Anders Kærgaard The sustainable company 150 years © Gabriel a/s, 2001 Illustrations: 1. issue, 1. edition As far as possible the originator of the illustrations in the book is indicated below. If the photographer Publisher: Aalborg City Archives is unknown, this is indicated. If a rightful claimant ISBN: 87-89590-26-0 can prove a legitimate but unpaid claim, this will be paid according to general tariff after application Editor: Anders Kærgaard to Gabriel A/S. Picture researcher: Flemming Nielsen, Aalborg City Archives Andersen, Hanne P.: p. 52, 53 Translation: Karen Veien Attermand, Steen: p. 61, III, IV, VI, VII, IX, X, XI, XII, XIII, XIV, XVIII Design & dtp: 2 Krogh mdd mgk, Birk, J. Bülow: p. 10 Aarhus Brahl, Erik: p. IX, X Typeface: 10/16 Charlotte Book & Brikner, Ole: p. 45 11/16 Charlotte Sans Book from Bruun, I.C.: p. 6 International Type Founders, New York Christensen, Jens: p. 34, 38 Paper: 150g ikono silk ivory & ikono gloss Dalby, H.: p. 30 from Zanders, Germany Damstedt, Karsten: p. XXI Reproduction & printing: DSB fotoarkiv: p. XX EJ Graphic, Beder European Studios: p. I Binding: Chr. Hendriksen, Skive Häberli, Alfredo: p. III Jensen, Chr.: p. 10 Juhl, Morten: p. 47 Krogh, Dorte: p. XII Gabriel a/s Kühl, S. A.: p. 29 Hjulmagervej 55 Mai, Tina: p. 56, IV, XVII, XXII, XXIV DK-9000 Aalborg Merrild, Gunnar: p. 48 Phone: +45 9630 3100 MJ-fotograferne: p. II Fax: +45 9813 2544 Morten, Jens: p. 40 [email protected] Munk, Karin: p. 5 www.gabriel.dk Nielsen, Ejnar, architect: p. 35 Nielsen, Hans: p. I, II, VIII, XVI, XVII, XIX, XXI, XXII, XXIII, XXIV Rasmussen, Michael Bo: p. 54, 58, 59, V, XIII, XV, XVI, XIX, XXIII Studio 64: p. 42 Søgaard, Axel: p. 55, VII Thomsen & Have: p. 5 Tromholt, Emil: p. 20, 21 Tønnies, H.: p. 16, 18 Unknown: p. 12, 15, 18, 19, 21, 24, 26, 27, 31, 32, 37, 38, 41, 46, 50, 51, 57, 60, V, VI, VIII, XI, XIV, XVIII Aalborg Vejviser: p. 25

Colophon 4 Preface

It isn’t every day that a Danish company can This book will also serve as a basis for publica- celebrate a ±∂∞th anniversary. tions written to commemorate red-letter days of the future. We are proud to say that Gabriel – formerly Kjærs Mølle – can do just that, and the man- Finally, because the old factory is in better agement wish to celebrate the occasion with shape today than ever before, the management this anniversary publication. felt publication of its history would be a fitting way to celebrate ±∂∞ years of activity. The book was primarily written to provide all those who have an interest in the company – It is our hope that you will enjoy reading this owners, employees, suppliers, customers and history of Gabriel. others with whom we cooperate – with greater insight into the historic background of our company. April ≤∞∞±

Poul H. Lauritsen Jørgen Kjær Jacobsen Chairman of the Board Managing Director

Preface 5 Aalborg in the late ±π∂∞s seen from the northern bank of the Lim Fjord. Kjærs Mølle is probably the three- storey factory visible on the outskirts of the town, to the right of the white spire of Our Saviour’s Church. The mouth of the now covered Østerå River can be seen a little further to the right.

Aalborg 1850 6 Contents

Threads of a 150-year-long cloth 9

Founding a textile factory, 1850-1855 13 Two manufacturers and a businessman in search of a textile factory ...... 13 Protests ...... 14 Manufacture and lack of capital ...... 15

Fire and a new beginning, 1855-1898 17

“An unhappy conflagration” ...... 17 The new factory ...... 17 Wool and frieze ...... 18 From waterpower to steam ...... 20 Workers and working conditions ...... 21 From partnership to limited company ...... 22

Market fluctuations, 1898-1940 23 Optimism in the early 1900s ...... 23 The great depression ...... 23 Whims of fashion ...... 25 Fewer employees, shorter hours ...... 26 Progress prior to the occupation ...... 27

Good years in a difficult period, 1940-1945 28 Machines from Germany ...... 28 Working conditions during the occupation ...... 29 “Piss wool”, paper and hair ...... 31 Liberation and trouble ...... 32

On track again, 1945-1959 33 Readjustment to peace ...... 33

Contents 7 Odense Kamgarnsspinderi buys a controlling interest ...... 33 War in Korea and crisis at the Mill ...... 34 Zacho does some clearing out ...... 35 New products ...... 36 Hierarchy and poor hearing ...... 37

New raw materials and markets, 1959-1977 39 Investments, reorganisation and computers ...... 39 Fabric for clothing and upholstery ...... 40 Out in the world ...... 41 Virtues and conflicts ...... 43 Working environment and the surrounding environment ...... 43

From Kjærs Mølle to Gabriel, 1977-1985 44 Kjærs Mølle for sale ...... 44 The employees and Gabriel make a purchase ...... 44 An increase in investment capital and in woollen upholstery fabric ...... 46 Gabriel Boligtekstiler takes over Kjærs Mølle ...... 47 Gabriel goes public ...... 47 Gabriel moves to Aalborg ...... 48

Capturing the niche market, 1984-2001 49 Focussing on the niche market ...... 49 New designs in wool, an export success ...... 50 Trimming production facilities ...... 51 Certification and a horizontal structure ...... 52 Ensuring independence, 1991 ...... 53 Moving forward on a sustainable foundation ...... 54 Ensuring independence, 1997 ...... 56 The responsible enterprise ...... 56 The innovative enterprise ...... 58 The competent enterprise ...... 60

150 years of strong thread 62

Glossary 63

Appendices 64

Contents 8 Threads of a 150-year-long cloth

In contrast to many other Danish industrial changing times. This look at the challenges enterprises, Kjærs Mølle – now Gabriel – did faced over the past ±∂∞ years illustrates how not grow out of a cottage industry, nor was it relationships between the company’s decision based on the good ideas and energy of one makers and employees and between these man. Kjærs Mølle was planned and founded by people and the outside world altered over the three men who had a clear objective: They wis- years. hed to create a sustainable business for the This volume follows developments from the manufacture of fabric for the clothing industry beginning in ±π∂± to the present day, conclu- in Jutland, the Danish mainland. ding with an overview of Gabriel as a model enterprise with record sales and earnings, mo- The following pages trace the threads that dern equipment, an accomplished and loyal make up the fabric woven throughout the ±∂∞- staff, a solid financial base and a responsible year history of the enterprise. Some of the attitude to both employees and the surroun- threads were long, others short; some were ding environment. strong and long lasting, others short-lived. The history of the Kjærs Mølle/Gabriel factory is The book is based on written sources as well as traced from ±π∂± until the present day, whilst interviews with current and former employees. the story of the textile manufacturer Gabriel The interviews have added much valuable in- that began in ±∫µ≥ starts when this firm ente- formation, making it possible to present as red the scene in ±∫∏π-∏∫. true a picture of the events of the past ±∂∞ The raw material utilised was primarily years as possible. The openness demonstrated wool. Although synthetic fibres were a basic re- by Gabriel A/S in support of this project has source at certain times, wool has never been been invaluable. I wish to thank all of those completely out of the picture. Initially, the who have contributed to this book. company manufactured fabric for the clothing Thanks also to Archivist Flemming Nielsen, industry; today the focus is on high quality up- Aalborg City Archives and to The Danish Na- holstery fabric. The enterprise has changed tional Business Archives in the city of Århus for hands many times along the way, and its name their professional advice and cooperation as was changed from Kjærs Mølle to Gabriel. the project moved forward.

This anniversary volume will trace the threads Anders Kærgaard, that have made this a successful enterprise in February ≤∞∞±

1851-2001 9 The paddle wheeler Iris sailed between Aalborg and Copenhagen from ±πµ≤ to ±π∂∏. Ships were by far the fastest form of transport at that time. While Iris could bring passengers to the capital from one day to the next, it took about a week to make the journey overland on foot or horseback. Daguerreotype from ±π∂±.

Gravensgade photographed in ±π∏∂. Today this street is part of a busy pedestrian precinct, but, as indicated by the many signs, it was also the scene of considerable activity in ±π∏∂. Shop owners or salaried employees often lived in flats above the shops. Workers had less comfortable accommodation in the buildings at the back.

Aalborg 1850 10 Chronological table 1851-2001

Kjærs Mølle and Gabriel Denmark and the rest of the world

±π∂±: Kjærs Mølle is founded ±π∂±: Denmark wins the ±st Schleswig War ±π∂∂: Fire at the factory ±π∂∏: The first synthetic dye is marketed ±∫∞±: ∂∞th anniversary in a period of prosperity ±∫∞±: The liberal party,“Venstre”, comes to power ±∫±π: Growth culminates in a ∂∞% dividend ±∫±µ-±π: World War I ±∫≤±-≥∏: Years of crisis ±∫≤∫: The Wall Street stock market crash ±∫µ∞-µ∂: Poor quality wool or none at all ±∫≥∫-µ∂: World War II ±∫µπ: Odense Kamgarnsspinderi takes over ±∫µπ: The Marshall Plan for rebuilding Kjærs Mølle Western Europe ±∫∂±: ±∞∞th anniversary and crisis due to the ±∫∂∞-∂≥: The Korean War Korean War ±∫∂µ: French defeat at Dien Bien Phu in ±∫∂µ-π∞: M. Zacho becomes managing director. Viet Nam Fashionable fabric for women's clothing ±∫∑π: Youth revolt in countries of the west From circa ±∫∑π: Woollen upholstery fabric – limited but expert production ±∫∏∫: Islamic revolution in Iran ±∫∏∫: Employees and the Gabriel family take over Kjærs Mølle ±∫π∞: War between Iran and Irak. The police ±∫π∞: Søren Gabriel becomes managing director remove squatters from a Copenhagen play- ±∫π±: Poul H. Lauritsen chairman of the board. ground Emphasis on woollen upholstery fabric ±∫π≥: Poul Schlüter's Liberal-Conservative ±∫π≥: Gabriel takes over Kjærs Mølle government comes to power ±∫πµ: Gabriel goes public. Focus on exports ±∫πµ: Soviet premier Andropov dies ±∫π∂: Jørgen Kjær Jacobsen becomes managing ±∫π∂: Mikhail Gorbatjov becomes president of director the Soviet Union ±∫π∑: Gabriel and Kjærs Mølle merge ±∫π∑: The Danish government introduces ±∫π∏: Gabriel suffers in a period of recession financial constraints ±∫π∫: ≥≥% of goods manufactured are exported ±∫π∏: International stock market crash ±∫∫±: ISO ∫∞∞± certification. Pension funds ±∫π∫: Fall of the Berlin Wall purchase Gabriel family shares ±∫∫±: Collapse of the Soviet Union. ±∫∫≤: Gabriel's progress is slowed by European The Gulf War market decline ±∫∫≤: European monetary cooperation breaks ±∫∫∑: More than ∂∞% of goods manufactured down are exported ±∫∫∑: Bill Clinton wins a ≤nd term as US ±∫∫∏: Businessmen purchase a controlling president interest ±∫∫∏: “Dolly” the sheep, the first cloned animal, ±∫∫∫: ≥ sales divisions: Contract, Home and is born Transport ±∫∫∫: NATO operations against Yugoslavia ≤∞∞∞: Record results for the ∂th year in a row. ≤∞∞∞: George W. Bush is elected US president ∏∂% of goods manufactured are exported ≤∞∞±: ±∂∞th anniversary

Chronological table 11 Kjærs Mølle prior to the fire in 1855. The power to operate 24 carding and spinning machines on the first floor was supplied by a watermill on the ground floor. There was a weaving room on the second floor with 14 manually operated looms. A two-storey building with flats for the workers was also built, and the dye-works, storeroom, additional living quarters and stables were installed in the existing buildings. There were also a fulling mill and a drying room.

When steam engines replaced waterpower in the last half of the 1800s, busy factories were characterised by smoking chimneys. The last steam engine at Kjærs Mølle was retired around 1950.

