Molok had a hit song, but the band didn't play together

The name of a company rarely becomes established colloquially to refer not only to their own products but also to those of their competitors. Molok is one of them. If you are planning to install a deep waste collection system in the yard of your housing company, no later than in the third dialogue will you start to refer to molok.

A submersible waste collection container developed by entrepreneur Veikko Salli in the early 1990s has changed the waste management market. The advantages of Molok are obvious: less space is needed, waste produces less odour and emptying intervals can be reduced compared to traditional waste containers.

As we enter the 2020s, Molok has found itself on the cutting edge of trends. Legislation and regulations promote the circular economy from the EU to the local level, and waste sorting is accelerated. Carbon dioxide emissions from waste collection have also been closely scrutinised, and if the frequency of collection can be reduced to a fifth of what it used to be, the carbon dioxide emissions from a waste collection truck will be significantly reduced.

The first Moloks, manufactured and installed thirty years ago, are still in use. Many old customers have bought new containers, but the reason has not been that the containers would have worn out, but that sorting has become more diverse. Instead of one or two wells, several different-sized Moloks for different types of waste have been needed. Molok also manufactures surface-mounted containers that are compatible with deep-collection containers.

Trends are in Molok’s favour. The ingredients for world success should be at hand, yet Molok has not gone as high as it could have.

The band had a hit song on their hands, and there was nothing wrong with the players, but they just didn't seem to play together.

The Beatles were in a bit of a similar situation in 1962, when record producer George Martin replaced drummer Pete Best with Ringo Starr. The rest is rock music history.

In 2020, Molok was in a slightly similar situation, Vaaka having become the majority owner in 2016. The company's turnover had grown from EUR 20 million to EUR 25 million during Vaaka's ownership.

Yes, there had been growth, but it did not meet the private equity owner’s expectations or the company's potential. There should be opportunities for much more.

George Martin's method had to be implemented.

Marko Penttinen was appointed CEO of Molok in August 2020, and in spring 2021, Jarkko Murtoaro became Molok's responsible partner at Vaaka. Even before these changes, the company's CFO had changed, and in addition to Murtoaro, another new board member, a German industry expert, had joined the board. Since the new supply chain director started, half of the management team has changed in less than two years.

Resetting Molok has been a more major operation than replacing a pacesetter with another one.

Molok's band renewal came in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic. When Marko Penttinen was appointed CEO, he and the recruiters only met physically once and had one conversation while walking the streets of Helsinki. Other meetings were held online.

Jarkko Murtoaro visited Molok’s premises in Nokia for the first time in the spring-summer of 2021. Although he knew well the company and its products, he was surprised by the waste containers with tonnage up to five cubic meters produced in the factory.

"The factory gives you a tangible feel for the products and production, which helps you understand the company better," says Murtoaro.

Molok uses its own moulds to cast the frame well of its classic model in Nokia, where the containers are also assembled and shipped to customers.

"There are more than a hundred parts in one container," Penttinen says.

Waste containers are regulated in several ways. For example, they must withstand the weight of waste and be designed to prevent children from falling into Molok's mouth. International sales are helped by the fact that the euro standards provide the same framework for recycling in different countries, which national legislators apply according to each country's situation.

The sales structure and customer base vary widely from country to country. If an old housing company decides to upgrade its waste collection system, the sales process is different from that of a city choosing to install bins in public places.

Architects are important influencers in new construction projects and municipal clients. They don't decide on the supplier, but their drawings and dimensions contribute to the choice of a manufacturer's product. It helps a lot to close a deal if you have been able to influence the invitation to tender.

Although Molok sells deep waste collection containers, it is always part of the operating ecosystem. In its simplest form: Using a deep waste collection system is challenging unless there is a service provider who can empty them.

Molok's board meetings are held once a month. Between these meetings, a troika consisting of the CEO, the chairman of the board and the responsible partner convens. Once a week, Marko Penttinen has a telephone conversation with the chairman of the board.

"I have previously spent twenty years in private equity-owned companies, and I am used to working independently. At first, I wondered what this was going to be like," says Marko Penttinen.

It has worked well, and the results have been good.

"If the company is important, the private equity investor will really put their time and effort into it," he says.

When Penttinen started as CEO of Molok, the company's strategy was updated. The strategy aims to double the company’s turnover by 2026. The intention is to gain growth from existing key markets.

"Even if you have a strategy, you need to remain sensitive to market changes," Penttinen points out.

A topical example of this is accountability, which has proved to be an even bigger factor than was imagined a year ago when the strategy was drawn up.

In August and September, Molok's board and part of the management team met face-to-face for the first time. The five-hour meeting was held at an airport hotel in Vantaa. The setting may have been clinical, but satisfied people stepped out of the meeting.

"It may be an overstatement, but it felt like a defining moment, a day when all the ideas fell into place," says Jarkko Murtoaro.

"For me, it’s the same. It felt like we were going in the same direction and that we all shared a common understanding."

The band was together. Permission to play.