The STIHL Group has founded a wholly owned sales subsidiary in Finland. The new company, Andreas Stihl Oy, is based in Vantaa, near Helsinki, and will take over responsibility for covering the local market for STIHL and VIKING chain saws and other outdoor power tools and garden equipment. At the opening ceremony, advisory and supervisory board chairman Dr. Nikolas Stihl expressed his confidence in the continuation of the positive growth in the Finnish market: "I see great potential for our products in Finland with its vast forested areas." The opening ceremony in Vantaa on 20th March was attended by STIHL staff, STIHL dealers and press representatives.
Norbert Pick, STIHL executive board member responsible for Marketing and Sales, also sees good growth potential for the company in Finland: "Finland is a large and attractive market for us, in both the professional and consumer sectors. In future, we will be able to provide dealers and end users with even better service." Finland is one of the most sparsely populated countries in Europe with 5.4 million inhabitants in an area almost as big as Germany. More than three quarters of the land area is wooded. The new company in Vantaa means that STIHL's worldwide sales network now comprises 36 sales subsidiaries, some 120 importers and more than 40,000 servicing dealers.