Frenchic Finland, eight years of color, growth and working together

The story of Frenchic Finland began in summer 2018, when the first shipment of Frenchic® paints arrived in Finland. The first retailers opened that same year, and since then a well-known brand, an active retailer network and an exceptionally committed customer community have grown around it.

The journey has included a pandemic, an energy crisis, uncertainty caused by wars, inflation and changes in consumer behavior. Despite it all, Frenchic has grown and evolved in Finland and, above all, established its place.

Eight years, not a bad number! 

If you want to give numbers a little more meaning, 8 fits the story of Frenchic Finland surprisingly well.

In numerology, eight is often associated with strength, perseverance, achievement and the ability to build something lasting. It’s a number of action and moving forward, also associated with balance between challenges and successes.

And these eight years have had plenty of both.

Turn the number 8 on its side and it becomes the symbol for infinity ∞. The idea of continuity feels fitting for a company centered on renewing the old: the end of one piece of furniture can be the beginning of a new story, and a good idea can make its way from one home, customer and paint tin to the next.

Perhaps in 2018 we couldn’t imagine everything the next eight years would bring. But if eight does indeed symbolize perseverance, growth and continuity, we’re more than happy to make it the number of this milestone.

And when you look at the infinity symbol, one thought inevitably comes to mind: we’re probably not done yet. ∞

It all began with one shipment of paint

In summer 2018, the first shipment of Frenchic® paints arrived in Finland.

That’s how it began.

The first Frenchic retailers opened in Finland that same year. Back then, Frenchic was still a completely new name to Finns, and no one could know for sure what the journey would hold.

But there was plenty of belief.

Frenchic began to find its audience project by project, retailer by retailer and, above all, customer by customer. Recommendations, successful projects and photos shared on social media spread the word.

In eight years, Frenchic’s recognition and popularity in Finland have grown significantly. At the same time, something has emerged that can’t be built with a marketing budget alone: an active community.

Little Finland received strong support from the start

The story of Frenchic Finland has not been built in Finland alone.

Frenchic’s founder Mrs Pam Gruhn has been an important source of support since the first years of our operations. From the very beginning, she strongly believed in the potential of little Finland and in growing Frenchic here.

On an international scale, Finland may have been a small market far to the north, but it was never treated as a small opportunity.

The encouragement, trust, and personal support we received from Pam have been a significant part of Frenchic Finland's growth story.

In 2020, we had the pleasure of welcoming Pam and Robert Gruhn to Finland. The visit was an important moment for us and a wonderful testament to how close our collaboration had already become during the first years of operation.

Finland also took part in the annual Frenchic celebrations in Windsor, alongside importers from other countries. People from all over the world gathered around the same table, but they quickly found common ground: Frenchic, colours, entrepreneurship, and enthusiasm for what we were building together.

The international community has been much more than meetings and celebrations. It has created a foundation of trust and stability, where experiences, ideas, and successes could be shared across borders.

The feeling that we are part of something bigger than Finland has been an important part of Frenchic's journey here from the very beginning.

Eight years have had a few twists and turns

If someone had drawn up a business roadmap in advance for the period from 2018 to today, it's unlikely anyone would have voluntarily added a global pandemic, an energy crisis, wars, inflation, disruptions to logistics, and declining consumer purchasing power.

However, they arrived uninvited.

Despite these exceptionally challenging years, Frenchic Finland has continued to operate from a position of strength. We have developed our online store, raised awareness, expanded our retailer network, served consumers, and steadily grown the Frenchic brand in Finland.

At the same time, difficult years have brought one of the most important aspects of the DIY mindset into focus: you don't have to buy everything new.

An old cabinet can be given a new lease of life. A kitchen can be given a new look without replacing the whole thing. A door, wall, chest of drawers, or garden furniture can transform the feel of an entire space with just a few coats of paint.

Recycling, restoring, and valuing what we already have have become more relevant than ever.

Why do customers love Frenchic?

Products are, of course, at the heart of growth.

Over the years, Frenchic Finland’s online store has accumulated an exceptional number of excellent product reviews from our Finnish customers. Year after year, they highlight the same things: how easy the paints are to use, their excellent coverage, the beautifully smooth finish, the wonderful shades, and the possibility of achieving a dramatic transformation without a major renovation.

