Emergence Strategy in Action: Stora Enso’s Transformation into a Renewable Materials Company

Stora Enso is transitioning from a declining paper business to a renewable materials company, targeting the food and building sectors. Through partnerships with entities like Tetra Pak and the creation of innovation accelerators, the company aims to derive 15% of its revenue from new products. While it has successfully launched recycling infrastructure in Poland and developed sustainable alternatives to plastics, it continues to face financial pressures and the challenge of scaling niche products for mainstream adoption.

• Stora Enso transitioned from a traditional paper manufacturer to a renewable materials company in response to a decline in paper demand, specifically noting that newsprint's share of global paper and paperboard production dropped from 12 percent to under 4 percent over twenty years. The company adopted an 'emergence strategy' by using cash from its paper business to invest in high-growth sustainability markets, focusing on biomaterials innovations, building solutions, and packaging.
• To drive innovation, Stora Enso set a long-term target for new products and services—those not previously in its portfolio—to account for 15 percent of its annual revenue. The company established several collaborative initiatives to achieve this, including the Stora Enso Accelerator Program (launched in 2017 with Aalto ENT and Vertical Accelerator) and the Combient Foundry (launched in 2018 with KONE), leading to partnerships with TRÄ for building solutions and Sulapac for plastic drinkware alternatives.
• Stora Enso is targeting the food system by promoting circular fiber-based packaging through the 4evergreen Alliance, launched in 2019. A key partnership with Tetra Pak since 2021 focuses on improving the recycling of multi-layer cartons. A recycling line opened at Stora Enso's Polish site in June 2023, which is expected to triple Poland's annual carton recycling capacity and could potentially handle all cartons sold in that country.
• Despite its strategic pivot, Stora Enso faces financial and operational challenges, including recent weak financial performance that led to the layoff of approximately 1,150 employees and the appointment of a new CEO. The company must also scale its products from niche to mainstream and secure cooperation from other system actors and consumers to achieve the goals outlined in its 2022 white paper on packaging in the food system.

APA

RMI (2023). Emergence Strategy in Action: Stora Enso’s Transformation into a Renewable Materials Company. https://rmi.org/resources/emergence-strategy-in-action-stora-ensos-transformation-into-a-renewable-materials-company/

Chicago

RMI. Emergence Strategy in Action: Stora Enso’s Transformation into a Renewable Materials Company. 2023. https://rmi.org/resources/emergence-strategy-in-action-stora-ensos-transformation-into-a-renewable-materials-company/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=RMI |title=Emergence Strategy in Action: Stora Enso’s Transformation into a Renewable Materials Company |date=14 December 2023 |url=https://rmi.org/resources/emergence-strategy-in-action-stora-ensos-transformation-into-a-renewable-materials-company/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{rmi2023emergence, author = {{RMI}}, title = {{Emergence Strategy in Action: Stora Enso’s Transformation into a Renewable Materials Company}}, institution = {RMI}, year = {2023}, month = dec, url = {https://rmi.org/resources/emergence-strategy-in-action-stora-ensos-transformation-into-a-renewable-materials-company/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }