 November.

Slush is the focal point for entrepreneurs and tech talent to meet with top-tier international investors, executives and media. Slush has become one of the leading tech and start-up events in the world, reaching 14.000 attendees from 79 countries in 2014. The events aim at developing the local entrepreneurship communities and technology ecosystems.

Sources: Finland’s Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Slush


Swedish brand Polarn O. Pyret arrives to China

First in Europe with the next-gen aircraft Finnair debuts Airbus A350 XWB to Shanghai

the A350 XWB, including the best programmes from the BBC, the National Geographic Channel and the Discovery Channel. The Peace of Mind Channel eases passengers into a calm and relaxing flight.

Music playlists have been created exclusively for Finnair by MixRadio, the global music streaming service. An international team of music experts have created bespoke playlists for every long haul destination featuring the most exciting local music both new and old, to give passengers an audio flavour of the city before landing. Other playlists - combining the best in classical, lounge, soul and chilled sounds - are designed to give passengers peace of mind. Business class passengers can enjoy a good listening experience, while blocking out unwanted sounds, with the high quality Bose noise cancelling headphones.

The Nordic Sky entertainment system will have full functionality as of November 21, 2015 when the first Finnair Airbus A350 XWB begins operating between Helsinki and Shanghai

Finnair intends to double its Asian traffic by 2020 from the 2010 baseline, and the A350 fleet investment is the backbone of this strategy. The company has ordered a total of 19 A350’s, making it the biggest investment in Finnair’s history. The first four aircraft are expected to arrive in the fleet in 2015, with another seven being delivered in 2016 and 2017. The complete order will be fulfilled by 2023.

The new A350 aircraft also plays a key role in Finnair’s cargo strategy, providing up to 50% more cargo capacity by 2020.

Finnair flies between Asia, Europe and North America with an emphasis on fast connections via Helsinki, carrying more than nine million passengers annually and connecting 15 cities in Asia with more than 60 destinations in Europe. The airline, a pioneer in sustainable flying, is the European launch customer of the next-generation, eco-smart Airbus A350 XWB aircraft and is the first airline listed in the Leadership Index of the worldwide Carbon Disclosure Project.

After 40 years as a leading clothes chain for childen in Sweden Polarn O. Pyret, along with Yuehan in Shanghai, will launch

their clothes on China’s largest e-commerce for consumer sales, Tmall.com. Tmall.com, owned by Alibaba Group, accountz for about 60% of Chinese consumer sales. The initial collection

consists of the classic red and blue striped clothes, POP originals that have been around since its inception in 1976.

“Now we are taking a big step with the launch of Polarn O. Pyret’s clothes in China through Tmall. The launch via Tmall is Polarn O. Pyret’s first springboard into Asia. Tmall’s owners Alibaba

Group, is the largest e-commerce platform for consumer sales in China,” says Thomas Hedstrom President of Polarn O. Pyret.

“We are extremely proud to partner with Polarn O. Pyret in China since the brand’s premium products are a perfect match with YueHans brand and product philosophy. November 11 is China’s largest e-trading, “singles day” where Alibaba generated $ 9 billion in sales last year. We are especially pleased to launch the online store just before this sale,” said Johan Aledal CEO Yuehan (Shanghai) Trading.

Polarn O. Pyret is a Swedish brand in children’s wear segment and are known for their high quality, functionality and unique design. Since its inception in 1976 and the launch of the classic striped tricot collection, Polarn O. Pyret has lived by the philosophy that children need clothes suitable play in; clothes that let children be children. Polarn O. Pyret currently has slightly more than 135 stores, including 67 in Sweden, and has its sights set on international expansion.

On November 21 the first Finnair Airbus A350 XWB entered into long-haul service on the Finnish airline’s Helsinki-

Shanghai route.Finnair is the first European airline to fly the

Airbus A350 XWB.“This moment heralds a new and exciting

chapter in Finnair’s 92 year history. The A350 is the future of flying and will give our passengers a completely new and enhanced travel experience,” said Finnair CEO, Pekka Vauramo.

“This is also a proud moment for all Finnair employees who have worked relentlessly on the Finnair A350 programme. From route planning to pilots and cabin crew, from technical services to marketing, this is the moment we have worked for. With the A350, we get the fleet that our strategy requires, and we can start building our growth,” Vauramo continued.

For the Airbus A350 Finnair also released the details on the its with state-of-the-art Nordic Sky entertainment system and Wi-Fi keeps passengers better connected and more enter tained during their journey with an improved range of entertainment options for a more enjoyable and peaceful flight.

“The new A350 is the future of flying and we want to give Finnair passengers a unique Nordic experience in this aircraft. Finnair’s Nordic Sky entertainment system is the ultimate travel companion and revolutionises the in-flight experience by providing innovative digital services for every step of the journey,” says Juha Järvinen, Chief Commercial Officer, Finnair.

Finnair has increased its content offering so passengers can now watch even more Hollywood blockbusters and classic movies. Finnair is also proud to introduce unique branded channels on

News Brief


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ScandAsia China - December 2015