Finnish early childhood education company Pilke päiväkodit Oy and Norwegian Läringsverkstedet AS, a family business specialising in early childhood education, join forces as Läringsverkstedet becomes the new owner of Pilke. The transaction will take effect by the end of this year.
Pilke päiväkodit Oy offers early childhood education for more than 10,000 children in 146 daycare centers in Finland as well after school activities in schools and childcare services for companies as employee benefits or for municipalities on the basis of service vouchers. Pilke employs over 2,000 Finnish childcare professional.
Since 2012, the main owner of Pilke has been the domestic private equity investor Korona Invest Oy, which relinquishes its ownership in connection with the acquisition. During Korona Invest’s ownership, Pilke päiväkodit Oy has invested over 100 million euros in development of Finnish early childhood education. Over 50 new daycare centers have been built during this time. During Korona Invest’s ownership, Pilke’s net sales have risen from 1.5 million to almost 100 million euros. Investments in Finland will continue with Läringsverksted.
According to Minna Martikainen, CEO of Pilke päiväkodit Oy, the transaction will not affect Pilke’s operating methods or values, nor will it cause personnel changes. Pilke’s name and brand will remain the same. Pilke continues to offer jobs for early childhood professionals in Finland and services for families on a stable, Nordic basis.
“Pilke will continue to serve Finnish families with children like before. We are happy and proud to become part of Läringsverkstedet. We share the same Nordic views on early childhood education and child-centered pedagogic principles, as well as the common world of values that safeguards the child’s growth and learning. We want to develop the innovations of future early childhood education together and take Nordic early childhood education know-how to the world”, Martikainen says.
Läringsverkstedet AS is the largest and most well-known private early childhood education provider in the Nordic countries, operating in Norway and Sweden, Germany, Latvia, and Dubai. The family business founded and owned by two early childhood educators invests in particular in the development of children’s individual wellbeing and social values and in the continuous professional growth of their personnel.
“Pilke is the perfect partner for us – we share in their Nordic values and common views of the future. We want to ensure that every child feels seen and appreciated and that every child’s learning is supported. The high-quality early childhood education that Pilke offers in Finland is exactly the sort approach we are also passionate about and it will be great to develop it together in the future”, Randi and Hans Jacob Sundby, the founders of Läringsverkstedet say.
More information:
Minna Martikainen, Pilke CEO, Pilke päiväkodit Oy,
tel. +358 44 521 2159, minna.martikainen@pilkepaivakodit.fi
Vesa Lehtomäki, founder & COB, Korona Invest Oy,
tel. +358 50 337 6969, vesa.lehtomaki@koronainvest.fi
Hans Jacob Sundby, founder, Läringsverkstedet AS,
tel. +47 920 80 702, hjs@laringsverkstedet.no
