History

Tikkurila Oy – nearly 150 years of decoration and protection

Tikkurila Oy was established on 14 August 1862 on the bank of the river Keravanjoki, about ten miles to the north of Helsinki, the capital of Finland. In the course of what was once a small oil press has grown into one of the leading paint companies in Northern and Eastern Europe.

In the 1960s Tikkurila expanded its operations to cover tinting technology as well, but in 2000 the company returned to its roots – the manufacture and marketing of paint. Tikkurila has production facilities in Finland, Sweden, Estonia, Russia, Poland, Germany and Ukraine. It also has sales companies in Kazakhstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Norway, Denmark, the Czech Republic, Romania, Belarus, Slovakia and China.

Net sales in 2008 were EUR 648 million and Tikkurila had some 4,000 employees on its payroll. Today, Tikkurila's products are available in over 5,000 retail outlets in some 40 countries.

On the following pages, our historical highlights have been divided into 13 different eras. By clicking the headlines you will be able to learn more about Tikkurila's past during certain periods. If you wish to proceed in chronological order from the start to finish, just click the first headline and we will guide you through the decades.