Kirsti Paakkanen (née Poikonen; 12 February 1929 — 2 November 2021)^[2] was a Finnish entrepreneur and business executive.

Paakkanen studied advertising, and worked for many years in the marketing departments of Finnish retail companies including Elanto and Stockmann.^[1]

In 1969, Paakkanen set up her own advertising agency, Womena, which she ran for over 20 years, until selling it in 1990 to McCann.^[3][4]

In 1991, Paakkanen acquired the struggling design and fashion house Marimekko from the Amer group (now Amer Sports), and successfully turned it around, growing sales three-fold in a space of five years, and eventually listing the company on the Helsinki Stock Exchange in 1999.^[3][5][6] She retired from day-to-day running of the business in 2007, appointing Mika Ihamuotila [fi] as her successor; two years later Ihamuotila acquired her shares.^[3][5]

In 1999, Paakkanen was appointed Yrittäjäneuvos (lit. 'Entrepreneur Counselor') by the President of Finland.^[2]

In 2002, she was awarded the Estlander Medal [fi] for her significant contributions to Finnish design.^[1]

She received two honorary doctorates, in arts (University of Art and Design Helsinki, now part of the Aalto University; 2001) and business (Helsinki School of Economics, now Aalto University School of Business; 2006).^[2][1]