Study of the Nordic region’s most and least reputable companies – Temu and Shein at the bottom

Temu and Shein are the companies with the worst reputations across the Nordic countries, according to Reputation&Trust conducted in Finland, Sweden, Norway, and Denmark. IKEA is a perennial favorite among Nordic consumers—the Finnish companies with the best reputations lag far behind their Nordic counterparts.

Furniture giant IKEA tops the list of reputable companies, appearing on the list in every country except Finland. The furniture chain has also been a favorite among Finns—most recently, the company appeared on Finland’s list of most reputable companies in 2023.

**The 10 most reputable companies in Reputation&Trust Nordic Reputation&Trust, by country.** The most reputable companies in each country were identified locally. The companies surveyed are assigned a reputation score calculated as the average of eight critical reputation factors, on a scale of 1–5. There are 11 companies on Denmark’s list of most reputable companies, as 10th place is a tie.

“At the top of the reputation rankings for companies surveyed in the Nordic countries are long-established firms—a kind of national treasure—such as KONE in Finland, IKEA in Sweden, and LEGO in Denmark. According to our study, the Nordic alcohol monopolies Alko, Systembolaget, and Vinmonopolet also enjoy the trust of the public,” says Riku Ruokolahti, Development Director at T-Media.

“What the best-reputed Finnish companies have in common, however, is that their reputation does not measure up to that of the top companies in the other Nordic countries,” Ruokolahti continues.

Temu and Shein are the go-to brands across all the Nordic countries

At the bottom of the list of companies operating in the Nordic countries are the online retailers Shein and Temu. Both of these Chinese-based companies were rated very poorly in terms of reputation.

**The 10 companies with the poorest reputations in Reputation&Trust Nordic Reputation&Trust, by country.** The companies with the poorest reputations in each country were identified locally. A reputation score is calculated for the surveyed companies as the average of eight critical reputation factors. There are 11 companies on Denmark’s list of those with the lowest reputation, as 20th place is a tie.

“In Germany’s Reputation&Trust, Temu and Shein also rank at the bottom of the list. The volume of online shipments from outside the EU has grown explosively in a short period of time. Temu has burst onto the Nordic market and is a newcomer on the list for all countries surveyed. There are no guarantees regarding the ethical production, sustainability, safety, or quality of products available from ultra-cheap online stores. Retailers operating under local rules are understandably baffled by the situation,” says Ruokolahti.

Imports of low-cost goods into the EU have surged in recent years, with an average of 12 million packages arriving in the EU each day in 2024. The European Commission is taking action to tighten customs controls on low-cost shipments from outside the EU.

This is how we conducted the study

The aim of Reputation&Trust survey rounds was to assess the reputation of companies operating in the Nordic countries among the residents of those countries. Data for the surveys was collected via an online questionnaire from June 3 to July 8, 2024, in Finland; from July 1 to August 5, 2024, in Sweden; and from July 1 to July 29, 2024, in Norway and Denmark.

Organizations were evaluated using T-Media’s Reputation&Trust, in which an organization’s reputation score is calculated as the average of eight different categories. The areas are corporate governance, finance, leadership, innovation, interaction, products & services, workplace, and responsibility. The study used a five-point rating scale (1–5).

The study included 10,575 Finns, 4,612 Swedes, 3,657 Norwegians, and 3,788 Danes. The target group consisted of citizens of these countries aged 15–65. The samples were weighted to be representative of the population by gender, age, and region of residence.

The companies with the best and worst reputations, as identified in the media, were selected for the study based on a preliminary survey conducted earlier in 2024. In the preliminary study, respondents in each country spontaneously named two companies they considered to have a particularly good reputation and two with a particularly poor reputation. T-Media does not influence the selection of companies.

The 30 companies with the most mentions were examined in greater detail Reputation&Trust in each country. The lists included the ten companies with the highest ratings and the ten with the lowest.