By 1902, Nokia ventured into electricity generation, and by 1904, it expanded into the rubber industry, producing tires and boots. From the 1930s to the early 1990s, Nokia manufactured respirators, which are masks designed to protect individuals from inhaling harmful substances, akin to the masks used during the Covid pandemic.
In 1967, the three individual enterprises merged to create the Nokia Corporation, concentrating on cable, rubber, electronics, and forestry before venturing into radio and networking in subsequent years.
By 1998, Nokia had become a household name for its role in the mobile phone industry, launching groundbreaking devices, including a phone with basic web capabilities, and reporting an impressive $20 billion in sales revenue that year, with a profit of $2.6 billion.
However, by 2001, the tide started to shift.
Nokia introduced its first phone with a built-in camera in 2001, but profits began to decline, indicating potential job cuts.
By 2004, Nokia was lagging behind its competitors, and the recall of 46 million phones in 2007 compounded its challenges, particularly with the launch of Apple’s iPhone by Steve Jobs complicating matters further.
The 2009 recession further impacted Nokia’s sales, resulting in continued job cuts over the following years.
According to Macrotrends, Nokia’s annual revenue was a staggering $57.156 billion in 2009, but this figure consistently decreased, dropping slightly to $56.364 billion in 2010, $53.844 billion in 2011, and then plummeting to $38.809 billion in 2012 and a disheartening $16.881 billion in 2013.
Yet, in 2013, a new opportunity emerged.
Nokia’s mobile business was acquired by Microsoft in 2014 for $5.60 billion, becoming part of Microsoft Mobile. This move has proven beneficial for all parties involved, as Nokia’s annual revenue has steadily increased since then.
Since 2016, Nokia’s annual revenue has consistently been in the 20 billions, with a reported revenue of $24.090 billion for 2023.