1850-1855 12 Founding a textile factory 1850-1855

Kjærs Mølle was founded in ±π∂±. Prior to that consideration of the pros and cons of the sit- time, the three founders had carefully cons- uation, Kjærs Mølle on the outskirts of the idered the sustainability of such an enterprise. town of Aalborg appeared to be the most at- Included in their evaluations were access to tractive site for the new factory. water, the local competition and the local A three-storey factory was built, sales grew need both for woollen goods and for the fin- steadily, and this, in turn, led to a continuing ishing of goods made by cottage industries. need for loans to finance expansion. After The availability of a qualified workforce was, some three to four years, the factory employ- apparently, of lesser importance. After careful ed about ∂∞ persons.

Two manufacturers and potential moneylenders of the feasibility of the a businessman in search of project. a textile factory A natural solution would have been for P.G. Di- In ±π∂∞, two Danish manufacturers from mid- nesen to expand his existing factory in Århus, Jutland and a businessman from the island of but he already lacked water power at this site, Zealand were on the look out for a good loca- so that was out of the question. Instead, the tion for a new factory for the manufacture of three men had to find a place where they could woollen textiles. start a new factory. We have no way of knowing Manufacturer P.G. Dinesen from the town exactly why they chose Kjærs Mølle, then just of Århus and W.A. Rodskjer, factory manager at outside the town of Aalborg, but we do know Brunshaab Klædefabrik, a textile factory near that this was a logical and sensible choice. In the town of Viborg, were experts within the the first place, there was plenty of water in the field of textiles. Solicitor Otto Jespersen had fi- Østerå River to operate the water mill, the nancial and legal expertise, and he was quickly heart of the factory, and to provide water for called upon to make use of both. the washing, fulling and dyeing of the woollen products. In the second place, there were no Starting a textile factory was risky business, not other factories for making woollen textiles in least because the founders themselves were the Aalborg area. And as the three founders unable to provide more than about one-third wanted both to manufacture goods for sale and of the ∂∏,∞∞∞ rix-dollars it was estimated the to finish the goods supplied by nearby cottage land and buildings and the establishment of industries, this site suggested there would be a the factory itself would cost. Careful prepara- reliable local market for their products. Finally, tions were necessary to convince creditors and Aalborg is centrally located where the water of

1850-1855 13 the Lim Fjord crosses the main road running to start the textile factory itself, while dyeing north from the German border through East and printing were defined as crafts that could Jutland, providing good access to both nation- only be practised with the permission of guilds al and international markets. that held the monopolies for such work. The most important conditions for ensu- ring that the enterprise would succeed were in On ≥ June ±π∂±, Dinesen, Rodskjer and Jesper- place when Dinesen, Rodskjer and Jespersen sen applied to the Home Ministry for permis- decided to build their new factory near the sion to establish a textile factory, a dye-works Kjærs Mølle mill on the outskirts of Aalborg. and a printing works at Kjærs Mølle. The appli- cation for permission to start the textile factory For generations, Kjærs Mølle had been a water- was sent to the Aalborg town council where it powered mill for grinding grain, and in ±π∂∞, it was approved. was owned by the wealthy landowner, L.H. Ing- Greater difficulty was encountered in obtain- strup. Ingstrup was interested in selling for two ing the rights to dye and print. The founders reasons: the mill’s licensed monopoly would had probably anticipated this, as the applica- expire in ±π∂±, and he was in the process of tion stressed that Dinesen already had permis- building a brick-works south of the mill. sion to carry out these activities in the town of Unfortunately, the mill was heavily in debt, Århus and should, therefore, be allowed to and, therefore, the three new owners formed a practise them in Aalborg. It was also pointed partnership company that took over the mill in out that textile factories throughout the coun- copyhold. By agreeing to an annual rent in the try were ordinarily permitted to dye and print. amount of ±,≥∞∞ rix-dollars, they secured the There were immediate protests. A.P. Wibroe, right to rebuild, sell and mortgage the mill. In who employed no fewer than ≤∂ of Aalborg’s ≥∏ addition, when the actual change of ownership dyers, and the town’s other dyers accepted the was made, they were to compensate the owners right of Kjærs Mølle to dye the cloth manufac- of the manorial right. tured by the factory. But they strongly protest- ed Kjærs Mølle’s application for permission to As ±π∂∞ drew to a close, the copyhold contract dye the cloth made by farmers in the region. for Kjærs Mølle, which would become valid on Even though the factory was to be situated ± May ±π∂±, was signed, and that date has since in the countryside, it would “have a ruinous in- been celebrated as the date when Kjærs Mølle, fluence on the dyers here in town as a conse- now Gabriel, was founded. quence, and make it impossible for this trade It was probably the intention of the foun- to survive in the town.” ders that the copyhold contract would be com- muted to full ownership, but financial difficul- Freedom of competition had not yet become a ties made this impossible. valid argument. For several years to come, the business community would be controlled by Protests guild monopolies, and dyers could claim that it was in the interests of society “that disturbing A number of hurdles had to be overcome before disarrangement of the citizenry’s licence to manufacturing could begin. The right to free trade did not occur.” In addition, labour was trade was not introduced until ±π∂∏, making it cheaper in the country than in the town, thus necessary to obtain various permits. The per- creating an additional threat to the power of mission of the king had to be granted in order the town guilds.

1850-1855 14 There were also serious protests from the mu- Kjærs Mølle was founded in the low-lying area nicipal officer of health, who feared for the near the Østerå River, approximately ± kilometre health of the population if the water in the south of the town of Aalborg. Map from ±π∑∫. river became polluted by the chemicals used by Kjærs Mølle. Aalborg had, in fact, no water- independence of foreign powers. The effort to works, and drinking water for large areas of the start Kjærs Mølle was, in fact, the third attempt town was taken from the river at Kjærs Mølle. to establish a clothing industry in Aalborg. The Even then, the environment was taken serious- two first attempts, in the ±∏≥∞s and from ±π±≥ to ly, at least when drinking water was endan- ±π±π, had both failed in spite of state support. gered. Kjærs Mølle was solely privately financed, and, All the arguments were rejected by the as we shall see, it survived. Home Ministry. Liberal currents in favour of breaking the power of the guilds were begin- Manufacture and lack ning to surface, and the protests of the dyers of capital were not accepted. On ≤≥ October ±π∂±, per- mission was granted to build not only the fac- Already on ± May ±π∂±, even before the applica- tory, but also the dye-works and the printing- tion for permission to manufacture was grant- works, stipulating only “that the water in the ed, Dinesen, Rodskjer and Jespersen began to river that flows past the factory is not used in convert the existing mill into a factory for the such a way that any danger can arise as regards complete processing of wool, from receipt of its use for domestic purposes”. the raw wool to the manufacture of the finish- It was probably also of some significance ed cloth. Part of the necessary power supply that a national clothing industry was consid- was already in place with the grain mill’s mill- ered to be important in ensuring a country’s wheel, but an additional wheel was necessary.

1850-1855 15 The harbour in the Østerå River in ±π∑∂ before the ownership of a fourth part of the enterprise. river was covered over. The ships are typical of the Although Niels Klem’s original contribution vessels that plied the waters of the Lim Fjord. was small, he later increased it several times and was a good man for floating a loan when A small amount of cloth was manufactured in bills had to be paid. ±π∂±, and it is likely that larger quantities were This was necessary, for example, in Novem- not made until April ±π∂≤. In ±π∂≤, cloth valued ber ±π∂≤, when a mortgage loan of ±∂,∞∞∞ rix- at over ±π,∞∞∞ rix-dollars was sold to customers dollars was obtained to pay an outstanding bill. in, among other places, Copenhagen, but that This particular loan was made on the condi- represented only half of the factory’s capacity. tion that sufficient fire insurance was taken A lack of working capital was undoubtedly a se- out – a condition that soon proved to have rious hindrance to greater activity. been most fortunate. The need for more capital had quickly be- The amount of cloth manufactured by Kjærs come apparent. Fortunately, W.A. Rodskjer had Mølle increased in ±π∂≥ and again in ±π∂µ, the married well! In any event, he convinced his number of employees grew to about ∂∞, and father-in-law, Niels Klem, who was officer of the future looked bright. health in the town of Elsinore, to take over

1850-1855 16 Fire and a new beginning ±π∂∂-±π∫π

In ±π∂∂, Kjærs Mølle was seriously damaged by Mølle won the struggle for the finishing of fire. A chance occurrence threatened an other- goods made by cottage industries. Better and wise successful enterprise. But another chance better equipment was installed in the factory, occurrence – in the form of a winning lottery and there was a breakthrough for mineral dyes. ticket – saved the factory. This meant that Kjærs Mølle progressed from Fortunately, the market developed the manufacture of coarse woollen goods to favourably during this second building up of the making of a variety of finer textiles. the factory that began in ±π∂∂. Clothing facto- The number of employees increased to ±∑∂ ries in the Duchy of Holstein found their posi- in ±∫∞±. The workers had their own health in- tion on the Danish market weakened following surance, but they could be heavily fined, one of the war of ±π∑µ, and at the local level, Kjærs the reasons for a strike that took place in ±π∫∑.

“An unhappy conflagration” fate had other plans. W.A. Rodskjer won ±∞,∞∞∞ rix-dollars in the lottery and invested the entire In ±π∂∂, just as stable conditions seemed to sum in the rebuilding of Kjærs Mølle. This, in have become a fact of life, Kjærs Mølle was the any case, is the story told, a story that can be victim of a devastating fire. traced back to the first record of Kjærs Mølle’s A contemporary report reads: “[Kjærs history, written by the company’s bookkeeper Mølle] burnt down in an unhappy conflagra- in ±∫∞±. tion, the cause of which is unknown, on the Today, we do not really know whether Lady night of ≤µ January ±π∂∂. Only the walls of the Luck smiled on Rodskjer, or whether the mon- bottom floor of the large ≥-storey factory build- ey came from some other unknown source. ing remain standing; all the machines and ma- Whatever the case, the owners succeeded in terials burnt. The residence and other build- securing the necessary capital to reopen Kjærs ings, including the storehouse were saved...” Mølle.

Fortunately, Kjærs Mølle had taken out a good The new factory fire insurance policy in ±π∂≤ – or so it was thought. But the bookkeeper had not insured The new factory was built of brick, and new the buildings and goods, so there was no com- handlooms were purchased (one power loom pensation for their loss. Although the stock that was also purchased proved useless). While was saved, it is likely that it was ruined in the the old factory could produce ∑∞∞ pieces of fire. Less than four years after the opening of cloth measuring approx. ≤∞ meters, the new the factory, the situation looked hopeless, but factory had an annual capacity of ∫∞∞ pieces.

1855-1898 17 On the left: Kjærs Mølle finished the coarse When war came in ±π∑µ, however, Kjærs Mølle woollen fabric made by farmers in the area. saw its market shrink, as little by little the Prus- On the right: Soldiers from the garrison in Aalborg sian-Austrian troops conquered most of Jut- in ±π∫∏. Their fine uniforms may have been made land. The factory manufactured less and less, of material woven at Kjærs Mølle. and production finally came to a halt as the enemy approached and occupied Aalborg. Turnover continued to increase until ±π∂∏, Peace was declared, and Denmark lost both when an economic crisis in Denmark and poor Schleswig and Holstein. For Kjærs Mølle this management in the company almost closed national tragedy proved fortuitous, however, Kjærs Mølle. Throughout that winter, work because the large textile manufacturers in Hol- could only be done in daylight to save the ex- stein now no longer had free access to the Dan- pense of lighting the factory. ish market. Under the terms of the peace trea- Within the company, where influence could ty, Holstein lay outside the Danish tariff be exercised, more competent managers were barrier, giving Kjærs Mølle an advantage in hired. Denmark’s financial situation improved competing with the Holsteiners. quickly, and soon both turnover and the amount of cloth manufactured once again in- Wool and frieze creased. As previously mentioned, the two strong In the first half of the ±π∑∞s, Denmark’s foreign “threads” that were to ensure the success of policy played a significant role for Kjærs Møl- Kjærs Mølle were the manufacture of woollen le’s business. In ±π∑± and ±π∑≤, the company cloth and the finishing of articles made by benefited when the War Ministry, anticipating local cottage industries. war with Prussia and Austria over the duchies of Schleswig and Holstein, paid a good price Although the finishing of home made articles for any fabric that could be used for uniforms. included the carding and spinning of wool, it

