Why Strategic Advisory Matters: The Autoliikkeet.com Story

CEO Henri Kotanen, Autoliikkeet.com

In competitive markets like Finland’s used-car listings, startups face entrenched incumbents with high barriers. Autoliikkeet.com (AL), an AI-driven SaaS platform, partnered with HTGP strategy consultants Karthikesh Raju and Ville Ilves in December 2025 for a two-week engagement on market analysis, financial modeling, and go-to-market planning. This case shows why such advisory delivers outsized value: it converts uncertainty into executable plans, enabling faster launches and informed scaling in monopolistic environments. Without it, founders risk misallocated resources; with it, they gain data-backed confidence to challenge the status quo.

The engagement began with comprehensive market sizing, dissecting dealer dynamics and competitive gaps where platforms underdeliver on usability and innovation.

The opportunity AL is pursuing is a sizable market opportunity across the Nordics and Europe. In Finland alone, the used-car market experiences 600,000 ownership changes each year, Sweden adds a further roughly 1.25 million used cars changing hands per year, while Germany represents the largest opportunity, with well over six million used-car transactions.

With this basis, our consultants built financial models projecting revenue paths, key metrics, and valuation scenarios, all grounded in real-world benchmarks. A rigorous analysis synthesized findings into prioritized recommendations, covering onboarding, integrations, and growth gates, while suggesting partnerships to upsell value.

This structure matters because it equips teams with tools for immediate action, bridging vision to viability in weeks, not months.

Why does this approach stand out? Traditional consulting often drags with layers of process; here, the focus stayed on brevity and output, fitting AL’s timeline. The result was a clear playbook that accelerated dealer wins and platform rollout, demonstrating how targeted advisory mitigates risks like churn or slow adoption. In SaaS and AI sectors, where network effects demand quick liquidity, such precision separates survivors from also-rans: proving advisory isn’t overhead, it’s leverage for market share.Ultimately, AL’s progress underscores a broader truth: strategic advisory matters most when it empowers self-sufficiency.

“The work gave us direction and models to execute independently,” says CEO Henri Kotanen.

For founders navigating tight cycles, this model: Excel rigor, deck clarity, rapid iteration, unlocks potential. In 2026’s fast-evolving tech landscape, investing in such expertise isn’t optional; it’s the edge that turns challengers into leaders.