Resources

Article

From startup to a 100 million euro business: How Visma's Ari-Pekka Salovaara achieved every entrepreneur's dream

Article

From startup to a 100 million euro business: How Visma's Ari-Pekka Salovaara achieved every entrepreneur's dream

Article

From startup to a 100 million euro business: How Visma's Ari-Pekka Salovaara achieved every entrepreneur's dream

Article

From startup to a 100 million euro business: How Visma's Ari-Pekka Salovaara achieved every entrepreneur's dream

Business insights

Article

From startup to a 100 million euro business: How Visma's Ari-Pekka Salovaara achieved every entrepreneur's dream

Business insights

"Fail fast" is one of the mottos of startup culture. Although Ari-Pekka's first business idea during his student days ended in failure, he persevered as an entrepreneur and eventually sold his second company, the Severa business management system, to Visma.

This marked the beginning of Visma Solutions, which under Ari-Pekka’s leadership,  achieved an impressive growth of 2900% in the 2010s. In this article based on the Voice of Visma podcast, he shares his entrepreneurial journey and valuable lessons for anyone dreaming of entrepreneurship.

An idea born from accident

During their student days, Ari-Pekka and his business partner believed they could do things better than others. This confidence led them to start their first company at the age of 22. Although they were determined to build a successful business, the venture ultimately failed. 

Despite the setbacks, the spark of entrepreneurship had been ignited. The next business idea emerged almost by accident when they developed software to bill for their consulting services based on hourly work.

"We noticed that our clients also wanted to use the same billing system, leading to the establishment of a company called Severa, which quickly secured its first paying customers," Ari-Pekka explains.

The product became a success, with Severa growing 1500% between 2005 and 2010, and was able to fund its own growth with cashflow without external financing.

"This was my first real job after university, so the rapid growth and expansion were both exciting and intimidating," Ari-Pekka says.

Setting sail for international markets

In 2008, Severa expanded into international markets, including the United States. However, with internationalisation came financial challenges, prompting a plan to raise additional capital for further growth.

"We gained customers from various markets but started losing a lot of money. We realised we needed to change course. We planned to open offices in new countries, with the first one in Stockholm. To support growth, we decided to seek venture capital funding for the first time, and the board approved the plan," Ari-Pekka recounts.

Just before the funding round began, Visma approached Severa with an acquisition offer. The timing was fortuitous – the financial crisis was affecting Severa's clients, and there were no external investors in the company to block the deal.

"My partners and I had an inkling that Visma had something special. Their acquisition offer was enticing, and the deal happened quickly – about a month after the first call," Ari-Pekka recalls.

Exponential growth

Visma acquired Severa in 2010. Initially, Ari-Pekka planned to leave Visma after the acquisition. However, to his surprise, he found himself with even more freedom to develop Severa's business:

"Visma didn't enforce specific operating models on Severa but allowed us to continue independently and even applied our learnings to their other owned companies. There was always something new and exciting to move forward with."

Ari-Pekka was first appointed CEO of Visma Severa and, after the merger with other companies, Visma Solutions. He drove the company to nearly 900% growth between 2011 and 2018. By 2022, the company's revenue had soared to 100 million euros.

Since 2019, Ari-Pekka has held leadership roles focusing on Visma Group's business segment. This segment operates in 34 countries, with its companies being market leaders in their respective areas. The segment generates over 2 200 million euros in annual recurring revenue (ARR), with 330 products and more than 11 000 employees. Ari-Pekka also serves as the Chairman of the Board at Visma Solutions.

"I've aimed to learn from mistakes over the years. I've shed some of the arrogance that initially helped my entrepreneurial journey and learned to ask others for advice. I still want to maintain an entrepreneurial mindset, even while working in a larger organisation," Ari-Pekka says.

Ari-Pekka's story demonstrates how challenges and mistakes on the entrepreneurial path can ultimately lead to success. Check out his key entrepreneurial insights below!

Ari-Pekka's insights into entrepreneurship

  • Effective team: Successful companies are built on successful teams.
  • Courage: Establishing a company doesn't require perfect expertise but rather the courage and confidence to try.
  • Customer focus and market: The best business ideas often arise from a recognised need that proves necessary to others in a sufficiently large market.
  • Organisational adaptation to growth: In larger organisations, the need for middle management grows. Additionally, a good leader knows how to adapt their role to the company's needs, for example, transitioning from operational management to an advisory role.
  • Entrepreneurial spirit: As a company grows, it's essential to retain an entrepreneurial attitude and freedom to make decisions.
  • Humility and willingness to learn from others: Excessive confidence can backfire – it's vital for entrepreneurs to stay open to learning from advisors, competitors, customers, and their team.


→ To hear Ari-Pekka's story, check out this Voice of Visma episode

Related content