Laima is the largest producer of

confectionery Confectionery is the art of making confections, which are food items that are rich in sugar and carbohydrates. Exact definitions are difficult. In general, however, confectionery is divided into two broad and somewhat overlapping categories ...

Latvia Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...

. Its named after

Laima Laima is a Baltic goddess of fate. She was associated with childbirth, marriage, and death; she was also the patron of pregnant women. Laima and her functions are similar to the Hindu goddess Lakshmi. In Latvia In Latvian mythology, Laima and ...

, the goddess of

fate Destiny, sometimes referred to as fate (from Latin ''fatum'' "decree, prediction, destiny, fate"), is a predetermined course of events. It may be conceived as a predetermined future, whether in general or of an individual. Fate Although often ...

Latvian mythology Latvian mythology is the collection of myths that have emerged throughout the history of Latvia, sometimes being elaborated upon by successive generations, and at other times being rejected and replaced by other explanatory narratives. These myth ...

and headquartered in

Riga Riga (; lv, Rīga , liv, Rīgõ) is the capital and largest city of Latvia and is home to 605,802 inhabitants which is a third of Latvia's population. The city lies on the Gulf of Riga at the mouth of the Daugava river where it meets the Ba ...

History

The company traces its origins to the 19th century, when the Theodor Riegert company was one of the largest confectioners in the

Baltic Provinces The Baltic governorates (russian: Прибалтийские губернии), originally the Ostsee governorates (german: Ostseegouvernements, russian: Остзейские губернии), was a collective name for the administrative units ...

of the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...

. Despite the loss of Russian markets, the company maintained its major market position domestically following Latvia's independence in 1918. The current company name was adopted in 1925 after a merger with two brothers Eliyahu and Leonid Fromenchenko (also spelled Fromchenko). In 1933, after the two Russian Jews sold the company, Eliyahu Fromchenko founded

Elite In political and sociological theory, the elite (french: élite, from la, eligere, to select or to sort out) are a small group of powerful people who hold a disproportionate amount of wealth, privilege, political power, or skill in a group. D ...

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

Ramat Gan Ramat Gan ( he, רָמַת גַּן or , ) is a city in the Tel Aviv District of Israel, located east of the municipality of Tel Aviv and part of the Tel Aviv metropolitan area. It is home to one of the world's major diamond exchanges, and many ...

. During both the 1930s and Soviet period in Latvia, Laima was the main

chocolatier A chocolatier is a person or company who makes confectionery from chocolate. Chocolatiers are distinct from chocolate makers, who create chocolate from cacao beans and other ingredients. Education and training Traditionally, chocolatiers, e ...

in Latvia, with L.W. Goegginger (later renamed Uzvara by the Soviets) being the main producer of hard candies. After Latvia regained its independence in the 1990s, Laima amalgamated with both Uzvara and cookie, wafer, and cake manufacturer Staburadze to become a single company under the Laima name.

Corporate affairs

Unlike similar regional producers of national brands, such as Lithuania's Karūna, Sweden's Marabou, and Norway's Freia, Laima wasn't bought out by an international player like

Kraft Foods The second incarnation of Kraft Foods is an American food manufacturing and processing conglomerate, split from Kraft Foods Inc. in 2012 and headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. It became part of Kraft Heinz in 2015. A merger with Heinz, arra ...

. Ownership of Laima is controlled by Nordic Food, owned by local businessman Daumants Vītols. After introducing Laima shares to the

Riga Stock Exchange The Nasdaq Riga, formerly Riga Stock Exchange, is the sole stock exchange operating in Riga, Latvia. It is owned by Nasdaq, which also operates exchanges in the USA, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Iceland, Armenia, Lithuania, and Estonia. Established i ...

in December 2006, the controlling owners decided to once again make the company private, taking it off the market on 13 July 2007. The parent company of Laima was acquired by

Orkla Group Orkla ASA is a Norwegian conglomerate operating in the Nordic region, Eastern Europe, Asia and the US. At present, Orkla operates in the branded consumer goods, aluminium solutions and financial investment sectors. Orkla ASA is listed on the Os ...

in August 2014.

Brand recognition

The product in Laima's current range with the longest history is the chocolate candy ''Serenāde'', the recipe for which has remained unchanged since 1937. In Riga, one of the major landmarks is the

Laima Clock The Laima Clock ( lv, Laimas pulkstenis) is a landmark in central Riga, Latvia. Its location between the Old Town and the Centre commercial district has made it a landmark of the city. History The clock was completed in 1924 and initially w ...

, near the

Freedom Monument The Freedom Monument ( lv, Brīvības piemineklis, ) is located in Riga, Latvia, honouring soldiers killed during the Latvian War of Independence (1918–1920). It is considered an important symbol of the freedom, independence, and sovereignty ...

. This is a classic meeting place for people in Riga. As a publicity gesture, in 2007 Laima gave the inhabitants of

Ruhnu Ruhnu ( sv, Runö; german: Runö; lv, Roņu sala) is an Estonian island in the Gulf of Riga in the Baltic Sea. It is administratively part of Saare County but is geographically closer to the Latvian mainland. At , it has currently fewer than 100 ...

island in the

Gulf of Riga The Gulf of Riga, Bay of Riga, or Gulf of Livonia ( lv, Rīgas līcis, et, Liivi laht) is a bay of the Baltic Sea between Latvia and Estonia. The island of Saaremaa (Estonia) partially separates it from the rest of the Baltic Sea. The main con ...

a 40 kg statue of a bear made of chocolate, to commemorate a

brown bear The brown bear (''Ursus arctos'') is a large bear species found across Eurasia and North America. In North America, the populations of brown bears are called grizzly bears, while the subspecies that inhabits the Kodiak Islands of Alaska is kno ...

that had swum over, presumably from the Latvian mainland, to the Estonian island.

References

External links

* (in Latvian, Russian and English)
Images of Laima wrapper designs throughout the decades
{{Authority control Brand name confectionery Soviet brands Latvian brands Food and drink companies of the Soviet Union Manufacturing companies based in Riga Companies established in 1870 Chocolate companies 1870 establishments in Europe Food and drink companies established in 1870 Companies nationalised by the Soviet Union

History

Corporate affairs

Brand recognition

See also

References

External links