What Havaristen does

Havaristen, legally operated as Miko Trading AS, is a privately held Norwegian discount retailer specializing in the acquisition and resale of surplus, damaged, close-dated, and discontinued inventory. The company runs a single large-format physical warehouse of approximately 7,000 m² in Ytre Enebakk, roughly 25 minutes by car from Oslo, complemented by an online storefront at shop.havaristen.no launched in 2016 and an on-site sausage stand (Pølsebua). Inventory is sourced from a broad network of manufacturers, wholesalers, retailers, insurance companies (fire/water/smoke salvage), fisheries, and bakeries, then resold to Norwegian consumers at steep discounts — typically 50–90% off standard retail prices across categories such as food and beverages, clothing and footwear, cosmetics and personal care, and home goods.

The business model is straightforward transactional retail: low-cost bulk acquisition of "imperfect" or surplus goods followed by unit-level resale at small per-item margins but high throughput. The technology stack is minimal — a standard e-commerce platform, retail management systems, and active social media channels (Facebook, Instagram, TikTok) — with a customer club (Kundeklubb, launched October 2023) layering in early-access alerts and digital receipts as the primary customer-data asset. Differentiators cited across first- and third-party sources are the 50+ year operating history, strong relationships with insurance and manufacturing suppliers, the destination-store "treasure-hunt" experience, and a public-private NAV partnership for workforce training.

Reported revenue was over 180 MNOK in 2024, with 100 MNOK first crossed in 2017. The company is single-site domestically (Eastern Norway), family/private with no disclosed external funding, and operates with a small core headcount supported by NAV-trained labor (approximately 50 trainees have participated, 8–10 of whom have converted to permanent employment).

Name

Havaristen

Legal name

Miko Trading AS (Havaristen)

Website

https://havaristen.no

Company type

Private

Founded year

1987

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Havaristen is a Norwegian discount warehouse retailer (Miko Trading AS) that buys surplus, damaged, and close-dated inventory from insurers, manufacturers, and wholesalers, reselling it at steep discounts to cost-conscious Norwegian consumers through a 7,000 m² store in Ytre Enebakk and an online shop.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Discount / Off-Price Retail

NAICS

Warehouse Clubs, Supercenters, and Other General Merchandise Retailers (4552)

SIC

Retail-Misc General Merchandise Stores (5399)

akta.pro primary industry

Returns & Salvage (Customer Returns) Retail (CRAEAFAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Closeout Grocery & Consumables Retail (CRAEAFAM), Closeout Apparel, Footwear & Accessories Retail (CRAEAFAJ), Closeout Home, Furniture & Decor Retail (CRAEAFAI)

Keywords

• Discount retail warehouse
• Surplus goods resale
• Damaged inventory salvage
• Off-price retail
• Clearance merchandise

Headquarters

HQ city

Ytre Enebakk

HQ country

Norway

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Retail Sales of Surplus/Discounted Goods: Havaristen generates revenue by purchasing damaged, surplus, discontinued, and expired-but-usable inventory from manufacturers, retailers, insurance companies, and wholesalers, then reselling these goods at steep discounts to end consumers. The business model is entirely transactional/retail — items are purchased at low cost and sold with margin. Product categories include food and beverages, clothing, footwear, cosmetics, home goods, and hobby/toy items.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Havaristen operates a discount retail warehouse business that purchases damaged, surplus, discontinued, and close-to-expiry inventory from manufacturers, wholesalers, retailers, and insurance companies, then resells these goods to consumers at steep discounts of 50–90% off retail. The core operation is a 3,000 m² physical warehouse store in Ytre Enebakk, Norway, complemented by an online store, selling across categories including food and beverages, clothing, footwear, cosmetics, and home goods.

Product overview

Havaristen operates as a single integrated discount warehouse retail concept with multiple sales channels. The core offering is a 3000 m² physical warehouse in Ytre Enebakk (opened 2013, expanded 2021) complemented by an online shop (shop.havaristen.no, launched 2016) and an on-site sausage stand (Pølsebua). The business model centers on acquiring and reselling surplus, damaged, and clearance goods from manufacturers, retailers, and insurance claims—including skadepartier (damaged goods), overskuddsvarer (surplus stock), produksjonsfeil (production errors), and konkurspartier (bankruptcy inventories). Product categories span Mat & Drikke (food/beverages), Hus & Hjem (home goods), Klær/Sko/Personlig pleie (clothing/shoes/personal care), and the ever-changing Skattejakt (treasure hunt) section. A customer club (Kundeklubb, launched 2023) provides exclusive early access to good deals. All channels operate under the unified Havaristen brand, which traces its origins to a 1971 orange shipment salvage and has been operated by Miko Trading since 1986.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Havaristen Warehouse Store (Fysisk varehus, Ytre Enebakk) A 3,000 m² physical retail warehouse at Landskaugveien 2, Ytre Enebakk, Norway, selling discounted surplus, damaged, and clearance goods across food, beverages, clothing, shoes, cosmetics, and home goods. Open Mon–Fri 09:00–20:00 and Saturday 09:00–17:00. The concept is a constantly changing "treasure hunt" of inventory purchased from manufacturers, wholesalers, retailers, and insurance companies.
• Havaristen Online Store (Nettbutikk) Online store at shop.havaristen.no offering a curated selection of surplus and discounted goods for purchase with home delivery, complementing the physical warehouse experience.
• Pølsebua (Sausage Stand)

