Ben Hamilton
January 31st, 2019

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Welcome boost for Danish economy (photo: thebluediamondgallery.com)

Some 16 heavy-hitters from the world of business have been invited onto the Rådet for Deleøkonomi, the Business Ministry’s new sharing economy council.

The council will aim to encourage more dialogue between companies, experts and social partners.

It comes at a time when an estimated 20 percent of the Danish population are using the sharing economy.

Great potential
“The sharing economy with its many new business models has opened up a great potential for innovation and growth, but we have also encountered new challenges in relation to the labour market, tax control and consumer protection” commented the business minister, Rasmus Jarlov.

“We must make sure that the new opportunities will go hand-in-hand with proper conditions for both providers and users of part-economic services – not to mention putting a damper on the creativity and driving force by imposing a lot of pressure on the companies and unnecessary rules.”

PostNord delivery locations to increase by a third this year
PostNord has confirmed it will be opening a further 500 delivery locations around the country as it increasingly switches its focus from regular post onto packages as online sales continue to increase in Denmark. “We want to make it easier for Danes to pick up their packages, explained Peter Kjær Jensen, the CEO of PostNord Danmark. “We want to have Denmark’s best and most accessible network.” By the end of the year, PostNord will have 2,000 locations.

Scandal sees a third of pizza chain’s restaurants close
Domino’s pizza chain has closed down a third of all its restaurants since it was revealed in September that it had been routinely mislabelling food to extend its shelf life and maintaining poor hygiene standards. “Domino’s is in a vicious circle as this crisis has negatively affected its brand,” Henrik Byager, a branding expert, told BT. “When the basic trust between a company and its customers gets broken, that is the worst thing that can happen.”

Hotel giant moving into Scandinavia
Deutsche Hospitality may have recently bought Danish Zleep Hotels, but it also intends to open its own establishments in Scandinavia, reports standby.dk. With 120 hotels in four different markets, it uses several different brands, including Steigenberger Hotels and Resorts, Maxx by Steigenberger, Jaz in the City, and IntercityHotel. There’s no word on where it will open its first Scandinavian hotel yet.

Copenhagen the 15th busiest airport in Europe
With 30,298,531 passengers in 2018, Copenhagen Airport was the 15th busiest airport in Europe and the number one in the Nordics – nearly 2 million clear of 19th-placed Oslo, while Stockholm finished a lowly 23rd with 26.8 million passengers. Heathrow Airport was the busiest in Europe with 80.1 million passengers, followed by Charles de Gaulle in Paris (72.2) and Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam (71.05).

Vestas solidifies position as Russia’s leading wind energy company
Vestas has solidified its position as the leading wind energy company in Russia with a 99 MW order for a joint venture wind project in the Rostov region, which will include 26 V126-3.45 MW turbines being delivered. Meanwhile in China, Vestas has secured a 101 MW order for 46 V120-2.2 MW turbines, which will include the tallest yet towers (152 metres) built in the country.

No more plastic straws at leading supermarkets
The Bilka and Føtex supermarket chains, which are both owned by the Salling Group, have confirmed they will no longer be selling plastic straws as part of their owner’s recently announced fight against plastic pollution in partnership with the World Wildlife Fund. Instead, they will be selling a paper version.

25 Fætter BR stores to reopen in the spring following Salling rescue deal
The Salling Group has revealed more details about its plans for the toy store chain Fætter BR, which it bought earlier this month following the bankruptcy of its owner, Top Toy, late last year. It will reopen 25 stores in the spring and also add or revamp toy departments in some of its Føtex and Bilka outlets. The 25 stores are believed to be mostly large stores, with most small outlets being shut down for good.

New CEO of Scandic Denmark confirmed
Søren Faerber has been named the new CEO of the Scandic hotel chain’s Danish operations. Faerber, who was formally the district director for Scandic’s hotels in Copenhagen and eastern Denmark, replaces Jens Mathiesen, who earlier this month was confirmed as the new president and CEO of the entire Scandic group.