“I began working at Helsinki Airport in November 2014. As I thought to myself what I wanted to do when I grew up, I saw that HMSHost was looking for a buyer. Prior to working here, I was a restaurateur for five years. Before that, I was a restaurant manager around the Helsinki area.
At the airport, I’m responsible for purchasing, warehouses and warehouse logistics, as well as for the food and beverage offering. The Food & Beverage team is made up of a chef de cuisine, warehouse staff, a serviceman and myself. We have been kept busy recently, as within two years we have opened 12 new establishments. It’s been great to witness how much we have grown in a such short space of time.
As a working environment, Helsinki Airport differs vastly from what I was used to in the regular restaurant business, where establishments open for either lunch or dinner. At the airport, we open at 3 am and close at 1 am. Some places remain open for 24 hours.
In this line of work, it’s important to take note of small achievements every day. These days we have so many branches that there is always something to fix or service. Daily achievements range from scheduling a serviceman and all the necessary equipment, as well as securing clearance for them and actually fixing what has to be fixed all in the same day.”