1855-1898 18 called primarily for the dyeing, fulling and ad- dition of dressing to frieze made in the coun- try. From the beginning, Kjærs Mølle competed with the A.P. Wibroe dye-works and fulling mill in obtaining the cloth known as frieze for dye- ing and fulling. In ±π∂±, Wibroe had protested granting Kjærs Mølle permission to dye the cloth made by others – with good cause, as it turned out. In the beginning, Wibroe was clearly in the lead, and in ±π∂µ, his business finished more than ≤≥,∞∞∞ meters of cloth compared to the ≥,∞∞∞ meters finished by Kjærs Mølle. But by the end of the ±π∂∞s, the tables had turned, and Kjærs Mølle had taken the lead. The two companies conducted their com- petition in the local newspaper, Aalborg Stiftsti- dende, and it culminated in ±π∏≤ when Wibroe offered to dye a length of cloth at less than half Distinguished gentlemen keep track of figures and the price charged by Kjærs Mølle. Even this agreements. They wrote with pen and ink but also was to no avail, and in ±π∏≥ Wibroe finished used the typewriter in the foreground. The type- only ∫,µ∞∞ meters of cloth, compared to the writer had its breakthrough in the last decades of ≥≤,∑∞∞ meters finished by Kjærs Mølle. At the the ±∫th century. Photograph from ±∫∞±. end of the ±π∏∞s, Wibroe gave up and establish- ed instead a large cotton-spinning mill. “...almost solely of Kersey and cloth of various qualities, mixed-blue woollen or piece-dyed. Customers who wanted to have their frieze fin- The goods maintained this distinction for quite ished delivered the goods to Kjærs Mølle’s some time. As late as around ±π∏∞, these textiles shop at Bispensgade ≤. From ±ππ≤, Kjærs Mølle were used almost solely by farmers and the rented out the shop, but the tenant was not more common townspeople...” permitted to sell clothing and clothing fabric As late as around ±∫∞∞, quantities of kersey in competition with Kjærs Mølle’s own pro- were still made, especially for uniforms, but the ducts. This meant that while the only Danish variety of patterns, colours and qualities in- textiles sold were made by Kjærs Mølle’s, for- creased steadily as the ±∫th century drew to a eign-made goods were also available in the close. This was due, in part, to improved equip- shop. Only simple clothes could be sold, and ment and also to progress within the dyeing in- neither fashionable clothing nor bed linens dustry. Until ±π∑∞, only vegetable colours were stocked. From about ±π∫∂, townspeople could be used, but as mineral-based colours could also buy the factory’s own textiles in the became available, countless new colour combi- shop, Kjærs Mølles Udsalg, at Nytorv. nations were possible.

In the anniversary volume published in ±∫∞±, a As the finishing of home made frieze gradually description of the goods manufactured in the lost its importance, Kjærs Mølle’s own produc- company’s first decades tells us they consisted tion of woollen textiles became the life nerve of

1855-1898 19 The weaving room was filled to bursting with In ±π∑∂, a modest ∑ horsepower steam en- machines and people. The noise in the low- gine was installed, and with the addition of a ceilinged room must have been deafening. ≤µ horsepower steam engine in ±π∏±, steam be- Photograph from ±∫∞±. came the factory’s primary source of energy. In ±π∏µ, a conspicuous sign of this change was a the factory. In the early years, most of the raw new three-storey power-loom weaving mill wool probably came from Danish sheep. But as built beside the river – and not across it, as was more and more of the Jutland heath was culti- necessary in order to utilise waterpower. In vated, there were fewer races of sheep that ±ππ≥, the capacity of the spinning mill was dou- could supply suitable wool, and imported wool bled, the building housing the weaving mill was used as early as around ±∫∞∞. was extended, and Kjærs Mølle had a total of ±∏ power looms. Larger steam boilers were instal- From waterpower to steam led, and factory’s capacity was increased in ±ππ∫ and again in ±π∫∂. Keeping up with the competition meant invest- ing in new equipment and buildings, and such Another manifestation of technical progress investments were made several times during the came in ±π∫∞ when the petroleum lamps were course of the ±π∞∞s. Other investments were extinguished for the last time, and electric necessary because the river could no longer lights were switched on. With its ≥∞ horse- supply the power needed to keep up with the power steam engine, the factory could supply growing amount of goods manufactured. its own power.

1855-1898 20 Kjærs Mølle expanded again in ±π∫µ, this time with the construction of a two-storey building with an arched roof, covering one huge attic. Originally, the building housed a spinning mill; today there are finished goods on the ground floor of this building, while samples are displayed on the first floor.

More and more smoke poured from the chim- neys as coal was burned to satisfy the demands of the steam engines. No one gave a thought to air pollution and bad lungs: Such activity sig- nified progress in the last three decades of the ±π∞∞s.

Workers and working conditions

In ±π∂≤, the year after the factory was founded, Kjærs Mølle already had ∂∞ employees. In the years prior to ±π∏≤, the number of workers var- ied from ≥∞ to ∏≤ and increased as time passed. The good years toward the end of the ±π∞∞s saw a considerable expansion of the workforce, and in ±∫∞±, there were ±∑∂ employees. The master weaver and weavers in the new weaving room in ±∫∞±. The master weaver’s position in the We cannot know what thoughts the founders hierarchy is suggested by both his clothing and posture. had about the availability of qualified labour in Aalborg. But we can see that this was occasion- there were often disorderliness and rows, yes, ally a problem. As there was no tradition for even fights during working hours.” textile factories in the Aalborg area, it follows Little by little, Danish workers were trained, that there were no experienced workers. Right but Kjærs Mølle continued to hire foreigners from the beginning, therefore, it was necessary when workers with special skills were needed. to hire foreign workers, in particular, from Ger- many. As far as wages were concerned, the weavers Unfortunately, it was not always the cream of were, on average, the best-paid employees, but the German workforce that was lured to the far as they were paid piece-rates, the level of wages north, as suggested by the following passage varied greatly. Spinners, wool washers, rinsers from the anniversary book published in ±∫∞±: and fullers earned a little less, and the willowers “The people were perhaps clever enough, as and carders earned less than half the wage of the far as that goes, but they sometimes displayed weavers. Until ±π∏∞, meals were provided at the other faults, as for example, the fault of often factory for unmarried workers and apprentices. coming to work in a rather muddled state. As, at No information is available about the the same time, there seemed to be pugnacious wages earned by men and women who held the types among the workers, it is no wonder that same positions.

1855-1898 21 Today, it is difficult to say anything definite could be imposed if a weaving error was made. about the distribution of the sexes in the fac- Thirty workers were sacked during the strike, tory. We do know, however, that in ±∫∞±, ≤∂ men and the conflict was finally resolved. The work- and ±± women had been employed for at least ers were successful in instituting a somewhat ±∞ years (including workers who earned an milder system of fines and in getting ≤≤ of hourly wage and salaried employees). But those who had been sacked rehired. women were probably often hired for shorter periods of time than men and, if they had the From partnership to limited financial means, may have left their jobs to company marry or to have children. Therefore, women probably made up a larger share of the work- In the period from ±π∂± to ±π∫π, many partners force than indicated by the above numbers. were replaced, and the partnership agreement A look at the work done by those who were was renewed in ±π∏≤. The last of Kjærs Mølle’s employed for at least ±∞ years shows that most founders, W.A. Rodskjer, died in ±π∏∑, and the of the warpers, burlers, croppers and weavers shares had gradually been distributed among a were women. The dyeing process appears to wide circle of heirs and other persons. have been men’s work. In addition, all those As any change in ownership required the given the title of “master” were men: master signatures of all the partners, the partnership weaver, master dyer, master finisher and master arrangement had gradually become too cum- fuller. It would, of course, have been unusual bersome as a means of running the company. for a woman to have had a career at this time. As of ± January ±π∫π, therefore, the partners de- cided to create a limited company, Aktieselska- In the ±∫∞± anniversary volume, the relation- bet Kjærs Mølles Fabriker with Julius and Frede- ship between the workers and the company is rik Rodskjer as managing directors. One of the described as good. And a number of measures advantages of the limited company was that were taken to ensure the welfare of the work- the shares were freely negotiable, and money ers. There was, among other things, a health could be borrowed against them. insurance system for “men and unmarried women” financed by subscription and a con- A share capital of π∞∞,∞∞∞ Danish kroner was tribution made by the company. raised. Then the limited company construction Finally, in ±π∏∑, a fund was created for work- was threatened by a legal subtlety in the old ers who were sacked due to age, so they could copyhold contract. The owners of the manorial avoid the wretched conditions of those living rights were still living, and they would lose their on the government system of poor relief. compensation when the copyhold was can- celled. Their legal argument was that the limi- The relationship between workers and manage- ted company was not a person, and as a conse- ment was, however, not always idyllic, and in quence, they refused to sign the title deed. The ±π∫∑ a tense atmosphere came to a head. Work case was brought to court, and in both the Dan- was abandoned to protest a master’s coarse ish High Court and the Supreme Court, Kjærs language. There was already considerable dis- Mølle was granted the right to change the type satisfaction among the weavers due to fines of company, and the limited company could amounting to more than a week’s wages that continue operations.

1855-1898 22 Market fluctuations ±π∫π-±∫µ∞

Kjærs Mølle enjoyed a period of prosperity the company operated at a loss for several in the first decades of the ≤∞th century and years. Bankruptcy threatened, and the num- became one of Denmark’s leading manufac- ber of employees fell again to about ∂∞, with turers of woollen cloth. many of those working less than full time. When the ±st World War ended in ±∫±π, the Once again fortune smiled on Kjærs future looked bright in Denmark, and Kjærs Mølle. The company owned about ±≤ ±/≤ Mølle was prepared to increase production. hectares of land that was parcelled out from But war was followed by crisis, and with a ±∫≥≤ to ±∫≥∏. The income from the sale of this stock of expensive raw materials and virtually property was used, among other things, for unsaleable products, operations were no necessary investments, and from ±∫≥∫, Kjærs longer feasible. Due to a weak market, fashion Mølle’s position could once again be des- whims and well-worn production facilities, cribed as sustainable.

Optimism in the early existing building. In ±∫±≥, the roof of the boiler 1900s house had to be raised, and in ±∫±∑ another ≥∑∫ m≤ was added to the spinning mill. The many investments made as the ±π∞∞s drew to a close resulted in greatly increased capaci- The production plant was utilised to its ut- ty. While the factory that was rebuilt following most in the last years of the ±st World War, and the fire in ±π∂∂ could manufacture about Kjærs Mølle was among the largest manufac- ±π,∞∞∞ metres of cloth per year, by ±∫∞± and turers of woollen cloth in the country in terms the celebration of the company’s ∂∞th anni- of both share capital and profits. The enter- versary, more than ±∂∞,∞∞∞ metres were pro- prise was known for quality goods sold to cus- duced annually, i.e. π-∫ times as much. During tomers all over the country as well as directly the same period, the number of workers more from Kjærs Mølle’s retail shop in Nytorv in than tripled, to ±∑∂ employees by ±∫∞±. Aalborg. A high level of building activity was main- In ±∫±∑, a mortgage was taken out in the tained in the early ±∫∞∞s. The period from amount of µ∞∞,∞∞∞ Danish kroner, and in ±∫±π ±∫∞≥ to ±∫∞∏ saw the construction of, among the share capital was increased from π∞∞,∞∞∞ other things, a two-storey office building and to ± million Danish kroner. Like the rest of the storeroom, an addition to the building where country, Kjærs Mølle anticipated a growth in salaried employees lived, a new dye-works and prosperity following the end of the ±st World a new willowing-works, an extension of the War and was, once again, prepared to expand spinning mill and the addition of a floor to an the factory.

1898-1940 23 ±∫±∫ and ±∫≤∞, but after that the situation took a drastic turn for the worse. From ±∫≤±, the company operated at a loss, and no dividend was paid.

Kjærs Mølle’s decline was closely related to Den- mark’s economic difficulties. Much of Danish industry experienced hard times in the ±∫≤∞s: Demand in Europe increased, but Danish pro- duction facilities were worn and could not take advantage of the opportunity this presented. Exports stagnated and imports increased. The level of unemployment in ±∫≤∞-≤± exploded from ∑% to almost ≤∞%. Kjærs Mølle was hard hit by these develop- ments, as the factory sold its goods to the de- pressed Danish home market. To add insult to in- jury, the company held large quantities of raw materials and finished goods that could not be sold at a profit because the cost of raw materials had quickly fallen to half the price paid for them.

