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MY SWEDISH CAREER

CAREER

‘It’s my duty to give back and help others’

UK-born Antonio Casamassa, 32, moved to Sweden eight years ago and has launched a successful career as a freelance software developer. Now he has decided to combine his passion for creating game apps with a desire to help others.

Published: 23 February 2015 07:00 CET
'It's my duty to give back and help others'
UK-born Antonio Casamassa who makes apps in Sweden. Photo: Private

Antonio Casamassa was raised in the West Midlands in the UK and has been a huge computer enthusiast ever since he was a child. As soon has he turned 18, he went to study computer science at the University of Central England.

Now in his early 30s, he believes that his success in the industry comes from being both perfectionist and a social butterfly.

“I’m always looking to learn new things and improve the way I work. I take a lot of pleasure socializing in person or over with the internet with fellow IT professionals. This helps me immensely as we are able to share our experiences. I’m extremely disciplined and will often work over weekends and public holidays. I guess it’s all about commitment and belief in what you’re doing."

When asked to give struggling software developers advice on how to find work, Antonio acknowledges the difficulties of finding jobs in the sector but also recommends business-oriented social networking sites like LinkedIn.

"I’d say the most frustrating aspect of looking for work is a lack of appreciation some hiring managers possess in regards to programming work. I find myself having to educate some hiring managers with regards to the complications and technical nature of programming."

As is the case with most industries, he also believes it’s not just about what you know but who you know.

"I’ve met a lot of IT professionals over the years and have hundreds of connections within LinkedIn. Most of my contract work is provided via direct recommendations from my previous clients.”

Outside of work, Antonio has enjoyed participating in charity work for children and animals for several years.

After losing several family members and friends to cancer, he recently decided to combine his passions by launching a new mobile game called Fly snatch, with half of the revenue going towards to children’s cancer research.  The mobile game will soon be available free of charge on Apple and Android devices.

“I think it’s my moral obligation as human to give back and set an example. By creating this game and launching this campaign I want to raise funds and awareness of children’s cancer research," he says.

"This is only the beginning and the reactions I have received so far have been extremely positive. I hope we can expect more mobile games being constructed for the same charitable reason in future," he adds.

Even though life as a freelancing software developer can be challenging and demanding at times, Antonio says he wouldn’t change his situation, describing the freedom that comes from being self-employed as "priceless".

"I love my job, it allows me to be creative and I get to dictate my own hours and use my time creating these incredible games while also making the most of my strong moral compass and working on projects that help others," he says.

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MY SWEDISH CAREER

My Swedish Career: How I became Swedish Lapland’s first local wedding planner

Lisa Tousignant’s Swedish journey began with her taking a teaching job with IES in Stockholm. This month, she launched Arctic Lapland’s first wedding planning company.

Published: 14 July 2022 16:58 CEST
My Swedish Career: How I became Swedish Lapland's first local wedding planner

Tousignant’s new company, Arctic Weddings of Lapland, opened for bookings on July 1st, and she is now focusing on arranging weddings for the coming winter season. You can see some images of weddings Tousignant has done on the company’s Instagram account. 

The idea came to her after colleagues she worked with while employed as the wedding coordinator at Icehotel, in Jukkasjärvi outside Kiruna, told her they often got weddings queries from both abroad and within Sweden.

“The photographers and the florist that I work with said they got calls all the time from people wanting to plan  weddings, but who had no idea where to start,” she said. “There’s no one doing destination wedding planning for Swedish Lapland who actually lives here and this area has so much to offer.”

Icehotel, the big international tourist draw in Jukkasjärvi, hosts dozen of weddings each year and Tousignant is set to continue her relationship with the hotel next year by doing wedding day coordinating. She hopes that Arctic Weddings of Lapland can build on the success that Icehotel has had with their customisable packages by offering different options for adventure within the whole region for winter and summer as well.

“I just had all this support from local people encouraging me to do it, because there’s so many options up here for beautiful weddings and adventure elopements. It’s hard to know where to start and how to navigate all the possibilities.” she says “The overwhelming support made me realise I have been building this idea in my heart for so long and wedding planning is what it is.”

 

A wedding at the Björkliden Mountain resort near Kiruna. Photo: Rebecca Lundh

She wants to what she calls “adventure weddings”. This week she was visiting the Nutti Sámi Siida offices to discuss collaborations. She plans to work with Fjellborg Arctic Journeys, who arrange dogsled trips and have a beautiful lodge camp that could accommodate large wedding parties. With her connection to Tornedalen, she plans to work with Huuva Hideaway, who specialize in Sami food, culture and history, and is also hoping to collaborate on events at Lapland View Lodge and Art Hotel. “i’m going to work my way down Norrbotten from Kiruna to Luleå connecting with all the venues and suppliers, “ she laughs.

 Tousignant’s journey towards being an Arctic wedding planner began 15 years ago when she left what she describes as “a successful career” doing public relations for CBC Television in Canada. 

“It just felt like life was supposed to be more than going back and forth to a job I didn’t love anymore,” she remembers, “I quit…sold all my stuff and went to Central and South America where I worked in hostels and roamed around for nearly two years getting to know myself in my mid-30’s.”

After her two years of travelling, she applied for teacher training college in Canada, got hired by Internationella Engelska Skolan (IES), and moved to their school in Nacka outside Stockholm. She thens taught at IES, and then at Futura Skolan International, for nearly 6 years, before following her sambo Martin Eriksson to the far-North of Sweden. 

“My sambo and I decided to have kids, “ she explains. “Making this decision really pushed him into wanting to change careers and follow his dream of becoming a shoe maker. We really try to support each other in following our dreams, so he moved up to Övertorneå in August while I stayed to complete my teaching contract.”

She moved up to Övertorneå in December, a week before their daughter was born. 
 
For her, moving to the far North of Sweden felt like coming home. “I immediately loved the North! People up here are chatty and friendly and very open.”
 
They lived in Övertorneå for almost three years, while Eriksson built up a successful bespoke boot business. But the Covid-19 pandemic reduced custom, and Eriksson took a job in Malmö shooting videos for the local police. But Malmö did not suit them. 
 
“After living in such a sleepy town, having two kids in the city was overwhelming and everyone missed the snow, so we took the first job opportunities we could in Norrbotten, my sambo [shooting video]for IRF (The Swedish Institute of Space physics) and me for Icehotel,” she says. 
 
 

An image from the website of Arctic Weddings of Lapland. Photo: Arctic Weddings of Lapland.
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