Speden Saluuna was one of the oldest pubs in Finland operating at the same location and under the same name.
Spede Pasanen was involved in the operation of Spede Saluuna in 1967–1970. Kari Laakso
The Speden Saluuna pub, founded in 1967 by entertainment legend Pertti “Spede” Pasanen, has closed its doors in shopping center Hansa, Kouvola. The restaurant was open for the last day on Tuesday.
The reason for the closure is the filing of bankruptcy by Sinoll Oy, the owner of the restaurant. In addition to Spede Saluuna, Sinoll Oy owns the Kouvola restaurant Lehtohovi and the nightclub Club Touba, both of which are also closing down.
Speden Saluuna announced its termination on Facebook on Tuesday.
“Today is the day when the legendary Speden Saluuna, which was a part of the lives of many Kouvola residents at one time or another, closes its doors. Saluuna was owned by a small family business for the last 27 years. There is a lot of memories, employees, customers, beer cans sold, partners, renovations, setbacks and successes along the way. Each of these made Speden Saluuna a place that you can only be grateful for,” the release states.
According to the release, restaurant operations became unprofitable due to the corona pandemic.
“Corona caused such large losses in a small company that there was no other option after years of persistence but to close the doors and stop business operations. Without the irreplaceable staff and loyal customers, we would not have made it this far. Thank you to everyone for all those shared moments and hard work. The end of one era is the beginning of another,” the announcement says.
Speden Saluuna was one of the pubs in Finland that operated in the same place and under the same name for the longest time. Spede Pasanen was involved in the restaurant business for three years from its founding, but withdrew in 1970.
Speden was the first to report on Saluuna’s termination Kouvola Sanomat. CEO of Sinoll Oy Marja Henriksson told the newspaper that he filed for bankruptcy himself and that the bankruptcy will take effect today, Wednesday.