Finnish influencers have worked with the Ivana Helsinki brand for years and were disappointed with Paola Suhonen’s comments.
Timo Korhonen, All Over Press
As Tiili.com reported on Tuesday, the Finnish fashion brand Ivana Helsinki has decided to leave social media on April 4, 2022. This has certainly not happened in complete silence, but the founder of the clothing brand Paola Suhonen has angered social media influencers with its statements.
– I am no longer able to sign the values, operating models and visions or visions of the future of the companies behind the social media world. So it’s time to leave and continue your adventures towards a new era, on the journey of new winds, Suhonen described the reasons behind the decision at Tiili.com earlier this week.
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Later that day, Suhonen opened Above taking a stand specifically on influencing culture on social media.
– Influenza culture is very foreign to me, it is not based on professional expertise, but it is very mutuous to shout and declare oneself an influenzaist, Suhonen said. He also speculated that in the future, being an influencer might even be perceived as embarrassing.
Suhonen’s statements have made the influencers indignant, express their disappointment and express their own views on the matter. Several Finnish veterans have opened up their experiences of working with both the Ivana Helsinki brand and Paola Suhonen on their own channels. There are them, among other things Jenni Rotonen, Stella HarasekIrene Naakka, Eino Nurmisto, Emmi Nuorgam and Peppi Puljujärvi. They also say they have received numerous messages from their followers with similar experiences as a result of the wide-ranging debate that has arisen.
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– It is especially sad to hear this belittling from a person whose work has been supported countless times over the years in the name of charity, because Ivana Helsinki has never agreed to pay for the cooperation, writes the veteran Jenni Rotonen Instagram in its stories.
– But I have also refused countless times over the years after hearing that they do not want to pay for the work I do. I have repeatedly had to explain to them that I cannot do my job for free or with product pay, but in spite of that, unpaid co-operation has been proposed over and over again, Rotonen continues.
Influencers reveal how Ivana Helsinki has utilized influencers in marketing for more than ten years without offering them a salary or appropriate compensation for these associations.
– Influencers have been outraged since the departure of Ivana Helsinki and especially Paola Suhonen. The brand has been a favorite of many influencers, which has been highlighted precisely because of the brand’s nationality. An organized group of more established influencers – growing all the time – want to use their platforms to raise the brand’s years of unfair practices and grievances in terms of both influencer marketing and the brand’s work culture to finally bring change to the industry, says Peppi Puljujärvi.
Puljujärvi himself has been an influencer for 13 years this year and is currently coordinating influencers to highlight these grievances. He has also previously done freelance work for Iltalehti, among others.
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– These have been discussed behind closed doors between our influencers and fashion industry players for many years and the grievances have been widely revealed. We have received hundreds of messages from both influencers and former employees of the brand, as well as from the brand’s partners regarding what they have experienced with Ivana Helsinki and Paola Suhonen, Puljujärvi continues.
“I represent artists and influencers for my work, and I am an influencer myself. I cannot accept the exploitation and depression of the skills of others. We want a change so that young students in the fashion industry or influential people who make their work are no longer exploited, concludes Puljujärvi.
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