The following comment, possibly written by the managing director around ±∫∂±, describes the situation in the late ±∫≤∞s: “The years following ±∫≤∑ were very bad; it was difficult to sell the goods. We traded then with wholesalers, makers of ready-to-wear cloth- ing, haberdashery shops, draper’s shops and Above: The engine room in the anniversary year, embroidery merchants. (...) In these years there ±∫∞±. Large sums were invested in updated equip- was, of course, no money for purchasing new ment in the second half of the ±π∞∞s, resulting in equipment and even less for building, even an enormous increase in productivity. though by this time the factory was in great Below: The stockroom in ±∫∞±. Kjærs Mølle need of renovation in virtually all departments, carried a wide variety of different qualities and and numerous times we had to ask the factory designs, much to the concern of the bookkeeper. inspection authorities for permission to post- pone the work and repairs they had demanded. The great depression (...) A retail shop we had opened in Copenhagen in the hope of building up the business was Everyone expected that peace would lead to liquidated in ±∫≤∏.” growth. And Kjærs Mølle did turn a profit in the first few years following the war. The sensational The difficulties are reflected in the annual re- ∂∞% dividend paid in ±∫±π, following an out- ports. Big write-offs on stock were made in standing year, fell to a more normal ≤∞% in both ±∫≤∫ and ±∫≥∞, and from ±∫≤π to ±∫≥≤, not

1898-1940 24 a single piece of equipment was purchased for the factory. The annual reports continue to show a de- ficit up to and including ±∫≥≤. In ±∫≥±, the de- ficit would have been greater than the share capital, and it became necessary to sell part of the “family silver”. This was possible because Kjærs Mølle owned ±≤ hectares of farmland. This land was parcelled out and sold for the building of private homes from ±∫≥± to ±∫≥∏. To this day, street names such as “Kjærs Mølle Vej” [Kjærs Mølle Street], Væverens Vej” [Weaver Street] and “Spolen” [The Spool] bear witness that the area once belonged to Kjærs Mølle. Proceeds of the sale of this land, rather than the manufacture of cloth, brought Kjærs Mølle safely through the difficult years from ±∫≤± to about ±∫≥∂. These earnings provided money for the necessary expansion and mod- ernisation of the looms in ±∫≥≥, and in ±∫≥µ, di- vidends were paid to shareholders for the first time in many years.

Whims of fashion An advertisement from ±∫≤≤ for the shop. From the beginning of the ≤∞th century, fash- ion had played an important role in invest- precisely that there will not be something left ment-making decisions at Kjærs Mølle. In spite over.” of the success enjoyed in the early ±∫∞∞s, in ±∫∞±, the company’s bookkeeper expressed his In ±∫≤∑, a publication containing a large num- concern about the expenses incurred in keep- ber of advertisements for Kjærs Mølle’s pro- ing up with changing fashions: ducts was issued to commemorate the compa- “At the present time, the range is comprised ny’s ∏∂th anniversary. In these advertisements of about ±∑∞ different qualities with at least Kjærs Mølle’s clothing textiles were said to be ∏∞∞ designs. (...) In addition to making a draft modern in both pattern and colour and resis- and starting up, just the making of new pat- tant to wear and tear. The fabric for sale in- terns for the two seasons requires the work of cluded cloth for making women’s dresses, two men at the pattern looms for a long time, coats, men’s wear of worsted yarn as well as and, then, in order to make such a large selec- “clothes as strong as iron for boys“! At that tion of patterns, one must have a correspond- time, the factory also made upholstery fabric ing stock of raw materials of many different as well as rugs and woollen yarn. qualities. Finally, the stock of finished goods This publication appeared during Kjærs will often be bigger than is advisable because Mølle’s period of crisis, in which foreign-made one can never adjust production to sales so goods threatened goods produced in Denmark.

1898-1940 25 English worsted cloth was a serious competitor, and Kjærs Mølle countered this by making its own worsted fabric. In this period of adversity, Kjærs Mølle appealed to the national conscience, and on the first page of the anniversary publica- tion beneath the heading “Think about it!” it says: “When you buy Danish cloth for making clothes, you provide work for Danish workers – Prosperity increases – The worker can again buy your products. – You benefit Society and Yourself!”

As equipment in the factory aged and was not replaced, it naturally became more and more difficult to live up to the demands of fashion. Wo- men’s fashions, in particular, were changeable, and it was perhaps for this reason that Kjærs Mølle apparently changed course in the ±∫≥∞s and began to place greater emphasis on cloth for men’s suits and for making uniforms. The factory maintained a retail outlet in Kjærs Mølles Udsalg in Nytorv, but in ±∫≥∏, this was sold and became an independent limited company.

Fewer employees, shorter hours

The bad times also affected employment at Kjærs Mølle, and the number of employees fell from ±∑∂ in ±∫∞± to about ∂∞ in the ±∫≤∞s. A.P. Wibroe once again became the town’s largest manufacturer of textiles, and, after merging with a local weaving mill, that factory was called De Forenede Tekstil- fabrikker and employed almost ≥∞∞ workers. Those who kept their jobs at Kjærs Mølle were forced to work shorter hours for long periods of time, and many of the machines lay idle as de- Above: Fashion-conscious girls and young scribed in these reminiscences from about ±∫∂±: women wearing “Kjærs Mølle’s nationally known “In ±∫≤π, employment had fallen off so pea-jacket cloth”. much that only a small part of the spinning Below: Kjærs Mølle manufactured upholstery mill was in operation, and only ≤π of the weav- fabric in the ±∫≤∞s, but this was of secondary ing mill’s µπ looms, and for a period of about ∫ importance at that time. months for only µ days a week, and for a long Both illustrations from the ±∫≤∑ anniversary time after that for ∂ days.” (A normal working publication. week was six days).

1898-1940 26 Naturally, this influenced wages, and in ±∫≤∫, celling out of the ±≤ ±/≤ hectares of land was the textile workers demanded a return to a nor- completed in ±∫≥∏. In ±∫≥π, when this sale mal µπ-hour working week and higher wages. could no longer “improve” the annual reports, a modest deficit was shown. A turn around In the factory, the weavers continued to earn the had occurred by ±∫≥∫; the report for that year highest wage. In ±∫≤π, the average wage for a showed a profit of almost ∂∞,∞∞∞ Danish kro- weaver was ±±π øre per hour, compared to ±±∞ øre ner, and a dividend of µ% was paid to share- per hour for a spinner. The male weavers earned holders. more than the female. In ±∫≤π, a male weaver Turnover increased, as did the number of earned an average of ±≤± øre per hour, while a employees. In ±∫≥∞, the textile workers’ union woman earned only π∂ øre per hour. In ±∫≤π, the listed µ∞ members employed at Kjærs Mølle, quick fingers of the ∂ female seamstresses gave and in ±∫≥∫, the number had increased to ∂≥. them an average hourly wage of ±±∏ øre. The number of weavers increased from ±∂ to ≤≤ during the same period. There were apparently few significant conflicts between the union and Kjærs Mølle in this pe- The factory continued to make use of foreign la- riod. The archives of the textile workers’ union, bour when Danish workers with suitable qualifi- Tekstilarbejderforbundet, describe primarily cations could not be found. We know, for exam- small disagreements. Due to the company’s ple, that in August ±∫≥∫, the residence-permit of long period of crisis, the union undoubtedly a German employee was extended by ∑ months, saw little hope of negotiating higher wages. specifically on the condition that his Danish re- When in ±∫≥µ the spinners expressed their dis- placement be trained as quickly as possible. satisfaction with their earnings, the union in- Foreign labour was also hired at manage- formed them that their wage, a combination of ment level. Around ±∫≥π-≥∫, the managing an hourly wage and a rate for piecework, was director since ±∫≥≤, V. Bärnholt, retired and “considerably higher than what was earned at was replaced by a Swede, Folke Müller. Textile many other textile factories”. manufacturing was more highly developed in Sweden than in Denmark, and it was, therefore, Progress prior to the occupation natural to seek a qualified manager there. But Folke Müller differed from his colleagues in Toward the end of the ±∫≥∞s, there was again more than nationality – during the war, his cause for optimism at Kjærs Mølle. The par- sympathies lay with the Germans.

1898-1940 27 Good years in a difficult period ±∫µ∞-±∫µ∂

The war years were unusual ones for Kjærs There is, however, no indication that goods Mølle. Throughout the period of the Ger- were sold to the German occupation forces. man occupation of Denmark, no wool could The good times meant a steady increase be imported, and it became necessary to use in employees who often had to work over- the poorer quality Danish wool and imagina- time. It may well have been the pressure of tive wool substitutes. Although the quality too much work and the strict discipline exer- was not as good as that previously used, de- cised by the director that created an atmos- mand was great and earnings high. The con- phere of unrest in the company in ±∫µ≥. tinued profitable operation of the factory When liberation came, the director fled. made it possible to purchase new equip- The Communists had a strong position in the ment. In this situation, it was an advantage factory, and they forced the resignation of two to have a director who was friendly with the salaried employees. Not until the autumn of Germans and had good connections to ±∫µ∂ was an atmosphere of calm restored to German manufacturers of textile machinery. Kjærs Mølle.

Machines from Germany Folke Müller did, however, make good use of his connections to German manufacturers When the Germans occupied Denmark on ∫ of textile machinery. These connections eased April ±∫µ∞, the manufacturing conditions at the purchase of new, updated equipment in Kjærs Mølle underwent a dramatic change. First Germany, and the factory’s production facili- and foremost, the import of wool was brought to ties underwent a much-needed modernisation. an immediate halt, and Kjærs Mølle had to seek When necessary, Folke Müller could also ac- other raw materials. But in spite of the decline quire spare parts quickly from Germany. in the quality of the goods, demand on the Dan- Until ±∫µ≤, the weaving mill was divided ish market was great and profits were high. into several departments on the first and se- Kjærs Mølle could once again afford to make cond floors, and the warps were hauled up large investments in manufacturing equipment. through the lift shaft. But in ±∫µ≤, a new weav- During the occupation, Kjærs Mølle con- ing room and a new sewing workroom stood tinued to manufacture for the Danish market. ready for use. That same year, ten German Although the question naturally arises because Schönherr power looms were installed, and in Managing Director Folke Müller was known to ±∫µ≥ four new looms were added. have Nazi sympathies, there is nothing to sug- gest that Kjærs Mølle worked for the Germans Kjærs Mølle’s financial situation remained sta- during the period of occupation. ble throughout the occupation. All the annual

1940-1945 28 reports during this period showed profits, and The retail shop, Kjærs Mølle Udsalg, at Nytorv in an annual dividend of ∂%, certainly a reasonable ±∫µ∞. Among other things, the shop sold clothes amount in these troubled times, was paid manufactured at Kjærs Mølle. Until the shop closed throughout the entire period of the occupation. in the early ±∫∑∞s, placards in local buses read: Demand was great, and this pushed prices “Kjærs Mølle’s clothes are as strong as leather”. up. Prices could not be freely set, however, and at one point, price control authorities forced to start again, the µπ-hour working week was Kjærs Mølle to reduce the cost of so-called compressed into ∂ instead of the usual ∑ days, “maximum goods”, i.e. goods that could con- in order to reduce heating costs. tain only a certain amount of wool in addition to old rags and similar content. Working conditions during the occupation The machines were powered both by electrici- ty supplied by the public mains and by steam. In spite of the difficult conditions, Kjærs Mølle’s The fuel used was lignite mined near the town financial situation improved during the occupa- of Herning. tion and provided positive benefits for the work- Fuel supplies were scant, and in February ers. It was a feather in the cap of the textile work- ±∫µ∂, it was necessary to stop production al- ers’ union when in ±∫µ± the union negotiated together for a period. When it became possible that, like the salaried employees, workers paid by

1940-1945 29 Upper left: Bobbins on frames ready for weaving law against working overtime. In spite of the in the new weaving room. advertisements placed, it had proved impossi- Lower left: Threads on a beam in the warping ble to find new workers, and ±∑ female workers room. had worked from ±∞∞ to ±∂∞ hours of overtime. Upper right: Inspection of a piece of woven cloth. A sensor stops the loom when a thread breaks. Although there were a number of small strikes Lower right: A piece of woven cloth hung on the in the years of the occupation, generally speak- «hauling bars» for inspection. The burler, or ing, it appears that the relationship between seamstress, pulled the piece across the bars by management and workers at the factory remain- hand while checking for and marking defects. ed good until the early months of ±∫µ≥. In Jan- Photographs from ±∫µµ. uary ±∫µ≥, the head of the textile workers’ union in Aalborg complimented Kjærs Mølle for its the hour would also receive a bonus on the oc- good working conditions, a cost-of-living bonus casion of Kjærs Mølle’s ∫∞th anniversary. and a retirement scheme for the workers. Kjærs Mølle had so much work that in ±∫µ± But after this, the situation became heated in the factory requested an exemption from the more ways than one. In May ±∫µ≥, Kjærs Mølle ex-

1940-1945 30 panded from two shifts to three in the spinning mill and in the winding department. It may have been the large amount of work to be done that, in June ±∫µ≥, encouraged the textile workers’ union to try to negotiate a new piecework agreement with Managing Director Folke Müller. These ne- gotiations ended abruptly when (according to the union) the director, in a fit of rage, refused to admit the head of the union to the factory. An- other reason for the unrest may have been that Folke Müller was a strict disciplinarian. A week later, hot weather led to dissatisfac- tion: When the temperature in the new weaving room reached ≤πoC, the weavers went home. The company had tried to ensure good venti- lation in the weaving room, but this had an un- fortunate consequence, and several workers com- plained that draughts gave them “rheumatism in the head”. A fire drill. ±∫µ±.

