Marine Outdoors, founded in 2018 in Helsinki, is part of the experience company Kikkapakka, which has been helping Finns connect with nature since 1999. The team at Marine Outdoors shares a simple belief: the best way to experience the water is quietly, without engines.
"We want to get people to appreciate the fact that you can experience and enjoy nature to the fullest without using motorized vehicles," says Hjalmar "Jali" Gräsbeck, the founder of Marine Outdoors.
For years, every booking at Marine Outdoors was made by phone and logged manually on paper. It worked at first, but as demand grew, so did the chaos. Tracking inventory, avoiding double bookings, and keeping payment records up to date became nearly impossible. Marine Outdoors wanted to find a modern, scalable solution that would streamline everyday life at the shop.
"On busy days, we’d fill an entire sheet of paper with bookings. With today’s volume, that method would be impossible," Jali recalls.
The team needed a modern, scalable way to manage bookings, payments, and equipment availability — without losing time training new seasonal staff. That’s where TWICE came in.
Adopting TWICE transformed Marine Outdoors’ operations almost overnight. Bookings moved online, payments were automated, and staff could finally see real-time availability without juggling phone calls or handwritten notes.
Even during COVID-19, when many outdoor operators faced uncertainty, Marine Outdoors continued to grow. TWICE became their central hub for running day-to-day operations safely and efficiently.
TWICE works like a great secretary — it gives us data, prevents double bookings, and takes care of the financial side of things.
- Hjalmar Gräsbeck, Entrepreneur in Marine Outdoors
With just three core employees and additional seasonal workers, ease of use was critical. TWICE’s intuitive interface meant new hires could learn the system quickly and focus on customers instead of processes.“As an entrepreneur, you can’t be afraid of change. Digitalizing our processes wasn’t intimidating — TWICE made it simple,” Jali explains.
Today, Marine Outdoors runs entirely on TWICE, from kayak and SUP rentals to managing payments and customer data. With a new location open in Porvoo, the company continues to expand — confident that its systems can keep pace.
“TWICE shows everything we need in real time. It’s easy to use, customers are happy, and it’s become an essential part of our business.”
- Hjalmar Gräsbeck, Entrepreneur in Marine Outdoors
Photo credit: Marine Outdoors.
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