Linnea Strand
Innovator
Livsvinn
Finland
Environmental
Rural Areas
Rural village
The innovation journey
Linnea Strand is the sole proprietor of the grocery store Livsvinn, which strives to reduce food waste by selling second-grade and surplus vegetables as well as products past “best before date” with lowered prices. Coming from an entrepreneurial background, Linnea has always been fascinated by the freedom and challenges provided by entrepreneurship. During her studies in Economics in Hanken, starting her own business was an obvious choice. Born in Swedish-speaking majority Närpes, and wanting to continue to live there, Linnea wanted to develop a business idea that would be suitable for her hometown. Närpes is known for greenhouse farming of tomatoes and cucumbers, and Linnea knew that there was a lot of second grade vegetables going to waste. This fact combined with Linnea’s interest in sustainability and a wish to do something societally useful, gave birth to the idea of a grocery store that would reduce food waste.
Linnea developed her business idea with support from Hanken Business Lab and Dynamo Närpes, and after finishing her studies, she was ready to establish Livsvinn. She opened the store in 2019. Currently, the grocery store includes a café, and an ice cream bar during the summer, where you pay per kilogram. Livsvinn also cooperates with local restaurants by selling surplus lunch boxes and making one own product out of waste tomatoes.
The innovation impact
Through her endeavours, Linnea has introduced new ways to reduce food waste and to promote a circular economy. She is changing local attitudes towards the use of second-grade vegetables and products past “best before date” into more positive ones. She employs two people full-time, who, all women so far, share her interest in sustainability. In 2023, Linnea partnered up to open another store in Malax. As part of its responsibility ethos, LivsVinn donates part of the profit every year to local projects or charities. LivsVinn was awarded the prize for innovative young entrepreneurship by the Egil Gullström Foundation in 2022.