Online grocery trade: Oda starts operations in Finland

Oslo / NO. (oda) Oda from Norway, which focuses on the online grocery trade, will start its operations in Finland at the end of the year. YIT Oyj is currently building a next-generation fulfilment centre in Viinikkala, Vantaa, which will serve more than two million Finnish consumers.

The logistics cluster in Viinikkala is busy, even in the summer heat. Trucks of all sizes arrive and depart in a continuous stream – the area is known as the realm of moving goods in the capital region. Oda’s first fulfilment centre outside the Norwegian borders, currently being implemented by YIT, is about to emerge here.

Oda will start its operations in Finland at the turn of the year. It will offer a full range of Finnish grocery store products with home delivery. It will invest in the selection of fresh products, vegetables and fruits in particular, as well as in offering products from familiar Finnish brands. At first, Oda will deliver the products to homes in Helsinki, Espoo, Vantaa and Kauniainen, but as demand grows, Oda is ready to rapidly expand its service to new areas.

The logistics area K3 in Viinikkala fulfills Oda’s wishes regarding the location. The property to be completed has been designed by Oda in cooperation with YIT for online grocery shopping purposes from the very beginning.

«YIT’s development phase project is now tailored to our needs. The planned solutions set high standards for continued quality in the future. This is of particular importance to us, as this fulfilment centre is our first outside Norway,» says Geir Anders Haga, Director of International Expansion at Oda.

The fulfilment centre will also have office space for Oda’s employees, with a total area of 14,000 square metres.

«The location of the fulfilment centre is excellent; we will be in the middle of the consumer market in the capital region and we can serve more than two million potential grocery store customers,» says Tobias Niemi, Managing Director of Oda Finland.

Founded in 2013, Oda has succeeded in making its e-grocery business the most efficient in the world. Its operating model is based on efficient automation and data utilisation. According to a recent consumer survey, Oda is also Norway’s most popular grocery store.

This has been an inspiring project for YIT. «Together we have been looking for solutions for the technical implementation of the fulfilment centre, such as cold logistics and its maximum energy efficiency. Environmental responsibility plays an important role and, for example, provisions have been made for a solar energy system,» says Anne Suojoki, Project Development Manager at YIT.

«YIT has been a good partner for us; cooperation during construction has been smooth, and the project has proceeded safely without the challenges posed by Covid-19,» says Timo Ponkkonen, Head of Operations at Oda Finland.

The property to be built for Oda in Viinikkala, Vantaa, is the last K3 project development site. In accordance with its strategy, YIT has developed and gradually implemented the K3 area, where the operations, among others, of Wihuri, the Mint of Finland, Posti, Forsman tee and VAK Huoltopalvelut are already up and running.