When Svensk Direktreklam, a Swedish company, became part of the publicly listed company Byggmästare Anders J Ahlström Invest AB, the accounting requirements increased – and Excel was no longer enough. In this interview, Ann Wahlberg, Head of Accounting for both the parent company and the group, shares her experience with the Leasify system and explains why she would recommend it to others.
Svensk Direktreklam is a Swedish company with 50 years of experience in ODR (Unaddressed Direct Mail) distribution. The company operates through 34 local offices across the country and manages the entire process from planning to the delivery of printed materials.
Svensk Direktreklam employs around 200 full-time staff and nearly 7,000 part-time distributors, making it one of Sweden’s largest employers of young people. Every year, the company delivers more than one billion printed items to households across the country.
Since 2024, the company has been part of the Danish publicly listed media group North Media A/S. However, the need to apply the IFRS 16 accounting standard arose earlier, when Svensk Direktreklam was acquired by Byggmästare Anders J Ahlström in 2020.
– Meeting the new IFRS 16 requirements was our main priority. That’s what led us to choose Leasify, says Ann Wahlberg.
The implementation of Leasify was, according to Ann, both efficient and clearly structured:
– It went really well. We got a lot of help from Leasify. It did take some time to gather the details for each agreement, but it wasn’t a problem since we had all the contracts on hand. The instructions were clear, and Leasify supported us throughout the entire process, she recalls.
Before switching to Leasify, lease accounting was handled manually.
– Everything was handled in Excel. There were two of us working on it, but it often ended up on the desk of the person responsible for the parent company. Since we have several companies in the group, the accounting managers for each one also had to help gather the necessary information, says Ann.
The large volume of information was the main factor that made the work challenging.
– It took time, especially since we have a lot of vehicles, she says.
– I find the system fairly easy to use. It’s not particularly difficult to understand how to enter the agreements –especially after receiving some education in the system. Most sections use dropdown menus, so you can find what you need without having to dig around, says Ann.
According to Ann, the reports from Leasify are easy to understand and do exactly what they’re supposed to:
– They’re easy to understand. We use them for what we need, and they work well for that.
The company’s auditors have also given positive feedback about the system.
– They’re very happy with the system. From what I’ve heard, they have several other clients who also use Leasify. Our auditors feel they get what they need from it, she says.
Whenever Ann has contacted support, the experience has been a positive one.
– The times I’ve been in contact with Theo and Richard from Leasify, everything has worked really well, she says.
When asked whether she would recommend Leasify to others, Ann’s answer is clear.
– Yes, I would. Especially for the kind of use case we have – in that context, I think it’s a really good system. But even in general, I find it easy to use and reliable, she concludes.