Baltic Circular Threads Cycle 2 Inspiring Start in Mikkeli

From 22 to 24 September, young creatives from Estonia and Finland gathered in Mikkeli to launch the second cycle of the Baltic Circular Threads programme. The kick-off event focused on entrepreneurship, recognising personal strengths and opportunities, understanding customers, developing business models, design thinking and storytelling.

The Baltic Circular Threads programme aims to equip young people in the creative industries with practical entrepreneurial skills while building their confidence and encouraging them to develop their ideas further.

Entrepreneurship Starts with Understanding Yourself and Your Idea

The Mikkeli event began with a shared dinner and Kirsi Mättölä’s introduction, “Entrepreneurship: Myths and Reality.” The following morning, the participants set common goals and quickly moved on to hands-on activities.

In Piia Mäkilä’s workshop, “What Is Entrepreneurship – Pains and Gains,” participants explored entrepreneurship from their own perspective. One of the exercises was simple but powerful: on one sheet of paper, participants wrote down their fears and concerns, and on another, their strengths and “superpowers”. The aim was to look at entrepreneurship realistically – acknowledging its challenges while also recognising the skills and strengths they can rely on.

During the day, the focus moved from self-awareness to customers and business models. Participants explored questions such as: Who is my customer? What problem am I solving for them? How can my idea develop into a viable business model? Through practical exercises, they created their first customer profiles and Business Model Canvas drafts.

Further inspiration came from Sami Eskelinen, founder of Sami Eskelinen Design, who shared his journey as a designer and entrepreneur.

From Customer Insight to Story: Design Thinking and Storytelling

On the third day, participants delved deeper into understanding customer needs. During the design thinking workshop, they explored customer needs, challenges and value creation, while developing their own ideas through practical exercises.

Kirsi Mättölä’s session, “How to Be Your Own Coach,” introduced another important perspective: how to take ownership of your own development, ask the right questions and consciously plan your next steps.

The final major theme of the kick-off event was storytelling. Guided by Piia Mäkilä, participants practised how to talk about themselves, their ideas and the value they create in a way that is clear, authentic and memorable.

The programme was also enriched by a meeting with Pauline Rundgren, giving participants an opportunity to hear about her experiences and exchange ideas on entrepreneurship, creativity and international collaboration.

Another memorable element was the spontaneous sketches of the speakers drawn by programme participant Gerli Tafenau, which brought plenty of smiles and added a creative touch to the event.

Over the three days, participants progressed step by step through a journey:

me and my strengths → my customer → my business model → design thinking → my story.

The main goal of the Mikkeli kick-off was not to provide participants with as much theory as possible, but to encourage them to think, discuss, experiment, share and take action.

The Mikkeli event was only the beginning of the second Baltic Circular Threads cycle. The programme will continue with online workshops, where participants will further develop their business ideas, gain new knowledge and test the steps they have taken.

At the end of the programme, the group will meet again – this time in Tartu – to reflect on their development journey, practise their presentation skills and see how far their ideas have progressed since those first days in Mikkeli.

29.09.2026

Further information: Maret Ahonen, Project Manager at the Tartu Centre for Creative Industries.