Vallox has a long tradition of sponsorship. However, we prefer to use the term partnership, as that is what we do, cooperation with the sponsored partners.
Supporting social activities in the local community has always been a matter of the heart for Vallox. It is also one mean of corporate social responsibility. To quote the former long-term CEO Rauno Mäkelä, retired in 2014, Vallox has always wanted to contribute for the well-being of its hometown, e.g. by supporting recreational opportunities for young people. Supporting healthy lifestyle of children and youth is stated today as one of the goals of our sponsorship.
Supporting sports is natural in an active sport community
Loimaa is an active sports community and the cooperation with various sports clubs has been tight. Vallox has supported at least football, volleyball, basketball, baseball, ice hockey and swimming. And the events like the local jogging event Savihölkkä can not be forgotten. We have also wanted to support promising young athletes originated in Loimaa in their careers. For example, shot putter Nico Oksanen describes the support he has received from Vallox as follows: “It would be impossible to be a professional in sports without the sponsors. They enable for example the healthy diet, coach fees and travelling to the competitions around Finland.”
The fruits of the cooperation are e.g. the traditional Vallox tournament for small volleyball players, which has been arranged together with both Loimaan Jankko and Hurrikaani-Loimaa for five years now, as well as the Vallox LOPS Open football tournament. The American players of Bisons Loimaa basketball team have provided our staff with English conversation lessons in addition to the joy of being in the audience in the games. This exceptional collaboration was even given credit by Sponsorointi ja Tapahtumat ry (The Sponsorship and Events Association) in the spring of 2020.
Cultural and event sponsorship
Even if the sport sponsorship is likely to be the most visible activity, we also support culture and organizing the local events. For example, we want to support the Loimaa Theater in their meritorious work for young actors-to-be. We were also happy to take part in an art education project implemented by the Loimaa Jaakola-seura in 2018, where a local new kindergarten received a totem sculpture. And best of all, it didn’t just come there to be watched, but is meant to be tested and caressed by children!
The common goals in the national level partnerships
In addition to supporting local activities, we have a couple of nationally known partners with the aim to increase the awareness our company via cooperation. Traditionally, also those have been long-term partnerships. Many people may still remember Vallox as a sponsor of biathlete Kaisa Mäkäräinen, for example. In addition to the financial support, Kaisa got at least a busload of fans from Vallox at the Kontiolahti World Championships in 2015.
In recent years, sponsorship has become more target-oriented and the business benefits are also measured. At the moment, our main partners are Hurrikaani-Loimaa, the volleyball team at the top of the Finnish Championships league, and the Finnish Ice Hockey Association. The national hockey team Leijonat is an iconic team, and ice hockey as national sport watched by wide audience. Correspondingly, one aim of the collaboration is to become a familiar brand to the entire nation, but at the same time, it is an honor to be in the background enabling the success of Leijona-team.
As a sponsor, we also highly value that Finnish Ice Hockey Association pursues the similar goals than our company. Their campaign “Kunnioita peliä” (Honor the game), is a good example of this. The team spirit and working for the common goal are similarly important in the business. Vallox sponsorship can thus be crystallized in saying “From love for sports and passion for ventilation”.