Darko Pervan — Välinge’s founder, former CEO, and industry visionary — has been announced as the recipient of the 2021 Founders Alliance Founder of the Year Honorary Award.

The Founders Alliance is a collaborative business forum established in 2002 in Stockholm, Sweden, which aims to help founders of global growth companies and large-scale corporations to form long-term relationships that inspire, develop, and enable more and better business.

“Darko is an extremely worthy winner of the Founder of the Year Honorary Award, and everyone at Välinge is very proud of his achievement,” said Niclas Håkansson, CEO, Välinge Innovation. “Our company was built on Darko’s vision and drive—and those principles guide us to this day as we continue developing our floor and furniture technologies and begin our journey to become the world’s largest, most innovative, and sustainable flooring manufacturer and distributor in our chosen categories.”

Apart from founding Välinge Innovation in 1993, Pervan initiated and managed the development of the world’s first laminate floor in the late seventies. He also developed the first floor with a mechanical locking system in the early nineties and drove Välinge’s wood powder project that led to the innovative Woodura surface technology that features in the groundbreaking Hardened Wood Floors. Today, he continues to revolutionise the industry as CEO of Pervanovo — recently announcing plans to build the largest wood flooring facility in the world in Croatia. The company also acquired two Croatian veneer mills in Vinkovci and Otok to become Europe's largest manufacturer of high-quality FSC-certified oak veneers for the flooring and furniture industry.

“Over the years, I’ve received many awards, but this one is different,” Pervan said.  “This award was given to me by my peers — other founders and entrepreneurs — and that makes it extra special.”

“Darko is an extremely worthy winner of the Founder of the Year Honorary Award, and everyone at Välinge is very proud of his achievement,” said Niclas Håkansson, CEO, Välinge Innovation. “Our company was built on Darko’s vision and drive — and those principles guide us to this day as we continue developing our floor and furniture technologies and begin our journey to become the world’s largest, most innovative, and sustainable flooring manufacturer and distributor in our chosen categories.”