Why I Started Norlumen (and why I believe Sustainable Selling is important)
Entrepreneurship = Passions + Business Skills:
Hi! I’m Suzan Alakas, founder of Norlumen, and this story begins my move from California to Finland in 2016. With a young family at home, I started my own business teaching children English with songs - combining my passions for songwriting, languages and efficiency. 😊🎶
After the pandemic, I pivoted to teaching virtually, but my business stalled. Searching for a way to make this business work online, I began taking business courses. I met other women entrepreneurs and learned that they were passionate about making the world a better place, but struggling to get clients because they didn't have marketing and sales skills.
Working with Values-led Founders:
I was deeply inspired by the incredible work of the solo entrepreneurs I was meeting and wanted to help them somehow, so in the summer of 2021, I launched Growtharmony Magazine to bring visibility to their causes.
Through my work as editor-in-chief of this publication, I came to the realization that my own cause is to spread kindness - for ourselves, each other and the planet - using efficient, sustainable methods. The combination of Growth and Harmony became my “North Star”. In addition to publishing their stories, I began to offer productivity trainings to teach entrepreneurs both mindset and business skills so they could increase their impact. 💪
A New Path Emerges:
In the fall of 2025, a friend and I were talking about the sustainable choices we were making in our lives, and she said to me, “You know, we can do as much as we can as consumers, but we won’t make as much of an impact as the big companies”. It made me pause and I thought, if I could help values-led companies to grow, the positive impact would be even greater - for customers, nature and society.
This thought stayed with me, and when the opportunity came to license a suite of proven sales training programs, everything clicked. I would blend my past experience with sales in the financial industry and at a sales training company, and years of working with values-aligned, heart-led founders into Norlumen Sales Training - with sustainability front and center! 😊
What Norlumen does
We teach foundational, practical selling skills that are proven to grow revenue, both in the short term and in the long term - for values-led companies only.
From a sustainability perspective, there are two core outcomes of Norlumen Sales Trainings:
Sales teams sell in a way that is aligned with the company's values making customer interactions more transparent, respectful and mutually beneficial.
Sales teams sell more effectively, so the company grows - making a greater impact on the planet, supply chains and society.
What is “Sustainable Selling”?
Sustainable selling aligns with the spirit of ESG/CSR - bringing those commitments into everyday sales situations. When teams work this way, buyers open up sooner, decisions move with less friction and relationships last longer.
We help sales reps and managers with:
• Practical, foundational sales skills
• Interactive workshops
• Live field coaching
More sales for values-led companies, more positive impact for the world.
Sales + Sustainability
If this approach resonates, contact us to book a 15-minute call to see how a sustainable selling approach could benefit your company.
And if you’re curious about intersection of sustainability initiatives and sales force effectiveness, subscribe to Sales & Sustainability, where we explore this topic in newsletter and podcast forms. 😊