Crowd gathers for Papu’s global success

Launched in conjunction with OP Financial Group, the equity crowdfunding campaign raised a total of 499 983 euros in 41 days. This far exceeded the initial target of 200 000 euros.

The total amount is believed to be the largest ever raised by a design company based in Finland.

Marina Vahtola

, the chairman of the board at Papu Design, points out that the success of the campaign is particularly remarkable in light of the persistent shortage of investment capital in the design and clothing industry.

“Papu’s hugely successful crowdfunding campaign instils confidence in other companies in the industry that it is possible to raise such a sum with a convincing story and operations,” she tells.

Papu Design brought in 618 new shareholders with the equity crowdfunding campaign to raise the total number of shareholders to 770. Women accounted for over 70 per cent of the backers and almost 60 per cent of the funds raised by the ethical children’s clothing company through the campaign.

“We now have a strong group of shareholders who want to be part of building the international success story of Papu,” says Jussi Kurkela, the CEO of Papu Design.

“We reached not only consumer customers who have faith in our brand but also professional investors who are confident that the growth of our company will yield a solid return on investment,” he adds.

Last year, Papu Design hosted its own pop up shop in Japanese department store Shinjukun Isetan. The children’s clothing company was also the subject of our feature back in 2015.