Finnäsas Store

Artur Finnäs’ Finnäsas handelsbod (Colonial and General Store), commonly known as Finnäsas, was undoubtedly a typical representative of the privately-owned village shops, of which there were at least a dozen in Malax in the 1950s. Sometimes they were located quite close to each other – a competitor, Rurik Östman (Röurikas), was just a few minutes’ walk from Finnäsas. The number of village shops was significant, but their business was, in many ways, small-scale. They had their relatively small customer base, mainly consisting of residents from the nearby areas, and they didn’t need more. Stores were open on weekdays from 8 am to 5 pm, on Saturdays from 8 am to 1 pm, and closed on Sundays. The stores themselves were small rooms divided by a counter. In Finnäsas, there was approximately a 3m x 3m space for customers in front of an L-shaped counter. The marketing was modest; the most common form of advertising among local shopkeepers was to label sold matchboxes with promotional stickers.

 

Source: Malax Museiförening. Compiled by Leif Finnäs. The book Ytäbyiji.