Large orders led to more jobs. According to the wool”, a graphic description, clearly suggesting textile workers’ union, the number of employees the value this product would have had in normal engaged in manufacturing increased from ∂≥ in times. But in these years when nothing of a better ±∫≥∫ to ∫≥ in ±∫µ≥. But the composition of the quality was available, any kind of wool could be workforce had changed considerably in those used, and the “piss wool” was thoroughly washed four years. When the new power looms were start- and used in the production process. ed in ±∫µ≤, fewer weavers were needed, while, in But there was a lack of even poor quality wool. particular, more young women under the age of Kjærs Mølle began, therefore, to supply fabric ≤∞ were hired. The new looms did not, however, made of so-called “shoddy” or old woollen rags alter the fact that the weavers continued to earn and woollen fabric that was boiled, torn to pieces, the highest wage among the factory workers. carded and then spun and rewoven. The purchase of the new looms in ±∫µ≤ mark- The market was insatiable, and imagination ed the beginning of an era of mechanisation in came into play in finding alternative raw materi- the manufacturing process, calling for fewer pro- als from which to manufacture cloth. Paper was fessionally trained weavers. spun and woven into surprisingly strong rugs. The hair cut off by ladies’ hairdressers (the hair of “Piss wool”, paper and hair women often being longer than men’s hair) was collected, and the hair of dogs and horses was Immediately following the occupation of Den- also used in Kjærs Mølle’s cloth. mark by German forces in ±∫µ∞, the supply of wool from Australia and New Zealand ordinarily There was a pronounced lack of almost every- used by Kjærs Mølle came to a halt. Instead, it was thing, also in the homes of the employees, and, necessary to make do with poorer quality Danish not surprisingly, some probably found it diffi- wool. The poorest quality of all was known as “piss cult to resist temptation. In September ±∫µµ,

1940-1945 31 February ±∫µ∂ was a month to remember – first lowed Bartig’s lead in taking matters into their because of the freezing weather, next due to a lack own hands. Managing Director Folke Müller was of water in the river and, finally, toward the end of quick to realise that he was unwanted and return- the month, too little fuel. ed to Sweden a few days after liberation. But there were others who were generally disliked, and Managing Director Folke Müller complained there was again trouble at Kjærs Mølle at the end that at least ±∂ of the factory’s young girls had of August. The workers expelled two more sala- stolen yarn from the company. They were war- ried employees, ostensibly for Nazi sympathies. ned and denied the right to make employee They were probably right in one case, but the purchases of cloth for one year. other man was expelled simply because he had been too loyal to Folke Müller. Liberation and trouble The situation almost got out of hand when the Communists called for the occupation of the Denmark was liberated on µ May ±∫µ∂. At Kjærs factory, but this request gave one of the weavers Mølle, however, as in many other places through- second thoughts, and he encouraged a more out the country, long-suppressed feelings were level-headed look at things. Bartig was later given free rein when it came time to settle ac- sacked, and the situation at Kjærs Mølle gradu- counts. The Communists had played a very active ally calmed down. role in resisting the Germans and had won many The liberation was also celebrated more supporters. There were also quite a few Commu- quietly. A bale of fine, Australian wool hidden nists at Kjærs Mølle. One of them was engineer away throughout the period of the occupation Bartig, and it was he who organised the events was brought out of hiding. The much-coveted that occurred during the first µ to ∂ months fol- fabric was sold to the employees who were soon lowing liberation. distinguishable from other citizens of Aalborg by their high quality woollen garments: The Anger with those who had shown German sym- men in suits of grey and brown blends, and the pathies was great, and, therefore, the workers fol- women in fine coats and skirts.

1940-1945 32 On track again ±∫µ∂-±∫∂∫

After the war, Kjærs Mølle turned its back on in the organisation and in the manufacturing wool replacements and began once again to process but quickly put Kjærs Mølle back on use genuine wool. Odense Kamgarnsspinderi track with just a few investments, thus ena- purchased a controlling interest in Kjærs bling the company to satisfy growing demands Mølle in ±∫µπ and invested considerable for modern clothing fabric. sums in new, necessary machinery. Despite its Kjærs Mølle’s organisation was hierarchi- apparently strong position, Kjærs Mølle was cal. While this was in keeping with the times, nonetheless threatened by bankruptcy in it did not promote confidence and coopera- ±∫∂±-∂≤ due to unforeseen consequences of tion. At that time, investments in the environ- the Korean War. The company was restruc- ment and the working environment were not tured and Michael Zacho hired as managing considered necessary aspects of operating a director. He discovered significant problems successful enterprise.

Readjustment to peace ±∫µ∏ and ±∫µπ. In ±∫µ∫, a new oil-burning boiler was installed, and the use of the air-polluting Even though the war was over, there continued lignite was discontinued. A water mill supplied to be shortages. Until the early ±∫∂∞s, the textile the energy for operating the joinery workshop, industries had to requisition raw materials, but this was stopped around ±∫∂∞, at which time semi-manufactured goods, machinery and spare the last steam engine also ceased operation. parts, and these were then distributed by a com- mittee comprised of the textile manufacturer’s Odense Kamgarnsspinderi buys a organisation, Textilfabrikantforeningen, and the controlling interest Supply Office [Direktoratet for Vareforsyning]. The use of poor quality wool and wool re- Until ±∫µ∏, four shareholders owned a majority placement products continued until it once more of the shares in Kjærs Mølle. One of them was became possible to import wool. Australian wool Harald Bech, who was managing director from came to Aalborg by lorry or ship via Copenhagen. ±∫µ∂ to ±∫µ∏. As all of the four shareholders As it had during the war, Kjærs Mølle man- were approaching retirement age and wanted aged reasonably well in spite of a shortage of to turn the business over to the younger gen- supplies, helped, among other things, by the eration, they decided to sell their shares in fact that the domestic market was still protected ±∫µ∏. The names of the buyers were Engel- by import restrictions. The company turned a brecht and Oppen, the latter being Engel- profit, shareholders were paid a dividend of ∂ to brecht’s son-in-law. The company was not long ∑%, and new equipment was purchased in both in the hands of these men, however, as shortly

1945-1959 33 New wool on its way through the willowing works ber to π∞ looms (compared to µπ in ±∫µ∞). where it will be plucked and cleaned. Odense Kamgarnsspinderi’s ownership meant that the focus on worsted yarn incre- after purchasing the shares in Kjærs Mølle, ased at Kjærs Mølle, and the percentage of both were killed in a plane crash. worsted yarn manufactured increased from Late in ±∫µπ, therefore, Engelbrecht’s widow ≤.∂% in ±∫µπ to µ∞% in ±∫∂±. The emphasis was sold the Kjærs Mølle shares to the company, on material for making clothing for men and A/S Odense Kamgarnsspinderi. The Odense boys as well as, for example, women’s coats. enterprise already owned several textile com- In ±∫µ∫, there were ≤∂∞ employees, and for panies and manufactured, among other things, the most part, work was carried out in two the well-known “Hjertegarn”. shifts. The employees were finally granted a Odense Kamgarnsspinderi sent their office long-desired wish, and the first canteen with manager, Henry Petersen, to Kjærs Mølle where room for ±≤∂ employees was opened in ±∫µ∫. he took over the position of managing director. On ± May ±∫∂±, Kjærs Mølle celebrated its Under Henry Petersen’s leadership, necessary ±∞∞th anniversary. That was a day remembered investments in buildings and new equipment for years to come by those who took part in the were pushed forward. From ±∫µπ to ±∫∂∞, the celebrations. Along with speeches extolling the amount used to purchase new machines in- success of the company, a number of the older creased year by year from DKK ≤±∂,∞∞∞ to employees were honoured and presented with DKK ∏±≥,∞∞∞. At the same time, both turnover medals. and the amount of the dividend paid to share- holders also grew. War in Korea and crisis Kjærs Mølle got a share of the Marshall at the Mill Plan aid provided by the United States in order to help Western Europe in getting back on its The beautiful facade displayed at the ±∞∞th an- feet again after the war. In ±∫∂∞, ±µ American niversary began to crack soon thereafter. This looms were purchased, bringing the total num- time, unforeseen events on the opposite side of

1945-1959 34 the world resulted in crisis and a loss of jobs at Kjærs Mølle. The Korean War increased the prices of a number of goods, including wool. In the light of increasing sales, Managing Director Henry Pe- tersen had committed himself to the purchase of large quantities of high-priced wool. When prices suddenly dropped, he was left holding contracts for wool that was far too expensive.

Henry Petersen was sacked. Aage Larsen was appointed new managing director and given the difficult task of solving Kjærs Mølle’s - problems. The situation was made worse by the gradual lifting of import restrictions in the early ±∫∂∞s. This meant that Kjærs Mølle faced even stiffer competition from foreign goods on the domestic market. An architect’s drawing from ±∫µ∫, showing how the Both the deficit and the debt to, among main building would look after renovation. others, Odense Kamgarnsspinderi increased. In ±∫∂≤, Odense Kamgarnsspinderi together fective technical leadership as well as dissatis- with another large shareholder, A/S Bloch & faction and unrest among the factory workers. Behrens, had to decide whether to close Kjærs In ±∫∂µ, therefore, the board decided to do Mølle or to restructure the company. A deci- some internal housecleaning, and began to sion was made in favour of restructuring, and look for a new managing director who could Odense Kamgarnsspinderi converted ∏∞∞,∞∞∞ streamline Kjærs Mølle. Danish kroner of its outstanding debt to shares, while Bloch & Behrens converted ≥∞∞,∞∞∞ Zacho does some clearing out kroner. The share capital was thus increased from ± to ≤ million Danish kroner. As a part of In the summer of ±∫∂µ, the board found a man the agreement, Odense Kamgarnsspinderi agre- they had faith in, the ≥≥ year-old works manager ed to buy out Bloch & Behrens at a later date. at Junckers Klædefabrik in the town of Randers, This buy-out was completed in ±∫∂∂. Efficiency Michael Zacho. Zacho was an engineer and, in experts, among others, were hired to improve addition, had studied textiles at the Tekstil- the efficiency of the manufacturing process, and hochschule in Zürich, Switzerland. He took over the practise of work sharing was introduced. The his new position in November ±∫∂µ, but already annual report for ±∫∂≥ showed a reduction of the in October of that year he received a letter from deficit to ±µ≥,∞∞∞ Danish kroner, but in ±∫∂µ, Edouard Saerens, managing director of Odense sales were down; the deficit increased with Kamgarnsspinderi giving him some impression alarming speed and reached nearly half a million of just how bad the situation was. Based on an kroner in the first π months of that year. audit of the accounts, Saerens concluded: Aage Larsen was not able to pull Kjærs “There are far too many people employed for Mølle out of the difficulties. The enterprise was the amount manufactured. By the same token, characterised by management problems, inef- the management provided by the executive staff

1945-1959 35 is also very poor and this leads to scamped work, on the warp threads, and as the looms were in idleness and goods of poor quality.” operation all the time, the lack of a thread in There were apparently not many who the warp direction could easily occur. The thought that Michael Zacho would succeed in pieces we wove were checked for flaws on a saving Kjærs Mølle. On his first day on the job, table. There was a spotlight under the table, so the head of the office staff, Miss Toppenberg, the defects were easy to see.” welcomed him by remarking that she had now The first improvements in equipment were worked for ±≥ managing directors! made in ±∫∂∑ to ±∫∂π: Some of the looms were Michael Zacho rolled up his sleeves and rebuilt for large shuttles, and ±∫∂∫ saw invest- after a couple of weeks had formed an impres- ments in new spinning and carding machines sion of the problems in manufacturing and in as well as looms. sales. Production planning was ineffective, resulting in many orders that were not com- New products pleted on time. Furthermore, the quality of the products was often poor, and many resources The factory’s product offerings were in great were, therefore, used in darning and burling. need of renewal. The mohair goods displayed The compilation of orders was inadequate as at a production meeting in ±∫∂∑, for example, many small quantities were made in too many were described as boring and “old lady like”. different designs and qualities. The sales de- This “dusty” image had to change if Kjærs partment was inefficient and was out of touch Mølle were to survive. with the market. And, finally, the way in which Zacho knew textiles and had a sense of col- the piecework system was organised made it our and pattern as well as of the qualities that difficult to determine actual labour costs. would appeal to the younger generation. The The manufacturing process was reorgan- factory continued to make small quantities of ised, but not without some controversy with material for men’s clothing, and renewal came the employees and the union. During ±∫∂∂, the in the form of new, fashionable textiles for light at the end of the tunnel was in sight. women. Soon after he took over the job, Zacho Turnover increased significantly in ±∫∂∑, and developed new, more fashionable summer and the manufacturing process was operating winter collections for women, and the results smoothly. Thanks to an influx of orders, the an- were not long in coming. These collections be- nual report for ±∫∂∂ showed a small profit, and came a Kjærs Mølle success. in the spring of ±∫∂∑, the number of employees In ±∫∂∑, Kjærs Mølle had also begun to use in manufacturing had grown to ±∏∞, that is, the synthetic fibres: So-called chemical fibres. The same level as when Zacho took over. first fabrics in which synthetic fibres were used Finances were tight during Zacho’s first years were nylon and polyester. Synthetic fibres made at Kjærs Mølle, and there was no money for headway, but woollen goods of worsted yarn and major replacements of equipment. Neither was it carded woollen yarn continued to dominate. possible to have a generous supply of spare parts Competition was stiff. In Denmark alone, on hand, and this sometimes led to long manu- over ≤∂ factories made clothing fabric in the facturing stoppages. Aage Jensen, who began as ±∫∂∞s. In spite of this, Kjærs Mølle soon regain- a weaver at Kjærs Mølle in ±∫∂∂, remembers the ed its position as one of the leading Danish looms he worked on as follows: manufacturers of fabric for the clothing indus- “The looms we worked on were terrible, and try. Limited exports were made in the ±∫∂∞s, the yarn was very bad. There were no lamellas primarily to Sweden.

