On September 3, 2026, Oy Eräkontti Ab, an online hunting store owned by the Finnish Hunters' Association and its district associations, and Loimu Labs Oy, a startup company developing a positioning service in Hollola, Finland, signed a letter of intent regarding Eräkontti's possible shareholding in the positioning service company.
According to the letter of intent, the companies will test the hunting dog and hunter tracking service in hunting clubs across Finland this coming autumn. The service has been developed by Loimu Labs during the last two years.
If the piloting of the service is successful as planned this coming autumn, it will be proposed to the Finnish Hunters' Association's extraordinary general meeting in early 2027 that Eräkontti could enter into a shareholder agreement with Loimu Labs according to the letter of intent. According to agreement Eräkontti would have decision-making power in the company.
– If the piloting of the tracking service in hunting clubs is successful as planned, a proposal will be made to the Finnish Hunters' Association's general meeting regarding Eräkontti's participation in the positioning company. If implemented, this participation will provide Finnish hunters with their very own positioning service and place the decision-making power of the company firmly in their hands," emphasizes Harri Käsmä, Chairman of the Board of Oy Eräkontti Ab and 2nd Vice Chairman of the Board of the Finnish Hunters' Association.
Positioning and mapping products for hunters, hunting clubs and nature lovers
Loimu Labs' products will include a hunting positioning service, a hunting rights lease management service for hunting clubs, and related ancillary products. According to the letter of intent, the products will be developed and maintained by Loimu Labs. Products will be sold exclusively by Eräkontti.
– The signed letter of intent seals a close and effective partnership with the Finnish Hunters' Association and the Eräkontti online store to pilot test the application and explore a possible investment in the company. For us, the founders of Loimu Labs, this is a service that is built for the authentic everyday needs of outdoor enthusiasts – by hunters, for hunters. By combining the reach of the Finnish Hunters' Association's 140,000 members, the strong experience of our partners and our IT expertise, we ensure that Finnish hunters receive products that perfectly meet their needs and first-class service," sums up Riku Korpela, Chairman of the Board of Loimu Labs.
The products are planned to be available on the market by autumn 2027. The location service will be built according to an open interface so that various dog trackers can be connected to the service if tracker manufacturers wish to participate in the collaboration. During the pilot phase during the autumn, MiniFinder and Teltonika dog trackers will be involved in the test collaboration.
For members of the Hunters' Association, location services are available at member discount prices
The chairman of the Finnish Hunters' Association, Petteri Lampinen, emphasizes the importance of potential ownership for the association's members:
– The letter of intent includes a condition that Eräkontti will sell positioning products to members of the Hunters' Association at a significant member discount. Therefore, membership of the Hunters' Association is a valuable benefit for hunters, alongside all the effective advocacy work the association carries out," says Lampinen.
The founding partners of Loimu Labs Oy are information and communication technology professionals. Most of them are hunters. When the letter of intent is implemented, Loimu Labs will be a company in the hands of Finnish hunters. Locators from different manufacturers can be connected to the service thanks to an open interface. The service is reliable due to its scalability, which means it works without problems with different numbers of users. The location information is encrypted and is not even known to the service provider, unless the user himself shares his location information, for example to increase hunting safety.
More information:
Chairman of Oy Eräkontti Ab Harri Käsmä, tel. 0405018953, harri <piste> kasma
metsastajaliitto <piste> fi
Chairman of Loimu Labs Oy Riku Korpela, tel. 0405577629, riku <piste> korpelaloimulabs <piste> fi
Chairman of the Finnish Hunters' Association Petteri Lampinen, tel. 0400555790, petteri <piste> lampinenmetsastajaliitto <piste> fi (petteri[dot]lampinen[at]metsastajaliitto[dot]fi)
