The Tokmanni Group

The story of Tokmanni isn’t about one company, but a roll-up of many. It begins in 1989 when brothers Kyösti and Kari Kakkonen established a discount store named Okman Oy in eastern Finland, which would later become Tokmanni. However, its roots spread wider, with other Finnish business families founding various discount chains throughout the 70s and 80s, like Vapaa Valinta and Säästökuoppa. The early 2000s marked a turning point. The Kakkonen brothers decided to expand nationwide. This ambition led to a pivotal deal in 2004, where the private equity firm CapMan acquired a majority stake. This partnership fueled a series of acquisitions, consolidating several regional discount chains under the Tokmanni umbrella. By 2012, with the company’s growth attracting significant interest, another private equity firm, Nordic Capital, acquired Tokmanni. The new ownership accelerated the strategy, culminating in a major rebranding effort between 2013 and 2015 that unified all the different store brands under the single Tokmanni name. The final major financial event came in April 2016, when Tokmanni Group launched its Initial Public Offering (IPO) on the Nasdaq Helsinki. This move provided capital to further expand its store network and solidified its position as Finland's largest discount retailer.