COMPANYHISTORIES

Sweden

Companies based in Sweden, and the events that shaped them.

39companies1837–2000founding years38still active1no longer operating
§ 01

Sweden companies over time

Companies foundedEconomyTechnologyEnvironmentHistory
FoundedBonnier AB
1837
1839
TechnologyGoodyear discovers how to vulcanize rubber.
1851
TechnologySinger's sewing machine mechanizes garment-making.
FoundedSkandia Insurance Company, Ltd.
1855
1856
TechnologyBessemer's process makes cheap steel possible.
1857
EconomyThe Panic of 1857 spreads through banks and railroads.
1859
TechnologyDrake's well at Titusville launches the oil industry.
1867
TechnologyNobel patents dynamite.
1869
EconomyThe transcontinental railroad links the American coasts.
EconomyThe Suez Canal opens, reshaping global shipping.
FoundedA. JOHNSON & COMPANY H.B. (since 1988: AXEL JOHNSON GROUP AB)FoundedHolmen AB
1873
EconomyLevi Strauss patents riveted denim work pants.
EconomyThe Panic of 1873 triggers a global depression.
1876
TechnologyAlexander Graham Bell patents the telephone.
1879
TechnologyEdison demonstrates a practical incandescent lamp.
1882
TechnologyEdison's Pearl Street Station opens the electric-utility era.
FoundedAlfa Laval AB
1883
1886
EconomyCoca-Cola is first served in Atlanta.
TechnologyThe Hall-Heroult process makes aluminum cheap to produce.
FoundedSkanska AB
1887
1888
TechnologyKodak's roll-film camera brings photography to everyone.
1893
EconomyThe Panic of 1893 pulls down banks and overbuilt railroads.
1903
TechnologyThe Wright brothers achieve powered flight.
FoundedAktiebolaget SKF
1907
1908
TechnologyFord's Model T puts the automobile within reach of the middle class.
1913
TechnologyFord's moving assembly line transforms factory production.
1914
EconomyWorld War I begins; global trade reorders.
FoundedInvestor AB
1916
EconomyPiggly Wiggly opens the first self-service grocery store.
FoundedSwedish Match AB
1917
FoundedAktiebolaget Electrolux
1919
1925
EconomyThe Grand Ole Opry begins broadcasting from Nashville.
1927
TechnologyThe Jazz Singer ushers in the era of sound films.
TechnologyLindbergh flies the Atlantic solo, and aviation captures the public.
1928
TechnologyPenicillin is discovered, opening the age of antibiotics.
FoundedSvenska Cellulosa Aktiebolaget SCA
1929
EconomyThe stock market crashes; the Great Depression spreads worldwide.
1931
EconomyThe Empire State Building rises in just over a year.
1933
EconomyThe first drive-in movie theater opens in New Jersey.
1937
EconomyThe Golden Gate Bridge opens as the world's longest suspension span.
1939
EconomyWorld War II begins; wartime production surges.
1945
EconomyThe war ends; a long global expansion begins.
1946
TechnologyENIAC, the first general-purpose electronic computer, is unveiled.
FoundedHennes & Mauritz AB
1947
TechnologyThe transistor is invented.
1955
EconomyMcDonald's franchising begins, remaking fast food.
EconomyDisneyland opens and invents the modern theme park.
1956
TechnologyThe first transatlantic telephone cable opens.
1958
TechnologyThe integrated circuit is demonstrated.
1962
EnvironmentSilent Spring launches the modern environmental movement.
EconomyThe first Walmart opens, built on everyday low prices.
1969
TechnologyARPANET, the internet's precursor, goes live.
1971
EconomyThe dollar leaves the gold standard; currencies float.
FoundedSkandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB
1972
1973
EconomyThe OPEC oil embargo triggers a global shock.
1975
TechnologyThe personal-computer era begins.
1979
EconomyA second oil crisis drives inflation higher worldwide.
1981
TechnologyThe IBM PC launches and sets a standard.
TechnologyThe first US in-vitro fertilization baby is born.
1984
TechnologyApple ships the Macintosh; the GUI era begins.
FoundedCardo AB
1985
1987
EconomyBlack Monday: markets fall sharply around the world.
1989
HistoryThe Berlin Wall falls; global markets open up.
FoundedSaab Automobile AB
1990
1991
TechnologyThe World Wide Web is released to the public.
TechnologyLinux and open source challenge proprietary software.
FoundedNetCom Systems AB
1993
TechnologyThe Mosaic browser brings the web to everyone.
1994
TechnologyE-commerce begins to disrupt retail.
1995
TechnologyWindows 95 launches; the internet goes mainstream.
FoundedAutoliv, Inc.
1996
FoundedNordea AB
1997
EconomyThe Asian financial crisis rattles global markets.
EnvironmentThe Kyoto Protocol sets the first climate targets.
1999
TechnologyNapster ignites the digital disruption of recorded music.
2000
EconomyThe dot-com bubble bursts.
TechnologyGPS opens to civilian use, turning location into a utility.
2004
TechnologySocial media and Web 2.0 take hold.
2007
TechnologyThe iPhone launches the smartphone era.
2008
EconomyThe global financial crisis freezes credit worldwide.
2010
TechnologyCloud computing goes mainstream for business.
2015
EnvironmentThe Paris Agreement sets global climate targets.
2020
EconomyThe COVID-19 pandemic upends the global economy.
2022
EconomyInflation spikes; central banks raise rates sharply.
2023
TechnologyGenerative AI reaches mainstream business use.
§ 02