Quantifiable outcome

• Rescued approximately 85% of a container of spices that was declared a total loss by insurance — the goods were sorted, cleaned, and sold at discounted prices
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• NAV (Norwegian Labour and Welfare Administration)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2016Havaristen (Miko Trading) collaborates with NAV Enebakk on work training and employment opportunities for people outside the labour market. Approximately 50 people have been through work training, with 8-10 receiving permanent employment. The cooperation has been ongoing since 2016. The Minister of Labour Tonje Brenna visited in November 2024 to highlight this collaboration as a model for public-private partnerships.
• ZERO°CminorOthersQuality footwear brand whose surplus inventory of Gore-Tex shoes (5000 pairs) was purchased by Havaristen for resale at discounted prices.
• Åkeberg Skoglunn PølsemakeriminorOthersSausage producer that supplies Havaristen's sausage stand (pølsebod) and special sausages sold in-store. They have a long-standing relationship for purchasing various surplus food items, and created a special sausage exclusively for Havaristen.
• NærbakstminorOthersBakery that has delivered surplus bread to Havaristen for many years and also created a special sausage bun exclusively for Havaristen's sausage stand.
• FinsbråtenminorOthersNorwegian meat/condiment producer whose surplus inventory (e.g., sandwich spreads) is sold at Havaristen for 10 kr per item.
• M/S Arctic VestlandminorOthersFishing vessel that delivered a cargo of snow crab (Mixed/Lost Leg sorting) to Havaristen. Havaristen purchased the crab for resale at discounted prices.
• Norwegian seafood wholesaler (major grocery chain supplier)minorOthersWholesaler supplying seafood to major Norwegian grocery chains that had surplus skrei (cod) (~2 tons) remaining after serving their regular customers. Contacted Havaristen to purchase the surplus, which was then resold to customers at 179 kr/kg.
• Insurance companies (unspecified)coreOthersHavaristen works closely with insurance companies across Norway to purchase goods from fire damage, water damage, smoke damage, and other insured events. When a store or warehouse suffers damage, insurance companies contact Havaristen to purchase salvageable inventory. This is described as a key part of the business model.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• Lagerhaus: Swedish home goods and lifestyle retailer selling affordable Scandinavian-style household items. Comparable on home category positioning and value pricing, though focused on home rather than full general merchandise.
• Tise: Norwegian peer-to-peer marketplace for second-hand and surplus goods. Comparable on the sustainability/circular-economy narrative and surplus goods resale, but operating an online marketplace model rather than physical warehouse.

Direct peers

• Europris: Norway's largest discount variety chain with ~270+ stores offering broad general merchandise at low prices. Most directly comparable Norwegian discounter to Havaristen's general-merchandise-at-deep-discount positioning, with a multi-site national footprint.
• Rusta: Nordic discount chain offering home, hobby, and household goods at low prices across Norway and Sweden. Closely comparable on product breadth and everyday-low-price positioning.
• Normal: Danish-founded discount variety chain with strong Norwegian presence, selling everyday household and personal care items at fixed low prices. Comparable breadth and value-driven go-to-market.
• Flying Tiger Copenhagen: Nordic variety retailer selling constantly changing assortment of low-priced household, gift, and hobby items. Comparable on treasure-hunt discovery shopping and broad non-food general merchandise.
• Nille: Norwegian discount variety chain selling home goods, accessories, and personal care at low prices. Comparable to Havaristen on assortment breadth across non-food categories and value positioning.

Broad incumbents

• Tilbords: Norwegian housewares retailer selling kitchen and home goods. Comparable on the home goods category within Havaristen's assortment, but a specialty retailer rather than a discount warehouse.
• Clas Ohlson: Nordic variety retailer offering household, hardware, and personal products across multiple markets. Comparable assortment breadth but a more established, multi-format retailer with brand-name positioning.
• Kid Interior: Norwegian home and interior retailer selling furniture, decor, and household goods at mid-market price points. Comparable on the home category within Havaristen's assortment, though operating in a different price tier.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/Havaristen
• Instagraminstagram.com/havaristen.no
• TikToktiktok.com/@havaristen.no
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/havaristen

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Havaristen