In 2022, Lindström celebrated 30 years of operation in Estonia. The jubilee year provided a good opportunity to look back on the company’s development, feel proud of the achievements and remind once again what are the values and goals that we strive for every day.
Lindström is driven by the “We care” mindset – we care about people and our planet, inspiring people to shine and businesses to grow in a sustainable way. Our aim is that this guiding principle is reflected in all our activities and in the daily practice of our employees – sales representatives, production workers, cleaners, drivers, and customer service personnel.
We care about improving our operations and increasing their impact. Since the beginning of the 90s, we have reduced the energy consumption of textile washing by 50%, saved 4.5 million textiles by repairing them, and compared to 2004, and we have reduced CO 2 emissions from textile washing by 30%.
We also take an active part in various initiatives related to the green revolution, such as the Green Tiger movement, participate in the Responsible Business Index program, and many other initiatives that create impact and inspire us to promote our activities.
Charitable actions of the jubilee year – from the roof of the cat house to the cemetery works
In this anniversary year, we wanted to give a new dimension to our caring culture. The various teams of Lindström Estonia chose charity projects close to their hearts and contributed to them. A lot was done – from making bravery beads to support the treatment of children with chronic diseases to helping and donating equipment at the Food Bank or animal shelters.
In addition to the more usual activities, such as donating blood, making crafts at the security center, or donating to the orphanage, we were also able to lend a hand in repair, construction, and even cemetery work. Lindström’s Tartu sales team vividly remembers how they went to SOS Children’s Village Narva-Jõesuu to paint the walls of a teenage boy’s room and oil the terrace of the house. The boy was at school at the same time, and when he arrived home, he was surprised to find that his room had a new look. “Seeing tears of joy in the village mother’s eyes, our team felt that we had done a great job and came home with a really warm feeling in our hearts,” said Heli Tappo, Lindström’s sales manager. She also recalled the installation of the roof of the cat house, which the Tartu team did in the cat house of the Estonian Society for the Protection of Animals. – with the help of joint efforts, the cats got a watertight house, and during the work, the roof of the local dog Nuffi’s kennel was also insulated.
Charity actions were not limited to caring for the sick, animals, and the next generation but even extended to preserving the memory of those who have already passed away. Namely, the customer experience team went to the Puhja cemetery to tidy up the abandoned grave sites and the cemetery territory. “Our wish was to draw attention to the graves where there is no one to take care of them anymore. In addition, we greatly helped Zoja, the caretaker of the local cemetery, with our activities, who was extremely happy and grateful. By the end of the day, we tidied up over ten abandoned graves and cleared all the major passages. It was a special and heartfelt experience,” recalled Customer Experience Manager Katrin Fjodorova.
The jubilee event put the management to the test
For the jubilee year, we also made the customer experience week sweeter than usual – we surprised the customers with whom the employees interacted with delicious chocolate. The sweet surprise received a grateful reception.
We put a particularly festive point on the year with two grand events – an anniversary event organized for customers and a party held with the team. At the gala, we recognized our good employees, and special attention was given to three colleagues who have been operating in Lindström, Estonia, for all these 30 years! These are our Ulvi, Sergei, and Tanja – employees who notice, understand, and listen and have proven that it is possible to work in a good company for decades and maintain bright eyes.
The icing on the cake was a lively dance performance by the management, where members of the management were impersonated, among others, such as Freddie Mercury, Michael Jackson, and Üllar Jörberg. “I’ve never felt so out of my element. However, I knew that the gratitude I felt for my team deserved to do something completely crazy. The sincere, positive feedback from the employees was 100% worth all the months of training, efforts, and sometimes panic,” recalled Kadrian Jaagund, head of Lindström Estonia and Vice President of the Baltics, about the extreme but rewarding experience.
Why did we do it? In our company, we constantly encourage people to step out of their comfort zone and not give up at the first hesitation or failure. Putting oneself in a vulnerable situation like this was a real demonstration of how both the audience and the actors themselves can gain an experience by overcoming themselves and making a joint effort. “Undoubtedly, it was also a necessary injection of positivity in the current uncertain time,” added Kadrian.
The green revolution continues
The milestone of thirty years of activity is behind us, but the next decades will be no less ambitious. We continue to work with solutions that help our customers operate more sustainably. We strive to be able to recycle 100% of our textiles by 2025 and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 7% every year. We want to offer the best customer experience in the industry and operate with networks and partnerships that ensure comprehensive services for our customers and help save the environment. We can do all this with the help of our bright-eyed employees, the keeping and growing of whose commitment we invest in.
We face more challenges than ever before – this is also reflected in the textile strategy of the European Union, which aims to make textiles durable, repairable, and reusable. Already by 2025, all textile waste in Estonia must be collected separately from other waste, and they must not be sent to landfills or incinerators. This means the need to act in a different way for both end consumers, companies, and the public sector.
Thirty years of moving in the right direction show that Lindström can be a leader in the sustainable use of textiles – that sustainability does not consist only in words but, above all, in actions.
We sincerely thank all our employees, customers, and cooperation partners, with whom we have been able to create value for both people and the environment – and we will continue to do so in the future. Thank you!
