Interview

Can you tell us about your journey from idea to company?

The idea started when my husband, Diego Rattenni, tried surströmming. Since he is from Italy and has loved food and cooking his entire life — he’s truly a foodie — he didn’t see it as something disgusting but rather as an opportunity. Diego realized that there is so much more to surströmming than people think. It is often perceived as something unpleasant that makes you gag when you eat it, but he just saw a flood of ideas. He thought, this has a really strong umami flavor! That’s where the whole journey began.

I personally don’t like surströmming, so I would never have thought that way. But Diego actually found it quite tasty and immediately started thinking about how to use this flavor in food. That was about six years ago. Since then, he has experimented with different ways to use it in cooking as a seasoning and to create products from it. We have tasted all kinds of things made with surströmming, and it works amazingly well in many ways.

A year ago, we felt that we should take this a step further. This is a great idea; it’s unique. I think it aligns well with the current trend of reviving older dishes and reinventing them in a new way. You can see this happening a lot with different types of cabbage, for example—varieties that were used in the past but are no longer common, now being turned into something more “hipster”. So we reached out to various surströmming producers and got a response from one — Kallax. They wrote back and said, Come visit us!

Diego went there on his own, bringing several products to showcase how surströmming’s salty, umami-rich flavor could be used. He had created chips, bread, sauces, mayonnaise, butter—about ten different products in total. When he arrived, he met the CEO, and she was amazed. She loved the idea of using surströmming in a different way. They also introduced him to a chef who has a well-known restaurant in Luleå, who was equally fascinated.

Having someone outside of ourselves believe in the idea gave us incredible motivation—it confirmed that this was truly something valuable. From that point, we started brainstorming how to take the concept further.

In what ways have you received support in your entrepreneurial journey?

We spoke with SLU Holding and received support. We already knew we had a good idea, and they agreed, but they also emphasized the need to make it more concrete. We had to really think about how we wanted to move forward. The best approach was to focus on a single product because otherwise, it would be overwhelming. Choosing one product to start with helped us figure out production and other logistics.

They guided us in understanding the different steps involved. Sometimes, you have a great idea, but it’s hard to know how to move forward or where to even start. After much discussion and market research, we decided to focus on salt. It had relatively low production costs, was easy to manufacture, and had a long shelf life. It was also a versatile product that could be sold to both restaurants and households since it can be used in everything. We felt this was a solid starting point.

Once we had made that decision, we said, Okay, let’s go for it—let’s start the company!

We worked closely with Kallax, who provided us with incredible support—not just by believing in us but also by supplying us with fish under a good agreement. They helped us connect with the right people and even invited us to the surströmming premiere in August. At that point, we just dove in—planning production, designing packaging, creating labels, and handling all the necessary details.

Later in the process, after we had launched, we went back to SLU Holding because there was still so much more to do. We reached out to them again to see what additional support they could provide, especially regarding financing, since there were many costs involved. They helped us with funding for legal support to ensure we had all the necessary contracts and documents in place. They also assisted with funding to analyze the salt itself. We needed to check for contaminants like PCB and dioxins. This financial support was incredibly valuable.

What tips do you have for students who have an idea or are considering starting their own business?

I would say that we waited too long to seek help, especially financial support. That’s something we should have done earlier because there are so many small expenses that add up overtime. So my advice would be: once you’ve decided to start your company, reach out for support right away. See what SLU Holding or similar organizations can do for you.

Also, don’t give up. Sometimes things don’t go the way you expect, and you need to be prepared for that. Things often take longer than you anticipate. In our case, for example, sales didn’t take off as quickly as we had hoped. But you need to have patience.

It’s also crucial to have a strong support system. Either a good team to work with or at least someone you can brainstorm with—someone to discuss problems and challenges with. This is extremely important because it’s easy to get stuck when something goes wrong. Having another person provide a fresh perspective can help you get back on track and see things in a new light.