We are Kyrö

People

A dream that began with five friends' sauna night in 2012 has grown into a world-famous rye distillery – and quite a big community of good people.

People

The Kyrö crew

  • Jouni Ritola

    Founders, Sales

    Jouni Ritola

    After a year in Chicago, our CEO still remembers how small talk works. Sadly, the skill hasn't been particularly useful in Finland. Besides running the company, Jouni looks after Travel Retail and North America.

    jouni@kyrodistillery.com

  • Mikko Koskinen

    Founders, Brand & marketing

    Mikko Koskinen

    You already know Mikko from Kyrö's iconic ad videos. He runs marketing in Finland and is CEO of the Visitor Centre. In his free time this propeller-head freedives, sails and spreads the word of Kyrö around the world.

    mikko@kyrodistillery.com

  • Kalle Valkonen

    Founders

    Kalle Valkonen

    After biogas and brewing beer, Kalle moved full-time into the role of Kyrö's head distiller. Changes in behaviour have revealed signs of mad-scientist tendencies.

    kalle@kyrodistillery.com

  • Miko Heinilä

    Founders, Sales

    Miko Heinilä

    Miko is a walking encyclopaedia of Isokyrö's local history over the last few millennia. Smiles a lot but sleeps very little. Miko is responsible for Kyrö's sales in Finland, Europe and Africa.

    miko@kyrodistillery.com+358 40 834 9835

  • Miika Lipiäinen

    Founders, Sales

    Miika Lipiäinen

    Miika came back after a break to lead sales in Asia. On the side he's working on a doctoral thesis and holds a professorship of practice in Tampere – fittingly – in the experience economy and meaningful customer experiences.

    miika@kyrodistillery.com

  • Mari Saarenpää

    Production

    Mari Saarenpää

    This all-rounder has been part of the Kyrö story for 10 years. Mari loves smoky whiskies and animals. The distillery's unofficial mother figure takes care of her team – and the whiskies – with warmth and love.

    mari@kyrodistillery.com

  • Ásgeir Bergmann Pétursson

    Production

    Ásgeir Bergmann Pétursson

    Geiri names Madrid as his favourite city for its weather, food and wine – and still moved to Isokyrö. Officially he develops new drinks and distils; unofficially he's the reason behind many smiles.

  • Timo Mäkelä

    Production

    Timo Mäkelä

    A bass player who distils for a day job, he's a surprisingly chatty introvert with more than one story about Isokyrö's 15th-century church.

  • Sanni Aittanen

    Production

    Sanni Aittanen

    If this former fighter-jet mechanic and army professional could choose, she'd live in the 1950s and never give up her floral dress and beehive hair. Sanni dreams of a trip to Cuba and retirement in Italy, enjoying wine.

  • Outi Heiniluoma

    Production

    Outi Heiniluoma

    The bottling and logistics supervisor pulls exactly the right strings so every order reaches customers on time and the team is as happy as can be. A Fernet-Branca coin may or may not have something to do with it. Loves Turku, Finland.

    outi@kyrodistillery.com

  • Kaisa Havunen

    Production

    Kaisa Havunen

    Everyday life is more than a hanami picnic in Tokyo – but this forest-roaming member of the bottling team has had one of those too. Drinks her whisky neat. Loves Foo Fighters and going to gigs.

  • Ann-Marie Kallio

    Production

    Ann-Marie Kallio

    The queen of packaging materials moved to the middle of the rye fields for love. Still speaks true Stockholm Swedish.

  • Alina Antonova

    Production

    Alina Antonova

    In her free time, this packaging and logistics assistant creates the most stunning nails in Isokyrö, if not the whole of Southern Ostrobothnia.

