When the arrangements are the largest in the world and everyone is at the event, a small country needs to stand out through content. The Finnish day of the Dubai World Expo left a strong impression.
A range of superlatives can be used to describe the World Expo, which is held every five years, but even those seem insufficient in the case of the exhibition constructed in the Dubai desert.
In addition to their pavilions, each country had a theme day of its own. The Finnish day programme, which was organised by Wolttigroup, lit up the expo audience. Instead of the traditional ceremonies and protocols, the Finns provided a show that will be remembered for a long time in Dubai.
“Setting up the national day with Wolttigroup was really smooth and flexible. They were able to listen to the customer or, in other words, the expo team, and together we put together a very effective package. We got everything done well in the challenging conditions.” – Severi Keinälä, Business Finland
Once the flag was hoisted, the ceremonies of the national day progressed according to tradition. In Dubai, the competition between the largest countries seemed to revolve around who had the biggest artist and stiffest protocol. From the start, it was clear that Finland had to do something else. Together with Business Finland, a goal was set for Finland to gain visibility far beyond its size, and this objective was met many times over.
A suitable amount of Finnish craziness was mixed in with the programme for the day. The Semmarit male choir and Ida Elina, who plays pop music on the Finnish traditional instrument ‘kantele’, took the main stage by storm and continued where they left off in the evening at the Lumi pavilion, which was filled with invited guests. Ida Elina’s kantele version of Dubai Expo hymn gained international news attention and became a phenomenon.
Wolttigroup has plenty of experience in international productions, also in the Middle East. This is a necessity in the context of an event such as the World Expo and requires travelling to the site beforehand. Local partners were found through Wolttigroup’s own and the organiser’s contacts. It was no surprise that some things are done differently in the Arabic countries than in Finland. When this is taken into account, things go swimmingly.
In addition to the Finnish day, Wolttigroup organised invitational events for Wärtsilä and Fiskars at the Dubai Expo.