1945-1959 36 Hierarchy and poor hearing

Class awareness was pronounced in the ±∫∂∞s. This was also true in the workplace and also at Kjærs Mølle. The salaried employees were “bet- ter” than the factory workers who were paid an hourly wage, and colleagues addressed one an- other using the formal personal pronoun, “De”, as well as the titles “Mr” and “Miss”. Factory wor- kers referred to the most poorly paid office wor- kers as “the collar proletariat” because they wore nice clothing and still earned less than any of those paid by the hour. Salaried employees and those who earned an hourly wage did not even use the same toilets. The master weaver held a higher position in the hierarchy than the tacklers who were higher than the weavers who, in turn, were more highly placed than the spinners. The burlers were often paid less than the weavers, but, on the other hand, had to point out the mistakes made by the weavers when faults were found in the woven cloth. The unskilled workers were at the bottom of the ladder. The older weavers trained the new weavers for three months, and for this they were paid a bonus. The weavers-in-training had to do the worst jobs, and every Saturday when the looms were cleaned, they had to empty the residue of chewing tobacco and snuff from the spittoons used by the older weavers. Brown spots on the looms and walls bore witness to the poor aim of some of the weavers. Uppermost in the hierarchy was, of course, the managing director who from November ±∫∂µ was Michael Zacho. Contrary to many of his predecessors, Zacho was often seen in the fac- tory and was well known by all the workers. Above: The reception area in ±∫µπ, today the Leaders of that time were expected to demon- office of the managing director. Customers and strate the kind of leadership that left no one in suppliers were served at the counter. doubt as to who was boss. Zacho was that kind of Below: Fabric finishing machine, ±∫µπ. The woven leader, but this was not a style that suited every- fabric was heated in this machine for stabilising. one. Many discovered, however, that Zacho re- This was one of the final processes before the spected those who stood up for their rights. fabric was ready for sale.

1945-1959 37 River water was used both in the manufacturing out any activities unrelated to their jobs. A little process and for cleaning up after a hard day’s work. over ±∞ years later, Zacho pointed out that the The ±∫∂∞s. enterprise lost large sums of money due to the thoughtlessness of the workers. When he expressed the opinion that it was possi- Today, when you talk to people who worked ble to work in the wool storeroom regardless of in the factory in the ±∫∂∞s and ±∫∑∞s, you have biting cold and lightweight work clothes, one to speak up, as almost all of them have suffered of the storeroom workers threatened to quit, hearing loss. The looms were extremely noisy and Zacho gave in. in those days, and not until the end of the The prevailing tone in the workplace was ±∫∂∞s did some of the weavers begin to protect harsher than what we are accustomed to today, their hearing a little with cotton wool. and squabbles occasionally resulted in strikes The lighting was poor as well. Lamps were – also at Kjærs Mølle. small and were hung at random above the looms. The system of hierarchy sometimes gave the These lamps were replaced by lamps with large workers the impression that they were not ap- shades, so-called “pig lamps”; while these pro- preciated, and this, in turn, had a negative in- vided better light, they cast shadows when a fluence on morale. Former weaver, Aage Jensen, weaver bent over the work. has the following recollection: No one knew that workers were inhaling “There was certainly no interest in cooper- poisonous fumes given off by the containers of ating with the ordinary worker, he was just a dye. And there were great temperature fluctua- necessary evil that you couldn’t do without, tions in the factory. When it was cold outside, and, of course, this had an influence in the work- it was sometimes so bitingly cold inside that place, so people did what was required and no work had to cease. And when it was hot out- more. There was no flexibility, no one wanted side, the heat inside was often so intense that to be moved from the machines they were fa- water to which ammonia had been added was miliar with, so nobody learned anything new...” sprinkled about to freshen the air. Management felt that the workers showed a Environment and working environment lack of responsibility, and in ±∫µπ it was stres- were unfamiliar expressions, and their time sed that workers were not permitted to carry would not come for a number of years.

1945-1959 38 New raw materials and markets ±∫∂∫-±∫∏∏

In the ±∫∑∞s, Kjærs Mølle increased invest- itself in the manufacture of woollen uphol- ments to purchase, among other things, new stery fabrics that was to become the basis of looms without shuttles – a technological rev- future operations. olution – for the weaving mill. Computer-con- Globalisation became a new catchword, trolled dyeing machines were added in ±∫∏∂, and markets in both Western and Eastern foreshadowing an era of new technology. Europe grew in importance. In the ±∫∑∞s, the Sales of clothing fabric increased steadi- organisation became slightly less hierarchi- ly in keeping with the level of welfare in Den- cal. But conflicts often led to strikes, in par- mark, and, generally speaking, the ±∫∑∞s ticular when piecework rates were involved. were golden years for Kjærs Mølle. Wool was The environment found a place on the not the raw material of choice in the ±∫∑∞s. agenda. In ±∫∏∂, Kjærs Mølle invested in a Synthetic fibres were suitable for making chemical purification plant that reduced fabric for clothing and grew in popularity. both pollution of the river and the use of But Kjærs Mølle found a niche market for river water significantly.

Investments, reorganisation forth across the loom. The number of picks per and computers minute increased from approx. ∏∂ to almost ≥∞∞, and one weaver could now operate ten looms. As Kjærs Mølle’s financial situation gradually Mechanisation of the looms also increased improved, it became possible to purchase new the amount of cloth that could be made, as manufacturing equipment and to introduce a each loom was ±∞ times as productive as the higher level of mechanisation. This was a pre- looms used in the ±∫∂∞s. All in all, mechanisa- requisite for continued development. tion meant an enormous increase in efficiency In ±∫∑≤, the American looms bought in the and capacity. days of the Marshall Plan were retired and re- Computers were also slowly beginning to placed by about ten Swiss Saurer power looms. revolutionise industry. In ±∫∏≥, the book- Each weaver could now operate four looms, com- keeping department at Kjærs Mølle introdu- pared to previously two. Less fortuitous was the ced data processing with the purchase of an purchase from East Germany of some looms of Ascota machine that according to the in-house poor quality that were often in need of repair. newsletter “... can do everything on the condi- The first Swiss Sulzer looms were installed in tion, of course, that a woman sits and feeds ±∫∑∂. They had no shuttles and represented a numbers and paper into it”. This marvel that technological revolution in weaving. The weav- was to ease the work of the bookkeepers cost ing was done using a “dart” that raced back and ≤∂,∞∞∞ Danish kroner.

1959-1977 39 In ±∫∏∑, Kjærs Mølle had existed for ±≤∂ years, an occasion that was celebrated in style at Hotel Hvide Hus in Aalborg.

Fabric for clothing and upholstery

From the ±∫∑∞s to ±∫∏∏, the factory’s use of syn- thetic fibres accelerated. The development of synthetic fibres worldwide moved ahead quick- ly, beginning with nylon just after the ≤nd World War. This was later followed by polyester, Dralon and polypropylene. It was natural for Kjærs Mølle to concentrate on synthetic fibres, as these had several obvious advantages in the manufacture of fabric for cloth- ing. Synthetic fibres are stronger than wool and can be spun to finer yarn. Their strength also makes for fewer stoppages. For the buyer of cloth- ing fabric, there is also the advantage of smooth- er material without folds. The disadvantages, on From the left, Production Manager Knud Wosylus, the other hand, are poorer thermal characteris- Shop Steward Erik Eriksen and Managing Director tics and less capacity for moisture absorption Michael Zacho. Photograph from ±∫∏∑. than Nature’s own product, wool. Yarns containing synthetic fibres were In the factory, computer-controlled, punch often used when making large quantities of card-coded dyeing machines were purchased material for clothing. For long periods of time, around ±∫∏∂. the looms were operated in three shifts to keep up with demand. Director Zacho travelled from As prosperity increased in Denmark, more and one end of Europe to the other in order to more people could afford to buy fashionable keep up with fashions, so Kjærs Mølle could al- clothing. The carefree ∑∞s and the consumer ways supply clothing fabric representing the society were on the horizon. Comprehensive very latest in pattern, colour and quality. investments at Kjærs Mølle meant that from From the end of the ±∫∑∞s, clothing fabric the early ±∫∑∞s and for the following ±∂ years, met with increasing competition from the Far the company was able to sell its clothing fabric East, and, in the long run, Kjærs Mølle could at the same price per metre. This made the not hold its own in competition with the low- company price competitive, and the focus wage countries of Asia. The company gradually shifted to quantity and fewer designs. returned to its point of departure, wool. This While automation increased the amount of meant that curtain fabric and especially up- cloth manufactured, the number of employees holstery fabric gained in importance. decreased. In ±∫∑∞, there were ≤∑∂ employees; Upholstery fabric of pure, new wool was still in ±∫∑∑ this number had dropped to ±π∂ and in just a niche market for Kjærs Mølle. But the ±∫∏∑ to ±≥∂. company had great expertise in this area, and

1959-1977 40 in ±∫∏∞, Kjærs Mølle won a gold medal for two upholstery fabrics exhibited at an internation- al textile exhibition in Sacramento, California. Engineer Jarl Nyebølle was responsible for the development of the upholstery fabrics and de- signed most of them himself. The design Tonus, among others, was created around this time for a chair designed by Arne Jacobsen. Competition within the field of upholstery materials differed somewhat from competition in clothing fabric. Fabric used for upholstery was not nearly so dependent on changes in fash- ion as fabric for clothing. Around ±∫∏∞, six Dan- ish companies competed on the clothing fab- ric market, and imports from other European countries were on the increase. Kjærs Mølle concentrated its efforts on ex- pensive materials of high quality. Most of the upholstery fabrics made were of pure, new wool, but wool-viscose mixes were also used. Among the customers then were the Danish wholesaler, Kvadrat Boligtekstiler A/S, as well Kjærs Mølle prior to ±∫∏≥. Although today the fac- as the textile wholesaler, Gabriel Boligtekstiler tory is inside the city limits, it is apparent that it is ApS, in Fredericia. The latter entered the pic- situated in a low-lying area near the Østerå River. ture later in an entirely different capacity. In ±∫∑π, opportunities arose on a previous- Out in the world ly unknown market – in Communist East Ger- many. All trade with that country was carried Well into the ±∫∑∞s, Kjærs Mølle manufactured out in precise accordance with a trade agree- almost solely for the domestic market, but the ment between Denmark and East Germany, Danish market was becoming too small for the and the orders came from the central purchas- Danish makers of clothing fabric. In the mid- ing agency in East Berlin. In ±∫∑π-∑∫, ±∞% of ±∫π∞s, Aalborg’s largest textile factory, De Fore- Kjærs Mølle’s production was sold in East Ger- nede Tekstilfabrikker, ceased operations. This many, but after a couple of years, exports to fate was shared by the other Danish textile fac- that country dwindled. Instead, Kjærs Mølle tories in the decades following the ±∫∑∞s. made great progress in Austria, the company’s Kjærs Mølle began to look beyond the Danish largest export market in ±∫∏±. borders, and from the mid-±∫∑∞s, exports incre- And then another opportunity in Eastern ased. The Swedish market was developed, and Europe presented itself, this time in the Soviet contact was made with salesmen in Norway, Fin- Union. The orders from this quarter were so land, Switzerland, England and the United States. large that in the early ±∫∏∞s Kjærs Mølle estab- Kjærs Mølle also began to display its products at lished a spinlon spinning mill and knitting exhibitions in other countries. In ±∫∑∏-∑π, exports works specifically to supply the Soviet market. accounted for approx. ≤∂% of Kjærs Mølle’s sales. Big rolls of fabric woven of worsted yarn with

1959-1977 41 The manufacturing process toward the end of the ±∫∏∞s. From the upper left corner: Winding, knitting, weaving, dyeing bunting, dyeing raw wool, and at the lower right, a perchlor cleaning machine.

