Trailblazers of the Creative Road: Soile Karjalainen and Tanja Pesonen

In the Trailblazers of the Creative Road series, published as part of our SEK 90 anniversary year, we share the stories of current and former SEK people.

Soile Karjalainen worked at SEK from 1955 until the early 1970s. During her 17-year career at SEK she worked as a traffic secretary, as an account contact and, towards the end, as a copywriter. Project director Tanja Pesonen is part of today's SEK and has already been with us for 13 years.

How did you end up in the creative industry?

Soile: When Helsinki hosted the Olympic Games in 1952, the Olympic office was looking for a runner (a messenger). I suppose I told them I was good at running, and they took me on. I started doing other work too, and by the time the Games office closed I was in charge of the post. After the Games I got into a small advertising agency called Mainos Nilsson by boasting that I was good at drawing. After that I went to SEK, when they were looking for a secretary.

Tanja: I started in advertising in 1998 at Ogilvy & Mather as an account assistant. When I started I didn't really know everything the job involved, but I soon realised how varied and interesting this industry is. Over my career I have been part of really interesting projects, got to know a huge number of people at agencies, clients and partners, and seen the industry change over the years.

Before SEK I worked at McCann and Taivas Ego, among others, and at the Association of Marketing Communication Agencies MTL (now Marketing Finland), as well as freelancing as a project manager.

What have you done at SEK?

Soile: I started as a secretary and gradually, alongside my traffic secretary duties, began doing account contact work. Right at the end I also did creative work. Traffic secretaries were very central people back then: we had close ties with newspapers, typesetters, subcontractors and artists.

Tanja: I joined SEK as a project director. Over the years I have worked with many Finnish food companies and brands. Food accounts have been especially rewarding for me, as cooking is also my passion outside work. I have looked after the Paulig account ever since I joined SEK.

My work as a project director is really varied. I like being part of turning ideas into reality. It's great, for example, to see a finished TV commercial that I have been involved with from the very beginning.

What was the biggest upheaval or change during your career?

Soile: SEK played a major part in creating commercial television in Finland. Runar Heljo, who helped develop Finland's first TV broadcasts, was with us at SEK. As early as the 1950s we were making TV programmes and series, and of course commercials, all of which were broadcast live at first.

Tanja: When I came into the industry, there were far fewer media and channels, and far fewer assets were needed. A lot of print was produced for different purposes. I remember physical four-colour films being delivered to the printers, from which the materials were printed. Couriers were used a lot to take proofs to clients, and comments also came in by fax. Now we produce vastly more material, for all kinds of needs, and digitally.

What is the most memorable moment from your SEK years?

Soile: SEK had an Austrian artist called Willi Althaus, who was a very popular guy. When he left SEK, the boys in the drawing studio missed him and decided to throw Willi a birthday party. The whole studio was covered in black crepe paper, candles were burning and on the wall hung a toilet seat with Willi's photo in the middle.

The whole office had been told that Coca-Cola was touring Finland looking for an agency. Managing director Saalaste had put everyone on notice: now you work and you dress well. The studio had forgotten this instruction. The wine was flowing and mournful music was playing when the Coca-Cola representative arrived. The studio boys got an earful from Saalaste, who said we had lost a big account because of them.

Some time later, however, we got word that Coca-Cola had chosen us. Apparently we were the only place with any life in it.

Tanja: One of the most memorable moments was being part of Fazer's Sirkkaleipä project, which won a Bronze Lion at Cannes.

I should also mention one moment from recent years that has stayed with me: the pandemic. We were following the news at work on Thursday 12 March, and by Friday we had moved to remote working. I remember we had to work out in an instant how to handle the work, and productions for example, remotely.

Soile: I'm also reminded of the time Saalaste had bought fine woollen curtains for the drawing studio. He came into the studio one morning, noticed that the edges of the curtains had been cut off and flew into a rage. “What terrible thing has happened?” The head of the studio, Jaska Hänninen, explained that there was a new doorman at Bulevardia who wouldn't let the boys in without ties, so he had made them some out of the curtains. You can imagine, something was happening all the time. Times really have changed. But the work always got done.

How would you describe everyday working life at SEK?

Soile: For traffic secretaries, working hours weren't counted, but then again work was always fun. When material had to be delivered to the papers, we got the matrices from the typesetters and took them to the bus station in the evening before midnight so that they would reach the regional newspapers in time.

Tanja: When you got a brief from a client, how long did the creative work take? It feels like things are sometimes done on really tight schedules these days.

Soile: I don't think there was any sense of rush. The creatives spent a lot of time at the office supposedly drinking coffee and talking, and the secretaries were quite involved, since sometimes we had to order them to get to work.

Tanja: Today, everyday life is sometimes really busy. There is a lot to handle and remember, and tight deadlines sometimes add an extra challenge to our work. I love my job; it's really varied and rewarding in many ways. The industry is full of incredibly wonderful personalities. I'm truly grateful to work with talented, creative and, above all, fun people.

How would you describe the role of collaboration in the creative industry?

Soile: It matters enormously. Work gains warmth and humanity when it is made on the basis that others have also been involved, breathing life into it. And in general, personal contact was extremely important with clients and with everyone else involved.

Tanja: This work really can't be done alone. It's teamwork.

Soile: Your head has to be buzzing with thoughts: listen to what others say, and be willing to disagree too.