According to Santamäki, the Group had been in the process of updating its media and marketing strategy. Despite – or maybe because of – the saturation of cooperatives in the country, “the word cooperative doesn’t mean anything in Finland, that’s our problem,” she said. From village shops and production plants – including a knittery, a brush factory and a chicory factory – in the early 20th century to international chains of hotels, 24-hour service stations and an online bank, the last 100 years have seen dramatic changes in the business. But to stay competitive in the 21st-century global marketplace, a return to its roots as a cooperative could be its best strategy.