The companies

TeliaSonera AB →
Active · Sweden
TeliaSonera AB--formed from the merger of Sweden's Telia AB and Finland's Sonera at the beginning of 2003--is the…
Bonnier AB →
Active · founded 1837 · Sweden
Bonnier AB is one of the Nordic region's leading media groups, losing out the top spot to Finland's SanomaWSOY in 2001.
SWEDISH TELECOM →
Active · founded 1853 · Sweden
Swedish Telecom is a state-owned public utility, responsible for Sweden's telecommunications system, providing a…
Skandia Insurance Company, Ltd. →
Active · founded 1855 · Sweden
Since its founding in 1855, Sweden's Skandia Insurance Company, Ltd.
Sandvik AB →
Active · founded 1868 · Sweden
Sandvik AB is an industrial engineering group based in Sandviken, Sweden, and trading through an international network…
A. JOHNSON & COMPANY H.B. (since 1988: AXEL JOHNSON GROUP AB) →
Active · founded 1873 · Sweden
The Axel Johnson Group of Stockholm comprises two legally and financially independent companies, Axel Johnson & Co.
Atlas Copco AB →
Active · founded 1873 · Sweden
Atlas Copco AB is one of the world's leading producers of compressors, mining and construction equipment, power tools,…
Holmen AB →
Active · founded 1873 · Sweden
Early 1900s:[fsps*2.5]Company builds a sulfite pulp mill at Domsjö.
Perstorp AB →
Active · founded 1881 · Sweden
Perstorp AB operates as a specialty chemicals group focusing on polyalcohols, which are used in the production of…
Alfa Laval AB →
Active · founded 1883 · Sweden
Alfa Laval AB operates as a leader in the heat transfer, centrifugal separation, and fluid handling industries.
BRIO AB →
Active · founded 1884 · Sweden
BRIO AB is a century-old toy company based in Osby, Sweden, with subsidiaries in North America and Europe.
Skanska AB →
Active · founded 1887 · Sweden
After helping to build Scandinavia, Skanska AB is ready to help build the rest of the world.
Gunnebo AB →
Active · founded 1889 · Sweden
Acquisitive Gunnebo AB has quickly grown into one of the world's leading security groups.
Aktiebolaget SKF →
Active · founded 1907 · Sweden
Aktiebolaget SKF is the acknowledged leader of the world's rolling bearing industry.
AB Volvo →
Active · founded 1915 · Sweden
The largest company in Sweden in revenue terms and the biggest employer in that nation's private sector, AB Volvo is…
Investor AB →
Active · founded 1916 · Sweden
Investor AB is the flagship of the Wallenberg financial empire--the family has long dominated northern Europe's…
ICA AB →
Active · founded 1917 · Sweden
Stock Index: Stockholm The ICA logo dominates the Swedish grocery-retail industry.
Swedish Match AB →
Active · founded 1917 · Sweden
Based in Stockholm, Swedish Match AB is the leading global manufacturer of matches and the third-largest manufacturer…
Vin & Spirit AB →
Active · founded 1917 · Sweden
Government-owned Vin & Spirit AB (V & S) lost its monopoly on the production, wholesale, export, and import of…
Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson →
Active · founded 1918 · Sweden
Telefonaktiebolaget LM (Ericsson) is one of the world's largest telecommunications concerns with the largest customer…
