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Success story article5 March 2015

Plunging into new markets

Asa Magnusson

Swedish SME Dala Tekniska turned to the Network for help in finding Icelandic distributors for its rescue equipment.

Award winning inventor

Åsa Magnusson is CEO of Dala Tekniska and an award winning inventor of life saving equipment from Sweden. When she wanted to launch her patented products onto the Icelandic market, she turned to her local Enterprise Europe Network office Stiftelsen Teknikdalen in Borlänge for help.

The Swedish Enterprise Europe Network office immediately put Åsa in touch with the Network's Icelandic office, Innovation Center Iceland (ICI) for assistance in finding a distributor.

Partnership potential

ICI identified Aqua Sport - a 30-year old Icelandic company that services swimming pools, sells swimming products and equipment and gives swimming classes - as a potential match. While Dala Tekniska had previously been in contact with Aqua Sport, they were keen to have business support and advice to determine whether the company was the right fit.  

The Network partners discussed the potential partnership at a 'Viking Day', a matchmaking event held in Stockholm involving Network clients from the Nordic countries, the Netherlands, Belgium, the UK and Ireland. To help Åsa make the right decision for her company, ICI carried out a business review of Aqua Sport on behalf of Dala Tekniska and helped set up a sales presentation in Reykjavik. 

Distribution deal

At the meeting, Aqua Sport agreed to distribute the Swedish company's technology in Iceland. The companies are still working together. "Thanks to the Enterprise Europe Network, I finally found a reseller in Iceland," says Åsa Magnusson, CEO of Dala Tekniska.

Guðmundur Harðarson, Director of Aqua Sport, points to the significant role played by the Network: "The participation and involvement of ICI was crucial to give weight to the sales meeting and to establish trust and collaboration between both companies."