Working Hard...

In the last two days, we have had two amazing company visits.  The first was to H&M where we met with their investor relations department.  He told us all about how H&M approaches the market and made it clear just how incredible the growth of the company has been over the last 15 years.  I think all of the students had an amazing time at H&M and it quickly became clear at the meeting that getting into H&M to hear from them about their business is not frequently done, so we felt quite special.  It is great to have Nic and his personal contacts on the trip to facilitate these meetings!  Today, we met with the director of Hitta.se which is a directory service.  They are part of a larger conglomerate which is trying to generate a stable of internet properties that work together to generate revenues by driing traffic to complementary assets.  Joakim, our presenter, did a great job and laid out a vision for company that was quite compelling.  It was so compelling, at least one of the students on the trip indicated interest in getting in contact after the trip to look at potential employment opportunities!

Other than the visits to the companies, the last two days have involved two of the must-see tourist location in Stockholm: Skansen (a combination zoo and historical reenactment) and the Vasa museum.  Skansen is a zoo just outside Stockholm proper where Sweden’s native animals are placed in the same park as historical building types.  There were not a lot of the re-enactors on site yesterday, so we didn’t get to talk with them about life in Sweden in the past, but the buildings were very cool.  Today, we visited the Vasa museum and learned all about the ineptness that led to the design of a ship which sunk less than 1 mile out of port.  It is amazing how the desire by the king in another country led to the building of a ship which could not withstand even a minor squall.  The Vasa museum was also amazing for how well they have preserved the ship.  The preservation techniques that were pioneered to preserve a ship brought back to the service whole were very cool and they continue to innovate in these techniques into today.

In addition to the company and cultural events, we have had some down time to really get out into the city.  One of the best decisions we made on this trip was buying everyone an unlimited public transportation pass that has allowed us to basically freely move around the city using trams, the subway and busses.  This has allowed us to go all over and do some of the all important preliminary shopping to begin planning for souvenir buying.  Unsurprisingly, my list of people I would like to buy for is quite long, but it is very important to think through purchases given the expense of everything in Stockholm.  For example, even a simple café Americano (a shot of espresso with a little hot water added to it) costs almost $5 and every meal seem to start at $18.

Yesterday, Nic, Devon and I spent time working on coordinating the Swedish dinner experience that is on tap for tomorrow.  We cannot wait to see what the students think of the experience…it is going to be a blast.

Beside the Swedish dinner experience, tomorrow hold a visit to Systembolaget the Swedish state run liquor monopoly!  More to come tomorrow.  Now it is time for dinner…Thai food!