A year of substantial changes

2025 was a year of change for Gugguu. In a challenging economic environment, the company took important steps for the future and achieved new milestones.

In the fall, Gugguu did an extensive pop-up tour in Finland. More than 4,000 customers were met during the successful tour. Over the course of the year, the online store was also revamped. As a result, Gugguu’s CEO Anne Valli was awarded the eCommerce Entrepreneur of the Year award at the eCom Awards in May. In fall 2025, Gugguu launched its new outdoor clothing collection, which was a great success. One of the year’s priorities was also the development of marketing and related tools.

There were changes in Gugguu’s key personnel when one of the company’s founders, Creative Director Miia Riekki, stepped down from the company’s operational activities in the summer.

The year was financially challenging and demanded significant cost-cutting measures, but there were also many good aspects.

Important cost-cutting measures to balance the budget

Gugguu had a challenging year financially, especially due to the weak purchasing power of the Finnish market, and the company’s sales declined in 2025. Over the course of the year, Gugguu took active steps to make the company more efficient.

One of the biggest changes during the year was signing an agreement on outsourced storage facilities in Hyvinkää and, as a result, abandoning the company’s own storage facilities. The agreement and preparations were completed in 2025, and the transition to outsourced warehousing was made in January 2026. The change will bring much-needed savings for 2026 and free up team resources.

Gugguu has also used its old fabric warehouse to produce popular outlet products over the years. This allowed the inventory to be utilized and new fabric purchases to be reduced. In addition, new garments were produced sustainably from previously unused fabrics.

Sustainability certification and changes in production

Gugguu’s mission is to produce quality children’s clothing and accessories, the longevity of which is in itself an act of sustainability. In 2025, Gugguu obtained GOTS (Global Organic Textile Standard) certification for some of its products, which is an independent recognition of the ecological and ethical nature of textiles.

During the year, Gugguu moved its outdoor clothing production from Europe to China, allowing for even more controlled production. Gugguu’s partner in China is a pioneer in the sustainable clothing industry. With the relocation of production, the price point of many products could be lowered.

Gugguu also switched to organic cotton in plain fabrics, which increased the share of organic cotton in basic jersey products. The variety of models and colors were cut back in order to streamline production.

Cooperation with Panostaja strengthened

In a challenging market situation, Panostaja has financially supported Gugguu. Since Heikki Korelin became Chair of the Board, Panostaja’s cooperation with Gugguu has grown even closer, and Panostaja has been actively involved in developing the company.

In 2026, Gugguu will continue to focus strongly on marketing and brand development. A new pop-up tour also started in March 2026. In addition to this, Gugguu will enter the Indian market in the areas of e-commerce and marketplaces and aims to start working with a local partner during 2026.

The rebalancing will continue in 2026, but the most substantial changes were already made in the previous year. As a positive signal, retail has picked up according to the company’s hopes. Resulting from this, Gugguu is entering the year with confidence, working closely with its partners and network.

* In contrast to Panostaja, Gugguu’s financial period is April 1–March 31 

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