Sami Koskela appointed Managing Director of Aspo's Kaukomarkkinat

ASPO Plc       STOCK EXCHANGE RELEASE   April 15, 2015, at 09:00

SAMI KOSKELA APPOINTED MANAGING DIRECTOR OF ASPO'S KAUKOMARKKINAT

Sami Koskela (M.Sc. Eng., 35) has been appointed the new Managing Director of Kaukomarkkinat Ltd, part of Aspo Group, and a member of the Group Executive Committee of Aspo Group starting from April 17, 2015. Acting Managing Director Kimmo Liukkonen will continue as a member of the Kaukomarkkinat Board of Directors. Sami Koskela previously worked as the director of Nokia's and subsequently Microsoft's Chinese operations from 2012, before which he acted as director for Nokia's operations in Taiwan.

"Sami Koskela's expertise is a perfect match for the new development phase of Kaukomarkkinat. His experience and role as a key player in the development and production of successful products forms a solid base for the current strategy of Kaukomarkkinat. His experience in combining wireless communications with unique customer experiences, together with the changing ways consumers use electronics in their everyday lives and demanding work situations, enables Kaukomarkkinat to strongly develop its operations further."

"Aspo has been able to stabilize the financial result of Kaukomarkkinat by heavily eliminating non-core business functions in Finland and abroad. The competence and motivation of the staff are now focused on IT solutions for challenging working environments, demanding wireless communications tools, and experiences. Building automation systems highlight the possibility to control and adjust all devices using IT," says Aki Ojanen, Chairman of the Kaukomarkkinat Board of Directors.

In 2014, Kaukomarkkinat posted net sales of EUR 36 million and an operating profit of EUR 0.1 million. Kaukomarkkinat is part of Aspo Group. Its net sales in 2014 totaled EUR 483 million and its operating profit stood at EUR 23.4 million. Aspo's strategy is to own, lead and develop its businesses that are striving to become market leaders within their field. Aspo operates in 15 countries.

ASPO Plc

Aki Ojanen
CEO

For more information, please contact:
Aki Ojanen, CEO of Aspo Plc, Chairman of the Board of Kaukomarkkinat Ltd,
phone +358 9 5211, +358 400 106 592, e-mail aki.ojanen (a)aspo.com

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Aspo is a conglomerate that owns and develops businesses in Northern Europe and growth markets focusing on demanding B-to-B customers. The aim of our strong corporate brands - ESL Shipping, Leipurin, Telko and Kaukomarkkinat - is to be the market leaders in their sectors. They are responsible for their own operations, customer relationships and the development of these. Together they generate Aspo's goodwill. Aspo's Group structure and business operations are developed persistently without any predefined schedules.