1959-1977 42 interwoven threads of silver and gold, a prod- hours. This particular ban was not respected, uct that had no appeal on the Danish market, and more than a few workers nearly choked on were also supplied to the Soviet Union. pieces of bread or apple when one of the su- Exports to the Soviet Union fell sharply to- pervisors walked through the door. ward the end of the ±∫∏∞s when the Russians forced prices down to an unprofitable level, and Working environment and the knitting works closed in the early ±∫π∞s. the surrounding environment

Virtues and conflicts In ±∫∑∑, the Safety Committee took a closer look at women’s legs. The reason was that many Although the hierarchical organisational struc- of the women who stood up on the job came to ture continued to be the order of the day in the work wearing “anything from gilded dancing workplace, distinctions became less pronoun- shoes to old, worn out slippers”. This was harm- ced in the ±∫∑∞s and ±∫∏∞s. Little by little, use ful to the legs and back, and the Committee of the less formal personal pronoun, “du”, be- strongly advised against such footwear. came more common when addressing colleagu- Apart from this, the working environment es. Zacho celebrated his own change over to was rarely a matter of discussion. In the facto- this form with a company party, but he contin- ry, the workers were supposed to protect their ued to address people using their surnames. hearing with cotton wool, but most would not. Some of the other old virtues remained in In the ±∫∏∞s, a sound-absorbing material was place in the office, and job applicants were not hung below the ceiling in the weaving mill, but hired on the basis of their school leaving papers hearing protection was still not used. alone. They had to demonstrate their capabili- Since the founding of Kjærs Mølle, the ties by taking tests in writing and arithmetic. waste water from the dye works had gone di- Dissatisfied factory workers had short fuses. rectly into the river. A glance at the river gave And when the shout, “Strike”, was suddenly passers-by a pretty good idea of what Kjærs heard, everything came to a halt, often without Mølle was currently making. everyone knowing in the beginning what the Kjærs Mølle took its first big initiative with strike was all about. It might be due to a dis- regard to the environment in the mid-±∫∏∞s. agreement about the adjustment of piecework Enormous amounts of river water were used for rates, for example, following the purchase of washing raw materials, as much as ±,∞∞∞ m≥ per new looms. day. Together with the waste water, up to ≤∞ Many things were forbidden in the ±∫∑∞s tons of sulphates were pumped into the Østerå and ±∫∏∞s, but, in some cases, permission was River every year. This stopped in ±∫∏∂ when given for things that would not be allowed today. Kjærs Mølle, as the first factory in Scandinavia Considerable amounts of alcohol were consum- to do so, purchased a chemical purification ed in some departments during working hours plant, an act that was considered to be a great before an agreement was reached that entitled step forward at the time. This greatly reduced each employee to drink one beer per day. water consumption, and chemicals could be After smoking was forbidden in the factory, used several times over before finally being the smoke in the toilets became so thick that sent to the national waste treatment plant, Zacho once again had to allow smoking in the Kommunekemi, for breaking down. Use of the factory. Today it is more difficult to understand chemical purification plant also conserved that it was forbidden to eat during working energy, as less heat was needed for drying.

1959-1977 43 From Kjærs Møller to Gabriel ±∫∏∏-±∫π∂

Significant changes were made in Kjærs percentage of goods supplied to export mar- Mølle’s business strategy during the eight kets. years from ±∫∏∏ to ±∫π∂. In ±∫π∞, Søren Gabriel took over as man- In ±∫∏∫, the company was purchased joint- aging director. He contacted the current ly by the employees and the Gabriel family; chairman of the board, Poul H. Lauritsen, who the latter already owned the wholesale textile convinced the pension funds associated with business, Gabriel Boligtekstiler, in the town PKA to invest in Kjærs Mølle and Gabriel. In of Fredericia. Through this combination, ±∫π≥, Gabriel and Kjærs Mølle merged to be- Kjærs Mølle gained a permanent market for come a single group with Gabriel Boligtekstil- its upholstery fabric, and the Gabriel compa- er A/S as the parent company. In ±∫πµ, the ny secured a guaranteed, reliable supply of group was listed by the Copenhagen Stock Ex- fabric. As to the product range, Gabriel’s in- change for the first time. fluence increased the importance of woollen In ±∫π∂, the entire enterprise moved to upholstery fabric in relation to other textiles. Aalborg. That same year, the current manag- Concentration on this niche market, uphol- ing director, Jørgen Kjær Jacobsen, replaced stery fabric, made it necessary to increase the Søren Gabriel in that position.

Kjærs Mølle for sale All the employees were informed of the plans, and the will and ability of the employees While ±∫∏∏ and ±∫∏π were years of stability for to contribute capital was evaluated. It soon be- Kjærs Mølle, the future remained unsure. This came apparent that a financially strong part- was due to the financial difficulties of the own- ner would be needed. ers, Odense Kamgarnsspinderi. In Aalborg, office and factory workers alike The employees and Gabriel make were worried about how the management in a purchase Odense would tackle the situation. Kjærs Mølle was, after all, the group’s biggest asset, but The first possible future partner at the negotia- Odense Kamgarnsspinderi was in dire need of ting table was the Aalborg textile manufacturer, additional capital in order to sustain operations. De Forenede Tekstilfabrikker, but no agreement Kjærs Mølle’s management considered care- was reached. The Danish textile wholesaler, fully how they could influence developments Kvadrat, was also in the picture at one point. and speculated as to whether the workers in The third possibility was the wholesale busi- Aalborg would be able to buy Kjærs Mølle. A ness, Gabriel Boligtekstiler ApS, in Fredericia, a decision was made to make the attempt. company that carried a wide range of high

1977-1985 44 quality upholstery and curtain fabric, rugs, car- pets and wall-to-wall carpeting. A former engi- neer at Kjærs Mølle, Jarl Nyebølle, who in the late ±∫∑∞s had started the niche production of upholstery fabric at Kjærs Mølle, now worked at Gabriel’s wool spinning mill in the town of Thi- sted. Kjærs Mølle’s management contacted the Gabriel family via Nyebølle. Gabriel Boligtekstiler ApS was founded by Robert Gabriel in ±∫µ≥. He still headed the com- pany, along with his two sons, Søren and Palle Gabriel. By becoming part owners of the pro- duction facilities in Aalborg, Kjærs Mølles Fabri- ker A/S, the Gabriel family could guarantee the wholesaler Gabriel a reliable supply of mer- chandise. Negotiations with Odense Kamgarnsspinde- ri for the take over of Kjærs Mølle were complet- ed in January ±∫∏∫. The agreed price was DKK ∑ The first computer-controlled equipment for million. Kjærs Mølle would continue to be a lim- precision dyeing was purchased in ±∫πµ. ited company with Søren Gabriel as the chair- man of the board and Michael Zacho as man- they competed for the leadership of Kjærs Mølle. aging director. The two men were also the largest In the summer of ±∫π∞, Michael Zacho left Kjærs shareholders. In order to increase operating Mølle after ≤∂ years of service, and Søren Gabri- capital and reduce taxes, the looms were sold to el became the new managing director. a limited partnership that leased them back to Kjærs Mølles Fabriker A/S. An increase in investment capi- tal and in woollen upholstery Kjærs Mølle continued to manufacture fabric fabric for the clothing industry, but, according to plan, primarily supplied Gabriel Boligtekstiler ApS. In Following the split, Søren Gabriel contacted so- ±∫∏∫, Kjærs Mølle made a bid to supply uniform licitor Poul H. Lauritsen in Århus to draw up the fabric to the manufacturer of Danish military papers dealing with Zacho’s resignation. On uniforms, Statens Konfektionsfabrik. The order that occasion, Poul H. Lauritsen inspected the went to Kjærs Mølle and remained there until accounts and recommended that fresh capital the end of ±∫π∂, by which time the contract was be invested in Kjærs Mølle to ensure continued no longer profitable. Finally, loosely woven fab- expansion and to repurchase the equipment ric for flag bunting, curtains and rugs was made taken over by the limited partnership. for the Russian market, but this product line was At that time, Danish pension funds were discontinued over a period of years. beginning to show an interest in investing a In the meantime, Managing Director Micha- part of their considerable assets in good, solid el Zacho and Chairman of the Board Søren Ga- Danish businesses. Poul H. Lauritsen had pre- briel discovered that they did not work well to- viously advised the pension funds associated gether. Instead of complementing each other, with PKA in making such investments. In ±∫π±,

1977-1985 45 he was instrumental in encouraging some of ric of pure, new wool as an area with greater the PKA associated pension funds to purchase potential. The niche market strategy had come DKK ≥ million worth of Class B shares in Kjærs of age. Mølles Fabriker A/S. At the same time, the in- vestment in Class A shares was increased from Gabriel Boligtekstiler takes DKK ≤.∂ million to DKK ≥ million through the over Kjærs Mølle sale of additional shares. The Gabriel family owned a majority of the Class A shares, and the Cooperation between the wholesaler in Frede- remainder were owned by about ∂∞ employees. ricia and the factory in Aalborg became more Poul H. Lauritsen was elected to Kjærs Møl- intensified in the following years. In February le’s board of directors in ±∫π± to represent the ±∫π≥, the capital invested in Gabriel Boligtek- pension funds. By that time, it had become stiler was increased from DKK ∞.∫ million to clear that Kjærs Mølle was no longer a compet- DKK µ.∂ million. Two pension funds associated itive manufacturer of material for the clothing with PKA contributed DKK ∞.∫ million each. industry, nor for the loosely woven goods sold The private limited company was converted to the Soviet Union. Instead, a decision was into a corporation, and Poul H. Lauritsen made to focus on high quality upholstery fab- joined the board as the representative of the pension funds. In the ±∫π∞s, Savak was unquestionably the The decision to merge Kjærs Mølle and Ga- best-known Gabriel design. Shown here on classic briel Boligtekstiler was made in the autumn of furniture designed by Erik Jørgensen. ±∫π≥; Gabriel Boligtekstiler was to be the par-

1977-1985 46 ent company and Kjærs Mølle the subsidiary. Additional capital was invested in Gabriel Bo- ligtekstiler, bringing the total amount of the share capital to DKK ±∞.≥ million, and the take over of Kjærs Mølle could then be carried out with an exchange of shares. Poul H. Lauritsen has been chairman of the board of the Gabriel group, now Gabriel Holding A/S, since ±∫π≥ and has ensured conti- nuity in periods when many shares changed hands.

It soon became apparent that genuine synergy had resulted from cooperation between the factory and the wholesaler. Due to a large order for the export of upholstery fabric from King Saud University in Saudi Arabia, the an- nual reports for ±∫π≤-π≥ and for ±∫π≥-πµ show- Chairman of the Board Poul H. Lauritsen (on the ed handsome profits. Gabriel’s American im- right) and then Managing Director Søren Gabriel porter was instrumental in securing this order following the initial issue of shares in ±∫πµ. that was valued at over DKK ±≤ million over a two-year period. for operations. The company itself controlled fabric design and all the manufacturing pro- Gabriel goes public cesses, including treatment of the raw wool, spinning, weaving, wet processing, dyeing and In the winter of ±∫π≥-πµ, in order to continue the finishing of the upholstery fabric. In Den- expansion, the board decided to list Gabriel mark, Gabriel was known as a supplier of up- Boligtekstiler A/S on the Copenhagen Stock holstery fabric of high quality and outstand- Exchange, where a section for small and medi- ing design with a strong reputation among um-sized enterprises, called “Børs III”, had leading furniture makers. These included been established. The first issue was made in names like Kevi and Labofa in the contract April ±∫πµ, and new shares in the amount of furniture sector, Erik Jørgensen and Fritz Han- DKK ≥.∏ million were offered and purchased sen in the domestic sector as well as SAS and at three times the original offering price. All the Danish State Railways in the transport the company’s shares were now in the same sector. class and were valued at DKK ±µ million. This issue of new shares gave Gabriel fresh capital The addition of fresh capital from the issu- in the amount of approx. DKK ±∞.∂ million, ing of shares was necessary in order to carry and the net equity capital now totalled DKK out a much-needed modernisation of the ≤π million, or approx. ∂∞% of the company’s equipment in Aalborg and, not least, an ex- total assets. pansion of export activities. The latter was a logical consequence of the niche market The stock exchange listing was based on Ga- strategy – the Danish market was simply too briel’s “new” capabilities and sustainable basis small.

