Kimmo Loippo is a happy man, because together with his family, he has found his place at the shore of Lake Pyhäjärvi in Pelkosenniemi. Sunday Morning Resort, which is owned by Loippo’s family business, aims for sustainability and a minimal carbon footprint in all its operations.
– We fell in love with the location, and the locals have involved us in everything possible. It’s easy to get here from Southern Finland. Pyhä provides us with fun activities.
Kimmo Loippo, who made his internationally well-known and respected career as the founder of Runtech Systems and the developer of energy-efficient solutions, wants to save the world.
– We will continue the same ideology here as before, in other words, we want to create solutions, which will on our part affect the quality of life in Lapland and beyond. There is no reason to pollute when the same thing can be carried out cost-effectively without polluting, Kimmo Loippo states.
Together with his business partner, Kimmo Loippo sold Runtech Systems Oy to the American company, Gardner Denver, in early 2018. The company was a market leader in its sector, developing solutions for the paper industry, which improved energy efficiency and water savings, and reduced costs.
– We developed solutions, which energy savings would have allowed several coal plants to be completely shut down or which water savings would be equivalent to several days of water flowing in Niagara Falls.
Lapland seemed interesting
Already a couple of years ago, Kimmo and Sirpa Loippo realised that as the parents of six children, they were beginning to have some free time to spend with their family.
– We’ve never been Lapland tourists, we had no connections here, but Lapland seemed interesting. There was an old water-damaged house for sale in Kiimaselkä on an online auction site. We hadn’t even seen the house, our offer was accepted, we renovated the house and moved here with our three primary-school-aged children, Kimmo Loippo explains.
The family moved to Pelkosenniemi from Kolho in Pirkanmaa and the family’s investment company Loipposet Oy was established in 2018, and its domicile is Pelkosenniemi.
The family’s son, Juho, operates as the company’s managing director, and all the investments are related to the development of new technology with which natural resources are saved.
The resort was originally built for the needs of Aamulehti’s directors in 1990. The six-hundred-square-metre main building and its semi-detached houses had been on the market for a long time when enquiries were raised in Pelkosenniemi concerning whether the village school could move into the premises.
– For the sake of the school and our own children, we came to have a look at this, but it’s not suitable as a school. We made an offer for it, and it was accepted.
The Loippo family have personally designed the renovations of the villa. Each solution has been carefully thought out: the aim is to achieve carbon negativity.
– We have geothermal heating instead of direct electrical heating. Automation cost-effectively manages energy savings, for example, by means of heat recovery. And the snowmobiles operate on electricity, as does our car.
Each solution pays respect to the spirit of the house, which has been built with old pine logs and where e.g. artist Upi Kärri’s handiwork can be seen. Environment-friendliness can be seen in the ideology of recycling. The traditional Karelian fabrics of the chairs that have been woven by textile artist Annikki Karvinen have been turned over. – We were told that the Karelian fabric is two-sided, and the other side is like new. Now it will last another 30 years.
Business guests to Lapland
The main building, sauna and semi-detached houses are now ready for customers. The main building can accommodate eight people, and the semi-detached houses can accommodate another 20.
– Marketing is in its early days. We have already had companies’ management groups here via our own contacts. Particularly foreigners have been thrilled, since this house communicates through its details, and the guests have been able to fully break away from everyday life.
Several tour operators have already visited Sunday Morning Resort, and they will begin to market the destination particularly for companies and individuals who seek quality and privacy.
– We have year-round staff. For us, it is enough that we can keep the guests in a good mood. If we see happy faces, we have succeeded. It is then possible that they will return and share positive feedback about us, the area and Finland.
According to Kimmo Loippo, Sunday Morning Resort also supports the other business operations of the investment company, since business guests can easily be invited for negotiations to the villa, where there is e.g. state-of-the-art conference technology. The other investments of the company involve innovations and technologies, which promote sustainable development.
Desire to develop tourism in Lapland
Loipposet Oy wants to promote the development of tourism at Pyhätunturi in Lapland. Together with Parkside Pyhä Oy, the company has developed semi-detached houses next to the slopes of Pyhä, and next year there should be a total of 13 houses.
– Next summer there will be space to accommodate 156 people. The problem with Pyhätunturi has been that there have not been identical accommodation locations and it has been difficult for groups to come here. If these operations also lead to new jobs and, thus, tax revenue and new residents, then it is all positive.
The Loippo family has fallen in love with the landscapes of Pyhätunturi, and at the moment their home is in Lapland. If the school-aged children are asked, their permanent home will remain at Pyhätunturi for a long time.
– Our summer home is in Kolho, but the children’s friends and hobbies are here. The school-aged children are excited for the arrival of winter and for their chance to go downhill skiing. It has been easy for us to settle down here.
Published 9/2019