Street named in honour of the School of Business

The new School of Business building in Ekonominaukio 1. Photo: Mikko Raskinen / Aalto University. 

The School of Business’s move from central Helsinki to Espoo’s Otaniemi neighbourhood is significant for the City of Espoo. Next year, Otaniemi will become more diverse as all schools of Aalto University are located on the same campus. With the granting of the name Ekonominaukio - Ekonomplatsenin Swedish - the School of Business is now reflected in the streets of the ever-developing area.

For the duration of the construction project, the temporary street address Maarintie 13 will continue to be used in some contexts. 

Otaniemi has long history of degree-inspired street names

Aalto School of Business is moving from the Töölö campus in Helsinki to the university’s main campus Espoo’s Otaniemi in February 2019. The upcoming shift is historic in Finnish standards—only twice before has a university moved from one city to another.

When the Helsinki University of Technology made a similar move in the 1950s and 60s, street names were adapted to reflect the jobs that graduating students would hold. Student feedback was positive and the streets reflected Otaniemi quite well until 2015, when School of Business undergraduates started their studies on campus. This is when the interest began growing to get School of Business graduates their own namesake.

The Finnish word ‘ekonomi’, which means business school graduates, has natural significance at the School of Business. It was set as the title of a business degree, at that time a Bachelor’s, already in the 1930s. In 1995, it was redefined as someone who had completed the master's degree. In Finland, ekonomi is one of the most respected academic titles.

The Aalto University School of Business is moving from its premises in Töölö to the Otaniemi campus in February 2019. The new building of the School of Business is part of a new business whole at the heart of campus, complementing Väre and the A Bloc shopping center.