For many, their first Frenchic project is also their first-ever furniture painting project.

And then something quite familiar happens.

When the first cabinet is finished and the work turns out better than expected, your gaze somehow starts wandering around the home toward the next potential painting project.

Ultimately, customer feedback isn’t just about paint. It’s about successes.

An old kitchen that looks loved again. A thrift-store find given a new lease on life. A wall colour that changed the feel of an entire room. A project that felt daunting at first, but whose result people are ultimately proud of.

These experiences have built Frenchic’s reputation in Finland more effectively than any single advertising campaign could.

A community that doesn’t just follow, but takes part

Over the years, an exceptionally active Finnish community has grown around Frenchic Finland.

On Facebook, there is Finland’s largest Facebook group dedicated to a single paint brand, where people share projects, ask for advice, discuss shades, solve painting problems, and, above all, inspire others to pick up a paintbrush.

Frenchic Finland’s active presence on Instagram has also been noticed.

Before and after transformations, customers’ homes & gardens here and around the world, colours, ideas, instructions, and successes create a constantly flowing stream of inspiration. Frenchic is not just a can of paint on a shelf or styled studio photos; it’s real Finnish and international homes and their stories.

Today, the community is also strongly built by Frenchic brand ambassadors in Finland.

They inspire customers to recycle, experiment, succeed, and use colour boldly. Through their own projects, they show what can happen when old things are given a new chance and you dare to do it yourself.

In the Frenchic way of thinking, an old piece of furniture is not necessarily a problem.

It may just be the wrong colour.

Our third and largest home to date, in Tampere

Frenchic Finland’s own operations have also grown over the years.

We now operate from our third and largest location to date, in Tampere. Our warehouse store opened three years ago and has gradually become much more than a place to pick up a can of paint.

People come to the store from far away, too.

Sometimes people arrive with a specific project and a long list of questions, sometimes with a friend to compare shades, and sometimes a whole group turns up to enjoy a shared paint-shopping trip.

Yes, apparently you can make a trip to the Colour shop.

And that suits us just fine.

Customers especially appreciate our personal service and tailored advice. It matters to us that our customers don’t just leave with a tin in the right color, but also with the knowledge of how best to tackle their particular project.

The same service ethos continues in our online store. We’re constantly thanked for our fast deliveries, readily available advice, and genuinely helpful answers to questions. Our customers are people who value small Finnish businesses. 

This wasn’t built alone

The eight-year story of Frenchic Finland is above all the result of working together.

Our first retailers joined us back in 2018, when Frenchic was still new to Finland. Since then, every retailer, partner, brand ambassador, content creator, customer interaction, recommendation, product review, and project shared on social media has helped build the bigger picture.

Some of our partners have been by our side for a long time, some joined later, and new ones are still coming on board.

Everyone has had their own place in the story.

That’s why, above all, we want to say  thank you to all of you who have believed in Frenchic, recommended our products to your customers, shared your expertise, put our tins on your shelves, answered customers’ questions, showcased our shades, and helped build awareness of Frenchic in Finland.

After eight years, we know at least one thing for sure:

a strong brand is not built alone.

From the first shipment to today

It’s been a long journey since 2018.

From one of our first paint shipments, we have grown into a well-known brand with customers nationwide, a retailer network, an active online store, our own warehouse shop, and Finland’s largest Frenchic community.

At the same time, we have been part of the international Frenchic community, which laid a strong foundation in its early years for trust, collaboration, and the idea that even a small market can be built with a big heart and persistent effort.

The world around us has changed many times over in eight years.

But one thing has not changed.

People still want to make their homes their own. They want to save old things, do it themselves, use color more boldly, and feel that small but important moment of pride when a project is finished and they can say:  “I did this myself.”

That has been the strength of Frenchic Finland since the summer of 2018.

Thank you to our retailers, partners, brand ambassadors, and customers for being part of this journey.

No mass production. Nothing like everyone else. Just your ideas and a little creative boldness with color. 

From Tampere, 

The Frenchic team