Outstanding organic growth on social media earned Maxine Buchert this year's Anders Wall Scholarship

Meridian primarily works with startups and small companies, helping them build their brand, reach, and customer base through original content and continuous work in their own channels rather than large advertising budgets. 

In less than a year, the company has reached a turnover of more than 100,000 euros and established itself among firms seeking to strengthen their digital presence. The next step is continued expansion in the European market.

“We have had very clear goals, repeatable and transparent processes from the very beginning, and a team with varied perspectives and skills. There was definitely a sense of certainty that solving the problem we identified would clearly help people, and that clarity is what I believe led to our rapid growth”, says Buchert.

She has previously been active in the Finnish startup ecosystem and worked at Slush before founding Meridian. According to her, hiring the right kind of people has been the most important part of their operations.

“You may have a stellar idea and ways of working, but if your team is just mediocre, you might have a short-lived business on your hands. The journey of hiring will continue to be top of mind during the first years of operations in particular”.

The jury highlights her entrepreneurial drive, business acumen, and ability to develop a company in a short time. Buchert says the Anders Wall Scholarship means very much to her.

“The scholarship allows us to invest more of our company's money into hiring and expanding our team to include even more skilled people. The impact is multifold, because a larger team means greater influence on the local economy both through hiring and by supporting businesses with our crazy good organic social media", Buchert concludes. 

The Anders Wall Foundation award a scholarship of 200,000 SEK each year to a student at Hanken, who has distinguished themselves in entrepreneurship and business development. In total, the foundation distributes approximately 5 million SEK in scholarships and educational grants to young people with an entrepreneurial focus in the fields of research, business, international studies, and culture. The scholarship recipient also becomes a member of the prestigious Wallumni network, which offers a structured network of highly skilled individuals from these fields.

Text: Elin Wirman and Marlene Günsberg
Picture: Anders Wall Foundation