We've already been in 2017 for a couple of weeks. It's been a good start, let's hope the rest of it goes well! THANK YOU to our customers, suppliers and partners for 2016 and have a great start to 2017.
A year ago, when we started the year, the outlook was unclear. Tough goals had been set for 2016. The economic situation in Finland was confusing. As an optimist, I predicted and hoped at the time that the Finnish economy would also turn to growth at some point. The economic situation in Finland improved slightly during 2016. It did indeed turn positive, not much, we are happy with even a small positive. This led to a slight improvement in the market situation.
The year 2016 was good for us. Our well-being at work was still at a good level. Dimex employees were in a good mood. According to the customer satisfaction survey, satisfaction with us is at a really good level. Our turnover grew by almost 2.0 million euros, exceeding 13 million euros. Our results remained competitive. We certainly received help from a slightly improved market situation, perhaps even “from heaven”. I see that the choices we made and the work we did are paying off. We clearly gained market share in Finland. Our exports also grew to almost a million euros.
Was there a single ray of sunshine at Dimex last year? Well, there wasn't. Sometimes it was cloudy, rainy, and even stormy. There were big projects and things that were very challenging, even problematic and difficult. Do things always go as they do in Strömsö? I used to read fairy tales to my children and at the end they said: "They lived happily ever after". I thought that you can't always be happy. As a parent, I have learned that life also includes times and moments when you are not happy. Still, you can look at the course of life and see that there has been an incredible amount of happiness. That was also the case in 2016. As you can see from my text, in my opinion, the same things apply to both work and private life. It is not necessary to put them in completely different baskets. Good feelings are needed in both.
It has been a special feeling to start 2017. The outlook for the Finnish economy is somewhat positive. It is even expected that the market situation will improve slightly this year. It feels strange. This in itself does not affect what we do. We must continue to focus on the things that have been chosen. We must focus on our own work and story. We can influence these. Our competitors, of which there are many, are also doing a great job. It is good to remember this so that we do not fly into the clouds. We must continue with good self-esteem and a humble spirit. We have the opportunity to grow and strengthen in 2017 in accordance with our goals. The main pillar of this goal is that we continue to have good feelings at work. Our own word is: GOOD BITCH. This way we have the opportunity to continue on a customer-centric and solution-oriented path.
Let's take good care of ourselves. We need to be kind to ourselves this year too. I hope, act and believe that 2017 will be good. It may be bumpy at times, but that's part of a good year.
Have a great rest of the year!
Yucca
PS. A year ago I said in a similar message that I was the best of my grandchildren at playing games than adults. I still have the top spot in their opinion. However, now I got a warning that you are not good at games. Now the pressure to play games has started.