Varia Wahlroos Kaitila

Vária Wahlroos-Kaitila Business Development Specialist & Business Founder -- I am a forward-thinking, results-oriented Business Development Specialist and Founder with 10 years of experience in building, scaling, and transforming businesses across various industries. Proficient in identifying new market opportunities, forging strategic partnerships, and driving revenue growth through innovative business strategies. With a proven track record of establishing and leading successful ventures from the ground up, I have developed a unique blend of entrepreneurial insight and corporate acumen. My expertise lies in business strategy, sales optimization, market expansion, client relationship management, as well as navigating complex business environments and securing long-term sustainability. As a founder, I’ve been hands-on in everything from product development and operations to funding, team leadership, and client acquisition, with a strong focus on profitability and sustainable growth. CORE COMPETENCIES ❖ ❖ ❖ ❖ ❖ ❖ ❖ ❖ Project planning and management (scrum) (Agile) Work process creation Budgeting Grant funding in Finland and the EU Remote working & asynchronous team management Strategy Development Strategic partnerships SaaS ❖ ❖ ❖ ❖ ❖ ❖ ❖ ❖ ❖ Entrepreneurship & leadership Negotiation & networking skills Sales & digital content marketing E-commerce systems Graphic design & branding Venture capital & start-ups Digital Strategy Competitive analysis Technical Skills WORK HISTORY Antler, Venture Capital Accelerator (antler.co) 02/2024 – 05/2024 Founder in residence • Nordic Cohort6 full-time program. • Got selected out of 1300 applicants to join the Helsinki Cohort, 3% acceptance rate • Won a corporate partnership pitch competition with IF – insurance by developing a business model and initial prototype within 16 hours. Created as a team of 4, an LLM/AI model that assists early dementia patients in taking their medication through automated, human-like phone calls. Achieved first(1st) place among twelve (12) competing companies. Apperior Oy, Apperior.io 12/2018 - Current Founder, Owner • Ownership of a portfolio with online e-commerce & creator brands • • • • Developed and shaped products and services; executed and supervised go-to-market strategies to achieve product-market fit and scale revenues by 20%-60% within 12-24 months for partner businesses Created and built online brands with expert teams in the creator economy sector. Created scalable systems and workflows that drive predictable growth for SMEs and startups leveraging SaaS tools. Helped companies achieve 50% growth rate through the application of smart sales strategies, agile project management and modern marketing techniques. EKSH Oy, Digitalization and internationalization services for SMEs 11/2021 - 12/2023 Associate Partner & Consultant, E-Commerce and Digital marketing specialist • Created various Grant funding applications for Finnish SMEs for Business Finland, ELY • Planned various business development projects that focus on sales lead generation and new business opportunities • Developed complete sales processes for clients, including ideal customer profiling, prospecting, sales material creation, and negotiation frameworks, through to product/service delivery. Full understanding of sales cycles and process creation. Search360 Oy, (s360digital.com/fi/) 2018 - 2020 Head of SEO Content Marketing • Supported the Finnish market entry for an international digital marketing company by assisting in sales negotiations, developing tailored proposals, and contributing to localization efforts to adapt the agency’s offerings for the Finnish market • Managed SEO content strategies for major corporations in Finland, producing several hundred on-site SEO and content marketing pieces to enhance search visibility and engagement • Established an asynchronous remote team workflow, recruited and supervised a team of content creators, and ensured high-quality content delivery aligned with the brand and marketing objectives of our clients. Kama International Oy 05/2016 – 09/2017 Business Development and Sales manager • Co-created a resale network of 300 locations for a new brand and its products (prerevenue), partnering with major chains such as P&P and KESKO as part of a three-person team. • Negotiated various brand deals for marketing and sales purposes with influencers, retail stores, and other strategic partners like Meira. • Organized and managed promotional events for two brands, including small-scale events inside retail stores and larger trade fairs, to enhance brand visibility and engagement. Hobby Experience PopnSell – “Small Company flipping” 12/2023 - current Founder, co-owner • Created a Due Diligence process and workflow to find companies, that can be bought using seller financing and SBA/Finnvera financial tools, and digitised to increase profits for new owners. • Co-created a website scraper that finds prospects to buy that fit our investment thesis. • • Completed full Due Diligence process for 12 companies, purchase decision was not made yet. Recruited a team of experienced investors and entrepreneurs to work on the concept as a part-time hobby. Laavu Oy, Executive Performance 03/2023 - Current Customer & community member • Participating as a customer in science-based Psychological Coaching for business owners, executives, and high-performing teams. • Working with a personal psychologist to ensure business and personal growth. VL Glamping 04/2023 – 09/2023 Founder, Co-Owner • “Glamping” Airbnb rental concept creation with a team of four, summer project. • Work Process Creation and Key Role Recruitment, Airbnb manager & cleaning staff. • Marketing systems on social media and easy point of sales set up on the platform. • Project management for the Pilot that resulted in 30 bookings within five weeks and one wedding proposal at the location by a customer. MOOCY.fi, MVP Pilot 09/2021 – 08/2024 Founder, Co-Owner • Creating a Gamified online learning platform using no-code systems and easy API integrations. • Created sales and work processes that enabled a Go-to-market for the initial product (MVP) • Negotiated partnerships with Finnish schools and municipalities to pilot the innovation, resulting in 15 schools adopting the platform for testing, with a couple becoming returning customers. ACADEMIC QUALIFICATIONS University of Maryland (05/2020 – 07/2022) Business Administration; Agile Project Management, Professional Certificate • Process and program controls • Leadership principles and practices • Innovation and problem-solving • Sprint planning for faster team delivery • Applied Scrum for agile project management HarvardX (03/2021- 06/2021) LBTechXI: Technology Entrepreneurship, professional education • LBTechX1: Technology Entrepreneurship: Bringing Innovation from Lab to Market. Creating business growth through science and technology patents & licenses. A course of study offered by HarvardX, an online learning initiative of Harvard University. COURSES Tech Nordic Advocates, Women in Tech mentorship program technordicadvocates.org 08/2024-02/2025 Northern Europe’s Largest Tech Startup Ecosystem Accelerating growth, scaleups, and international expansion. A mentorship program for women in tech, connecting professionals internationally. ● As a Mentee in the program, validating new business concepts Investor Operating Systems, Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A) for SMEs 08/2023 - 10/2023 Contrarian Investors, Online Course by Alex Hormozi & Codie Sanchez ● Acquiring Cashflow Deals with Seller Financing Models Amtsgericht Charlottenburg, Berlin Germany 05/2011 On-the-job 8 weeks learning internship ● Assisted with various jobs at the District Court in Berlin, Germany ● Handled legal documents at the request of the judge and took part in court hearings (IPR-law and family law) ● Participated in bringing subpoenas and indictments with the bailiff Additional Information Impact- Took part in a mini-accelerator program for Social impact and value creation by Arvo ry Liitto Cultural experiences- Travelled to over 25 countries, I have lived in Berlin, Germany, Bangkok and Thailand. I have also worked in international companies with various business cultures. Multilingual – I speak Finnish, English, and some German Personal interests - Stoic philosophy, Social impact investing, Women CEOs and Entrepreneurs, Selfpublishing books that I’ve created (MOOCYn sisällöntuottajan suunnittelukirja, Daily Journal for mental health, Negotiation and mindset notebook)