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The Nordic market is considered one of the best and fast-growing in the world, businesswise. In Scandinavia, there are large global companies like Ikea, but not only. Also many new great startups can be found developing fast. All this is possible thanks to the favorable entrepreneurial ecosystem that prevails in this region.
The statistics that show the Nordic market is growing very dynamically, is the best evidenced. I will use the example of the IT market here. The figures that I present here include companies providing IT services and those whose demand reaches this industry. Namely, it is estimated that Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of IT services growth in 2016-2020 years, in the whole Nordic market, will be 3,1%. It is difficult to be indifferent to such estimation of development.
However, Sweden, as the leader of the Nordic Market, deserves special attention. According to available statistics, already about 20 companies in Sweden have reached the threshold of revenues over USD 10bn. This is the best result in the entire region. It is the 40% share of the whole region. Companies in Denmark come in second place, and the third one is Norway.
Let’s move on. In 2017, Sweden was able to boast a really great success. This country was ranked 1st in ‘Best Countries for Business 2017’ by Forbes. What is more, Sweden was ranked 2nd in innovation in the global ranking.
For those who may not be convinced by the statistics, let’s take a look at the number of startups in Sweden, specifically in the capital of Stockholm. In 2018, there were about 8,000 of them. Currently, it is estimated that this number has already grown to 10,000. This is some really impressive data, considering the relatively small population living in Stockholm (around 965,000).
As mentioned before, there are many fast-developing companies in Sweden – from new startups to large global brands. As a result, the demand for IT services is growing every year. Taking into account the statistic data from 2017, the IT market in Sweden is divided into two main categories:
Demand for IT services is closely related to the significant investments in this market. New companies are created, and consequently also more and more new products that require software development. In 2016, over USD 2 billions were invested in startups in Sweden. Since then, this amount is likely to have increased up to 50%.
In the eyes of many experts and economists, Stockholm is the best place in Europe for the creation of tech startups. It is true that this is not documented by numbers, but it is enough to look at the ratio of the number of inhabitants of this city compared to the number of startups emerging on the local market. This makes you wonder about the potential of this area. In short, investors are eager to invest their funds in local companies, and, as a result, it stimulates the overall growth of all service sectors – IT in particular.
It is estimated that the technology industry has the largest share in the labor market in Stockholm, and the most wanted profession is the programmer. However, this situation, as ideal as it can sound, can also cause … problems. Throughout Europe – including Sweden – there is a shortage of qualified developers. This fact encourages startups from this country to often look for technological support in other parts of Europe (where they can find cheaper options).
Surely everyone knows the biggest brands in Sweden, such as Ikea, Skanska, Vattenfall or Scania. However, you cannot ignore the fast development of other companies that have gained new markets and have become global brands. Over the last few years, impressive growth has been recorded by Spotify, Uniti, Just Arrived and Karma. Just to name a few representatives of the Swedish entrepreneurial success.
We decided to prepare a list of companies that you may not have heard of, but worthy to keep an eye on. We suggest to check them out and familiarize yourself with their business profile. Some of them are just at the beginning of their development path, and some have been operating on the market for many years, have very interesting products, but, for some reasons, they are not as popular as other well-known companies.
These companies are operating as marketplaces, fintech and proptech – some of the most dynamically developing industries.
Sigmastocks – it makes stock trading easier for individuals and eases both the selection and buying process.
Hemnet– a platform that facilitates the real estate purchase and sale process. You will also find there, among others, plots for sale and rentals for holidays.
Ifrågasätt – startup from Malmo that is on the way to become the #1 world’s media supplier of traffic, loyalty and user engagement. The company creates cost-efficient products to help news sites regain and keep readers and increase their engagement, while building readers loyalty.
Sqore – it works with higher education institutions to amplify their international student recruitment efforts. The unique Sqore campaigns are used to engage and foster deeper relationships with students while also assessing their eligibility for the recruiting institution.
Beatly – is an independent, global network for data-driven Influencer Marketing. Through Beatly‘s platform, customers can manage the whole campaign process from start to finish.
Funnel – is a platform that brings together all marketing and advertising data, which are integrated with 405 data sources.
Adfenix – this is a real estate platform for agents to help customers through the journey of buying a new home, by offering quality advertising products and other related services with the click of a button.
PriceRunner – it is a leading shopping comparison site with a mission to make shopping easier by finding the best deals for the users. Price runner operates not only in Sweden, but also in Denmark, Germany and United Kingdom.
Definitely yes. The Nordic market, and especially Sweden, is a very good place for business development. Definitely, one of the top places in Europe. This is proved, not only by the statistics showing the high level of development of this country, but also by the number of global companies and promising startups that choose this scope for their business. Particularly noteworthy is the IT sector, which is becoming one of the leading industries and having one of the largest demand in the whole region.
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