Sorsa

Sorsa Group

Native name	Sorsa Oyj
Type	Public
Traded as	KLSE: SRSA
Industry	Automotive
Founders	Konstantin Sorsa Antton Sorsa Sampsa Juntunen
Headquarters	Rintalinna , Valkea
Area served	Worldwide
Products	automobiles luxury vehicles commercial vehicles forklifts
Revenue	$96 billion (2019)
Operating income	$9 million (2019)
Net income	$42 million (2019)
Number of employees	151,763 (2019)
Divisions	Sorsa Sorsa Commercial Motors Icarus Vatanen
Website	sorsa.com

Sorsa Oyj (Valkean: Sorsa Osakeyhtiö), known internationally as the Sorsa Group and shortened to Sorsa, is a Valkean multinational automobile manufacturer with its main headquarters in Rintalinna, Valkea. The company sells automobiles and commercial vehicles under its namesake brand, as well as luxury vehicles under the Icarus brand. Sorsa is the 3rd largest Valkean automobile manufacturer after Valteo Motor Group and Sidus.

Sorsa has been part of the Twin-S Auto Association since 2001, a partnership with Sevir Automobiles of Khyragus. Sevir holds a 16% stake in Sorsa while Sorsa holds a 22% stake in Sevir. Taken together, Twin-S Auto Association is one of Astyria's largest automakers.

History

Origins

The company was founded as Rintalinna Heavy Industries (RHI) in 1907 by industrialists Konstantin and Antton Sorsa, and their associate Sampsa Juntunen. For their first few years they produced machine parts, internal combustion engines, and utilitarian trucks, as there was barely any kind of market for passenger cars at the time. Their operations were put on hold during the Valkean Civil War, and they produced parts for the government. However, the Sorsa brothers were given full pardon by the new Kansallist government, and the two became members of the Kansallist Party in 1927. From the 1920s up to the 1940s, RHI grew through securing contracts to build military vehicles, which was where they were able to secure large amounts of capital.

In 1936, Antton Sorsa died of a heart attack at the age of 48. His brother, Konstantin, would continue to run the company for five more years before he was assassinated by anarchists.

Early Growth

In 1943, famous industrialist Anselmi Lajunen bought out RHI and made the decision to rename it to Sorsa Group. Sorsa continued to produce military vehicles for the Valkean government, but increasingly the company shifted its focus to producing passenger cars for the growing consumer market. In 1944, Sorsa completed the construction of its < name > plant, a large factory outside of Rintalinna which featured state-of-the-art machinery and processes imported from abroad.

Their first model under the new ownership was the Type 15 two-door sedan, the platform of which was licensed from Aswickan automaker Royal Motors. It proved to be a success, and Sorsa produced over 60,000 units between 1945 and 1955. The partnership with Royal Motors allowed for Sorsa to jumpstart its own developments in engine and chassis design, and they debuted their first car designed in-house: the Type 25 four-door sedan.

In 1947, the Valkean government negotiated a deal with Sorsa to acquire a majority stake in the company, making it a state-owned enterprise alongside other major industrial companies. With government-backed subsidies putting them on a secure financial footing, Sorsa expanded its horizons beginning in 1956, when it started exporting Type 25s to the rest of the world. The company quickly filled the need for small passenger cars in various markets, and they increased their presence in other Astyrian countries over the 1960s. It also began to create more upmarket cars such as the Topaz sports car and the Onyx sports sedan, which became popular models in their own right.

Global rise and peak

Sorsa experienced a drop in sales during the 1971 Valkean Recession due to decreasing domestic demand. However, the company was rapidly gaining popularity in foreign markets as stricter environmental regulations and greater need for fuel economy made their vehicles more desirable to customers. In response to rising demand, Sorsa built new factories all over Astyria beginning in the 1970s, and continued to improve their cars by taking advantage of technological innovations, developing performance vehicles for enthusiasts, and participating in motorsport.

In 1978, the Valkean government sold off most of their shares in Sorsa to public investors as the company's state-owned status proved to be detrimental, in effect privatizing the brand. However, it continued to retain a 15% stake in Sorsa until it then relinquished it in 1986. Throughout this time, then-CEO Vihtori Turunen streamlined management structures and production techniques, as well as invested heavily in automation.

By the 1980s, Sorsa had become one of Astyria's top producing exporters of automobiles. It became the 2nd largest Valkean auto manufacturer after Valteo Motor Group and their cars became top sellers in various countries throughout the region. It also expanded to produce trucks, buses, and other commercial vehicles through its Sorsa Commercial Vehicles division. It also bought luxury automaker Eloranta in 1988, giving Sorsa an established foothold in the luxury market as rivals Valteo Motor Group and Sidus were creating their Lenora and JLC premium brands, respectively.

Decline and rejuvenation

Sales of Sorsa vehicles began to decline throughout Astyria throughout the 1990s. Despite the company producing some of its most notable vehicles, such as the Topaz, Amethyst, and Onyx sports coupes, it was suffering from increasing financial difficulties and an aging vehicle lineup. In 1996, Sorsa slipped to 3rd place as Sidus outproduced and outsold them for the first time. To stem this decline, Sorsa brought in < name > as CEO in 2000. Immediately < name > ushered in an unprecedented wave of restructuring at the company, closing down factories, laying off thousands of workers, and streamlining its product lineup. This had an immediate effect on profits; Sorsa reported a net loss of $1.7 billion in 2001, which became a net profit of $1.2 billion in 2002. Further restructuring saw Eloranta being spun off in 2005.

Beginning in 2001, Sorsa began adopting alphanumeric designations for their vehicles to appeal to foreign markets. This was met with criticism from business pundits and enthusiasts, who lamented the loss of many of the company's iconic nameplates. Others welcomed the move, saying that it is inclusive of markets that do not necessarily speak lingua franca languages such as English, as well as given Sorsa vehicles a more upmarket feel.

The 2000s became a period of expansion and acquisition for Sorsa. In 2003, Sorsa bought a 22% stake in Sevir Motors, and Sevir Motors reciprocated by buying 16% of Sorsa, establishing the Twin-S Auto Association. To further broaden its appeal to emerging markets, Sorsa purchased a 30% stake in fellow Valkean automaker Vatanen in 2009, which at the time was struggling financially. In 2012, the company debuted Icarus, marking Sorsa's return to the premium market since 2005.

Motorsport

Sorsa has had a prominent presence in motorsport since the 1960s when they entered into Formula 2 racing. Since then it has entered several sportscar racing, GT racing, and touring car racing series throughout Astyria, earning several championships, victories, and podiums.

They had the most success in Group A racing in the 1980s and 1990s when they entered their ZS25, ZS26, ZS27, and RS44 in competition. However, it was the RS44 that became very dominant, winning the Valkean GT Racing Championship for four years in a row between 1989 and 1992, as well as the Astyrian Touring Car Championship in 1992 and 1993.

Sorsa Special Works is the performance division of the company, participating in all motorsports involving Sorsa's factory teams.