Aktiebolaget Electrolux →
Active · founded 1919 · Sweden
To the average consumer, the name Electrolux says two things: vacuum cleaners and refrigerators.
Electrolux AB →
Active · founded 1919 · Sweden
Electrolux AB operates as the largest appliance manufacturer in the world with customers in more than 150 countries.
Svenska Cellulosa Aktiebolaget SCA →
Active · founded 1929 · Sweden
Svenska Cellulosa Aktiebolaget SCA (SCA for short) is one of Europe's leading forestry companies, specializing in…
The SAS Group →
Active · founded 1946 · Sweden
The SAS Group is made up of the Scandinavian Airlines System and SAS International Hotels d.b.a.
Hennes & Mauritz AB →
Active · founded 1947 · Sweden
With more than 550 stores in 12 countries across Europe, Hennes & Mauritz AB (H&M) has quickly become one of the…
Gambro AB →
Active · founded 1964 · Sweden
Sweden's Gambro AB specializes in renal care products, services, and equipment.
Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB →
Active · founded 1972 · Sweden
Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB operates as the parent company of the SEB Group, a North European banking concern…
Nobel Industries AB →
Active · founded 1984 · Sweden
Nobel Industries AB is one of Europe's leading manufacturers of specialty industrial chemicals, paints, and adhesives.
Cardo AB →
Active · founded 1985 · Sweden
Cardo AB has focused its efforts on building two world-leading companies: Cardo Door and Cardo Pump.
Svenska Handelsbanken AB →
Active · founded 1987 · Sweden
In its infancy, Svenska Handelsbanken AB was a small bank, with operations confined to the city of Stockholm.
Saab Automobile AB →
Active · founded 1990 · Sweden
Saab Automobile AB is a Swedish maker of passenger automobiles in the premium sector of the market.
Vattenfall AB →
Active · founded 1992 · Sweden
Sweden's Vattenfall AB is vying for a leading role in Europe's energy generation and transmission market.
NetCom Systems AB →
Active · founded 1993 · Sweden
NetCom Systems AB is poised to become Scandinavia's leading private provider of telecommunications services,…
Modern Times Group AB →
Active · founded 1995 · Sweden
Sweden's Modern Times Group AB (MTG) is one of the Scandinavian market's leading media companies, with interests…
Autoliv, Inc. →
Active · founded 1996 · Sweden
Autoliv, Inc.
FöreningsSparbanken AB →
Active · founded 1997 · Sweden
FöreningsSparbanken AB (FS-banken) is one of Sweden's leading banks and one of the largest banking groups in the Nordic…
Nordea AB →
Active · founded 1997 · Sweden
First off the starting block among pan-European banking mergers--a trend expected to boom in the early years of the…
Cloetta Fazer AB →
Defunct · founded 2000 · Sweden
Cloetta Fazer AB is the Nordic region's leading manufacturer of chocolates and other confectionery.
Observer AB →
Active · founded 2000 · Sweden
Observer AB is the aptly named parent of a group of companies that focus on monitoring media in various countries for…
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