  • Jonne Mikkola

    Production

    Jonne Mikkola

  • Matti Kovanen

    Brand & marketing

    Matti Kovanen

    Matti leads Kyrö's brand and marketing globally. On his desk, the big lines of the brand run side by side with hands-on work: one day it's planning a whisky launch, the next it's taking a sauna across Europe or gluing sauna stones at an airport.

    matti@kyrodistillery.com

  • Oliver Saarinen

    Brand & marketing

    Oliver Saarinen

    Oliver looks after Kyrö's digital side and makes sure you've heard of us. Trusts his camera as much as Excel and InDesign. Above all, he likes talking about culture over a glass.

    oliver@kyrodistillery.com

  • Jenna Toivonen

    Brand & marketing

    Jenna Toivonen

    Jenna has steered the Visitor Centre's marketing for years, aiming to make people fall in love with Isokyrö – and she has truly succeeded. In her free time she loves roaming the forest with her family, and pick 'n' mix sweets.

    jenna@kyrodistillery.com

  • Visitor Centre

    Satu Mäenpää

    A restaurant manager who charms everyone with her ringing laugh and makes sure everything works just as it should!

    satu@kyrodistillery.com

  • Iida Paasonen

    Visitor Centre

    Iida Paasonen

    This powerhouse dances burlesque, is interested in shamanism and breathes music. Iida hikes not only in nature but also around the distillery, guiding visitors and telling Kyrö stories.

  • Saana Römpötti

    Visitor Centre

    Saana Römpötti

    A chef with a terrible sense of humour whose smile never fades in the rush. As a child he dreamed of great adventures in Tolkien's world, but since that wasn't possible, being a chef was the next best thing. Besides cooking, he loves fantasy literature, films and metal music.

  • Aurora Ämmälä

    Visitor Centre

    Aurora Ämmälä

    Aurora conjures up rye drinks for every taste at the bar, and her smile is contagious. She dreams of interrailing around Europe and has promised to spread the word of Kyrö along the way.

  • Oona Alanen

    Visitor Centre

    Oona Alanen

    A born-and-bred local who found her way to Kyrö as a host during a gap year in her studies, serving customers and telling stories. She likes to spend her free time with friends, or watching TV series with her dog.

  • Julia Laiho

    Visitor Centre

    Julia Laiho

    You'll find Julia building Kyröfest and helping out with graphic design. She loves pottering about with houseplants. In her free time she dreams of a forest cabin with no neighbours.

  • Tony "Tonto" Sivula

    Visitor Centre

    Tony "Tonto" Sivula

    The former CEO of the Visitor Centre still takes part in some Kyrö events, although these days he focuses more on building his own business at his home ranch. When he isn't doing that, you'll find him passionately making sourdough bread.

    tonto@kyrodistillery.com

  • Gift Chitambala

    Sales

    Gift Chitambala

    Gift, who moved from Zambia to Finland, joined the Kyrö crew to spread the good news of rye across Africa. When he isn't preaching in the name of rye, you'll probably find him at a chessboard plotting his next move, or dreaming of a new safari adventure. At Kyrö his mission is simple: to help more and more Africans discover what can happen when a group of friends, a sauna and a suitably crazy idea grow into something extraordinary.

    gift@kyrodistillery.com

  • Samuli Franke

    Sales

    Samuli Franke

    Samuli is a cask hawk and fatbike adventurer who enjoys German rock and spreading the gospel of pickleball. He's also a father of five, trying to keep up with his pack of dogs and one over-enthusiastic cat. Contact Samuli about anything to do with private casks and cask loans.

    barrelsales@kyrodistillery.com+358 50 325 2580

  • Micha Fritzen

    Sales

    Micha Fritzen

    Micha, our brand ambassador for Central Europe, dropped out of both acting school and directing school, then dived headfirst into German bar culture for years. Lucky for us. In his free time Micha devotes himself to his puppy Gizmo and enjoys life's small everyday adventures.

    micha@kyrodistillery.com

  • Jenni Sivula

    HR & finance

    Jenni Sivula

    The sometimes-happy renovator of a hundred-year-old house knows everything about everything. Jenni has been part of the Kyrö story almost from the start, and now she's responsible for our community's HR and finance.

    jenni@kyrodistillery.com

join the crew

Work at Kyrö

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Want to make the world's ryest whisky and gin with us in Isokyrö? See the open positions.