Hymmi Lenita Aulikki Airisto (born 1 January 1937 in

Helsinki Helsinki () is the Capital city, capital and most populous List of cities and towns in Finland, city in Finland. It is on the shore of the Gulf of Finland and is the seat of southern Finland's Uusimaa region. About people live in the municipali ...

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

) is a Finnish

businesswoman A businessperson, also referred to as a businessman or businesswoman, is an individual who has founded, owns, or holds shares in (including as an angel investor) a private-sector company. A businessperson undertakes activities (commercial ...

, TV

journalist A journalist is a person who gathers information in the form of text, audio or pictures, processes it into a newsworthy form and disseminates it to the public. This is called journalism. Roles Journalists can work in broadcast, print, advertis ...

author In legal discourse, an author is the creator of an original work that has been published, whether that work exists in written, graphic, visual, or recorded form. The act of creating such a work is referred to as authorship. Therefore, a sculpt ...

, and promoter of Finnish industrial and cultural

export An export in international trade is a good produced in one country that is sold into another country or a service provided in one country for a national or resident of another country. The seller of such goods or the service provider is a ...

s. She is also a beauty pageant titleholder, having won the title of

Suomen Neito Suomen Neito () was a traditional Finnish beauty pageant held in the 1950s, 1960s, 1986, and from 1990 to 2007. The pageant began in 1952 when Armi Kuusela was crowned as the first Suomen Neito, which qualified her for the inaugural Miss Universe ...

in 1954 and represented Finland at the

Miss Universe 1954 Miss Universe 1954 was the third Miss Universe pageant, held at the Long Beach Municipal Auditorium in Long Beach, California, United States on 24 July 1954. At the end of the event, Christiane Martel of France crowned Miriam Stevenson of the Un ...

pageant.

Biography

Maiden of Finland

Airisto began her public career in 1954 when she won the title of

(), a beauty pageant organized by the Disabled War Veterans' Association of Finland. Her duties involved raising funds to support the rehabilitation of men who had been severely wounded in the

Winter War The Winter War was a war between the Soviet Union and Finland. It began with a Soviet invasion of Finland on 30 November 1939, three months after the outbreak of World War II, and ended three and a half months later with the Moscow Peac ...

and

Continuation War The Continuation War, also known as the Second Soviet–Finnish War, was a conflict fought by Finland and Nazi Germany against the Soviet Union during World War II. It began with a Finnish declaration of war on 25 June 1941 and ended on 19 ...

during the late 1930s and early 1940s, helping them return to normal life. Following this, she represented Finland at the

pageant.

Education

Working as a fashion model provided Airisto with the financial means to pursue academic studies in Finland and abroad. She earned a Bachelor of Science (BSc) degree from the Swedish-speaking

Hanken School of Economics Hanken School of Economics (, also known as Hanken) is a business school in Finland with two campuses, Helsinki and Vaasa. Founded in 1909, it is the oldest business school in Finland, and one of the oldest in the Nordic countries. Its programme ...

in Helsinki, Finland. She then studied TV journalism at

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

and ITV studios in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, RTF in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, and with German TV channels in

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

, and

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

. Airisto also attended

Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

, further enhancing her education. Her studies culminated in practical experience at various TV studios in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

, including an internship with the

Steve Allen Stephen Valentine Patrick William Allen (December 26, 1921 – October 30, 2000) was an American television and radio personality, comedian, musician, composer, writer, and actor. In 1954, he achieved national fame as the co-creator and ...

show. During this time, Allen invited her to join join him live on air to introduce American TV viewers to Finland and Finns on the

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

channel.

Career

Airisto had a career as a TV journalist spanning over 30 years, during which she appeared on more than 300 prime-time current affairs shows. In addition to her television work, she produced, designed, and executed export promotions for both individual companies and the broader export industry globally, with her first international campaigns targeting media and customers in the 1960s. Airisto has also lectured extensively at universities, schools of economics, and other academic institutions, drawing from her numerous books.

Recognition

In 2008, a survey commissioned by Taloustutkimus confirmed Airisto's influence in Finland, ranking her among the ten most influential women in the country. She has also been nominated as ''Woman of the Year'' and decorated with the Knight, First Class of the Order of the Lion of Finland.

Public figure

Airisto is a prominent public figure and frequent opinion-maker, often weighing in on topics as mundane as style and etiquette. She is perhaps best known for making it socially unacceptable to wear tennis socks with a suit in Finland during the 1980s, a practice that was previously common among Finnish businessmen abroad. Over the years, she has also criticized politicians, including

Matti Vanhanen Matti Taneli Vanhanen (; born 4 November 1955) is a Finnish politician who served as Prime Minister of Finland from 2003 to 2010. He was also Chairman of the Centre Party (Finland), Centre Party in 2006. In his earlier career, he was a journali ...

, for their insufficient language skills.Lehti: Lenita Airisto haukkuu Vanhasen kielitaidon – http://www.mtv3.fi/viihde/uutiset/muut.shtml/833843/lehti-lenita-airisto-haukkuu-vanhasen-kielitaidon

References

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Airisto, Lenita 1937 births Living people Businesspeople from Helsinki Finnish female models 20th-century Finnish journalists Finnish writers Knights First Class of the Order of the Lion of Finland 20th-century Finnish businesswomen 20th-century Finnish businesspeople Miss Universe 1954 contestants Finnish women journalists Beauty pageant hosts Models from Helsinki Finnish expatriates in the United States