For more than 40 years, Narsaq Auto and Plumbing has been a member of Greenland Business Association (GE). For Managing Director Lisa Hansen, membership is first and foremost about having someone to turn to in a day-to-day business environment where small companies often face unfamiliar challenges on their own.
By Rasmus Barud Thomsen
Lisa Hansen is currently leading a generational transition at Narsaq Auto and Plumbing, as she prepares to take over the company from her father.
In doing so, she is also continuing the company’s long-standing membership of Greenland Business Association, which dates back to the 1980s.
The company carries out plumbing and heating work as well as mechanical repairs and employs staff throughout both the summer and winter seasons.
Lisa Hansen herself joined the company in 2007 and says that she has benefited greatly from Greenland Business Association over the years.
“It’s reassuring to have someone you can always call for guidance. GE has helped me a great deal with questions relating to legal matters, insurance, apprenticeships, and employment issues,” she says.
For Lisa Hansen, the value of membership lies largely in being able to receive quick advice in situations where a small business may not have the necessary expertise in-house.
“There are many things you’re not an expert in yourself. That also includes customers who don’t pay on time and similar issues. What do you actually do in those situations?” she says.
That is precisely why she sees it as a great source of reassurance to be able to contact GE and receive practical advice. Even if she now knows the answer herself:
“You simply stop doing work for them,” she says with a laugh.
Overall, Lisa Hansen believes that Greenland Business Association plays an important role for companies across the country—not only in Nuuk.
She points out that many local business communities are struggling with a lack of work opportunities and limited political attention, particularly in South Greenland.
“We need greater focus on the challenges facing communities outside Nuuk. There are many places where not much is happening anymore,” she says.
According to Lisa Hansen, regional development has become increasingly uneven over time.
“There used to be more jobs and more life in the smaller towns, but much has been closed down or moved to Nuuk. There isn’t much left, and many houses stand empty,” she says.
Having grown up in Narsaq herself, Lisa Hansen continues to hope for development and growth in the area.
Among other things, she would like to see more initiatives and more jobs created outside the capital.
“I hope our politicians become better at looking after us and ensure that more activity and opportunities are created in our part of Greenland,” she says.