1977-1985 47 This picture, from a brochure describing the After a thorough clearing out at the factory in company, has led to much speculation as to the Aalborg, space was found for Gabriel’s stock length of the fabric, with estimates ranging from and an outlet for the sale of lengths of cloth. ∂ to ±∞∞∞ m. The actual length was ∂∞ m. The move was carried out in the spring of ±∫π∂, the company’s logistics were improved and the Gabriel moves to Aalborg property in Fredericia was sold. In the autumn of ±∫πµ, Managing Director In November ±∫π≥, Jørgen Kjær Jacobsen was Søren Gabriel announced that he wished to re- hired to serve as the sales manager responsible tire from his position for reasons of health in for the sale of products manufactured by Kjærs ±∫π∂. Mølles Fabriker A/S in Aalborg and as the sales Jørgen Kjær Jacobsen, then ≥≥ years old, be- and general manager of Gabriel Boligtekstiler came the new managing director, a position he A/S in Fredericia. He soon recommended clos- has held since October ±∫π∂. He came to the job ing Gabriel in Fredericia and moving all acti- with an international background and an edu- vities to Aalborg; this decision was made at a cation in trade and marketing economics, and board meeting in ±∫πµ. he naturally focussed on expansion of the ex- port market and the optimisation of production.

1977-1985 48 Capturing the niche market ±∫πµ-≤∞∞±

In February ±∫π∑, Gabriel and Kjærs Mølle tified company were taken. At the same time, merged to become the new Gabriel group. this provided the basis for the introduction The enterprise quickly began to cultivate its of a more modern, horizontal organisational particular niche market: high quality uphol- structure. Reflecting its position as a respon- stery fabrics for the contract market, the sible enterprise, Gabriel’s environmental transport market and the upscale domestic management has been certified since ±∫∫∑. furniture market. In ±∫∫±, the pension funds purchased the Serious efforts to achieve export success shares owned by the Gabriel family, thus ob- began in ±∫πµ. Results were not long in com- taining a ∑∞% interest in the company. In ing once the right designs and colour ranges ±∫∫∏, a group of prominent businessmen had been developed. Over a period of ±∑ bought up the shares held by the pension years, the percentage of Gabriel’s production funds. supplied to export markets increased from In the Gabriel of the future, Aalborg will ±∂% to ∏∂%. Despite occasional setbacks, be a centre of know-how, while processing maintaining a focus on long-term plans has and production will be carried out by a net- always quickly had a positive effect. work of partners all over the world. Gabriel A trimming of production facilities was can celebrate its ±∂∞th anniversary following begun in ±∫πµ. In ±∫ππ, the first steps toward the best fiscal year in the history of the com- becoming a fully documented ISO ∫∞∞± cer- pany.

One of the best-known Gabriel designs at Focussing on the niche market that time was Savak, woven of Greenland wool In ±∫πµ-π∂, all of Gabriel was in Aalborg, the and designed by Tove Kindt-Larsen in the early company had a solid financial base, and the ±∫∑∞s. In ≤∞∞±, Savak continues to be a classic, objective was clear: To achieve a significant popular design, primarily used for elegant, international position within the niche market high quality Danish furniture. of high quality, woollen upholstery fabrics for Kjærs Mølle also had important upholstery the contract market, the upscale domestic fur- fabrics to offer, for example, Tonus, originally niture market and the public transport sector. developed for the manufacturer of office furni- On ± February ±∫π∑, Gabriel Boligtekstiler ture, KEVI. This quality fabric has celebrated A/S and Kjærs Mølles Fabriker A/S merged. great triumphs all over the world and was later The new name was Gabriel A/S – a natural de- taken over by the textile wholesaler, Kvadrat, cision, considering Gabriel’s solid position in who over the years added new qualities and a the furniture trade. lovely range of colours to the design.

1984-2001 49 Boligtekstiler A/S, was reduced. Carpets, wall- to-wall carpets and a wide range of curtain fab- rics were discontinued during ±∫π∂ and ±∫π∑.

New designs in wool, an export success

Gabriel designated Germany as its growth market. In ±∫π≥, Jørgen Kjær Jacobsen made his first visit to Germany as sales manager and exhibited Gabriel’s designs all over the coun- try. The German furniture manufacturers prais- ed the quality, but described the patterns and designs as: “too Scandinavian for our market.” The furniture makers were most interested in the quality and appearance of the design, Dundee, but were not quite satisfied with its colours and durability. Colours were selected in cooperation with the first big customers, and efforts to improve the structure of the yarn were eventually successful. The pyramides were torn down, and SAS got a new image. In ±∫π≥ SAS chose Gabriel as their fabric At that time, wool had a rather “dusty” image, supplier. A visibly proud group manager presents and Gabriel’s intense efforts to create a new the finished result. range of colours led to a breakthrough for the company’s woollen upholstery fabrics. Wool Another of Kjærs Mølle’s popular designs was shown to have the best possible properties was Bolivia; this orange-coloured, high quality for the office and conference furniture sector, woollen fabric was used in SAS planes in the where new standards had to be met regarding ±∫∏∞s. durability and the fire resistance of the fabrics. This created a fine opportunity for market- Supplying material for uniforms to the manu- ing the unsurpassed properties of wool as ad- facturer of uniforms for the Danish military, vantageous to the user, who could enjoy better Statens Konfektion, was a constant source of seating comfort as well as more durable and difficulty. Despite numerous attempts, it prov- fire-resistant upholstered furniture. The manu- ed impossible to alter either agreements made facturers were prepared to put their stake on with the supplier of yarn or the customer. higher quality and wanted to show their furni- Although the uniform material comprised ap- ture with wool instead of the uninteresting, prox. DKK ±≤ million of the ±∫πµ-π∂ turnover, cheap synthetic fabrics then in general use. the decision not to make a new bid for this In October ±∫πµ, Gabriel participated for contract was easily made and quickly improved the first time in the international contract Gabriel’s earning ability. furniture fair, Orgatec, in Cologne, Germany. In the years following the merger, the pro- Good contacts to German customers were duct range of the former wholesaler, Gabriel made from a modest stand measuring ±≤m≤,

1984-2001 50 and the first orders were placed the following A special Gabriel exhibition at the ±∫∫≤ Bella year. At the Orgatec fair in ≤∞∞∞, the Gabriel Center Furniture Fair. This prominent area will also stand measured ±≥∂ m≤. be made available to Gabriel in celebration of its Although the amount of goods exported ±∂∞th anniversary. was not yet impressive, exports were on the in- crease and grew from ±∂% in ±∫πµ-π∂ to ≤∑% in ed popular throughout Europe and was an im- ±∫π∏-ππ. The first export salesmen were hired portant feature in the export market break- in ±∫π∑, and increasing sales to the big, leading through in ±∫ππ and ±∫π∫ where the percentage contract furniture manufacturers in Germany, of goods exported increased from ≤∑% to ≥µ% in Norway and Sweden quickly followed. just one year. The enterprise was on the right track and The future looked bright, and the balance was competitive. This was illustrated by, among sheet showed record sales in ±∫π∑-π∏. But sus- other things, the fact that exports to, in parti- tainability was stretched to the limit when an cular, the difficult German market increased international stock market crisis broke out in year by year despite a significant market slow October ±∫π∏. Sales in the European contract down. These were troublesome years, however, furniture sector fell by ≥∞-µ∞% the following with a constant need to trim costs to make year. Most furniture manufacturers had to cut room for future activities. back, and a number declared bankruptcy. Gabriel’s niche market faced considerable Trimming production facilities pressure, but management continued to see the contract furniture sector as the company’s It was one thing to experience success by de- best potential market and felt that by remain- veloping new furniture fabrics that could fill ing faithful to it, success would be achieved in the order books and quite another to gear fac- the long run. The board of directors and man- tory output so that Gabriel could make on- agement realised that a reduction of activity in time delivery of the agreed quality. Many key the niche market could mean the road ahead employees retired in the early ±∫π∞s, and as would be long and difficult. they left, the factory lost valuable knowledge In ±∫ππ, Gabriel won a contract in Norway and experience. The company was particularly with a new design called Novo. The design prov- vulnerable because the individual routines

1984-2001 51 garn, in the town of Nykøbing on the island of Falster. The Nykøbing spinning mill, Gabriel Garn, could make greater quantities of better quality yarn than the worn-out spinning mill in Aalborg. The latter was closed in ±∫π∫, and investments in new equipment and greater capacity were made in Nykøbing.

Gabriel Holding A/S purchased the carpet man- ufacturer, Scantuft, in the town of Holstebro, in ±∫ππ. The group of major shareholders in the two companies was almost identical, and their plan was to make full use of the capacity of the yarn-spinning mill in Nykøbing. The results did not live up to expectations, however, so already in ±∫π∫-∫∞, Gabriel made a trade with Denmark’s largest producer of car- Managing Director Jørgen Kjær Jacobsen on the pets, Ege Tæpper, so Gabriel instead took over left and Quality Consultant Anders Hahr on the another manufacturer of upholstery fabric, Her- presentation of the ISO ∫∞∞± certificate in March ning Klædefabrik. Production in the town of ±∫∫±. Herning was moved to Gabriel in Aalborg, and the take over of the customers, patterns and were not documented, making it difficult to stock of Herning Klædefabrik added DKK ±∞ mil- maintain uniform quality and to train new em- lion to Gabriel’s turnover. Many machines were ployees. left standing in the buildings in Herning, and a In ±∫πµ, the factory ran into a significant textile museum has now been opened there. technical problem that could only be solved with outside help. By coincidence, textile engi- Certification and a horizontal neer Børge Hansen, formerly the technical structure manager of the then closed Hørsholm Klæde- fabrik, was hired to solve this and other tech- In June ±∫ππ, key employees in manufacturing, nical production problems. Børge Hansen, sales and administration held a brainstorming hired when he was ∏∞ years old, became a session in the town of Skagen. The result was a member of the board of directors. At almost catalogue of problems to be solved. Many of the same time, the company hired a young them were so small that they could be solved the engineer to be trained to carry on Børge Han- day after the employees returned to the factory, sen’s work when the latter retired, which he did but larger, more fundamental difficulties were to in the spring of ±∫ππ. be resolved under the heading: “Quality control”. The problems were solved, and throughout A new system of management, designed to ±∫π∂, considerable production improvements ensure well-defined goals for quality and man- were made. agement was to be introduced. Clear procedu- Spinning capacity was doubled in January res and instructions for documentation and the ±∫π∑ when Gabriel purchased the activities of distribution of responsibility would be set up to the bankruptcy-threatened company, Falster- deal with most of the problems. The common

1984-2001 52 goal was defined: The introduction of a system of quality control aimed at achieving ISO-∫∞∞± certification in the autumn of ±∫∫∞. Reaching this goal involved the participa- tion of all the employees. Everyone was re- quired to think new thoughts. Discussions were held on an equal footing, across traditional or- ganisational and professional boundaries. Areas of particular focus were information, in- fluence and the inclusion of all employees in improving work routines. The goal was reached, and Gabriel’s envi- ronmental management was certified in accordance with the ISO-∫∞∞± standard in March ±∫∫± – it was the first manufacturer of upholstery fabric in Europe to be certified and was among the first companies in Den- mark to receive this mark of distinction. Certi- fication was granted at virtually the same time as the company’s ±µ∞th anniversary, and both events were celebrated with a party for the employees. The Gabriel motto: “Together We Are Strong” Quality control increased both quality and the illustrated during a course held for all the company’s ability to meet demands, but im- employees in ±∫∫≤. provements were still called for. One negative aspect of quality control was a tendency to visors would no longer direct the work and filter create bureaucracy – too often the heart of an communications but would make use of their issue became buried in paperwork. Further- professional training in improving production more, a vacuum arose following the celebra- techniques. This contributed to the breaking tions: The customers had been forgotten. down of barriers between departments and pro- In the autumn of ±∫∫±, therefore, a new fessions and to the introduction of a horizontal brainstorming session was held for many key organisational structure. employees, both salaried and hourly-wage em- Finally, efforts were to be made to ensure ployees. The goal was to put “The Customer in that the knowledge that was now documented the Centre”, a motto that has since become fa- would not only be maintained but also expand- miliar to every Gabriel employee. The compa- ed. This plan called for perseverance, but it was ny would make every effort to react more quick- carried out and is daily routine in ≤∞∞±. ly, and the customers would see that Gabriel was the best supplier in the trade. Ensuring independence, 1991 At this meeting, the decision was made to or- ganise the work in self-governing groups, and The structure of the concern was altered in each group was to have an hourly-wage worker October ±∫ππ. Gabriel Boligtekstiler A/S was to coordinate the filling of an order. The super- reorganised to become Gabriel Holding A/S,

1984-2001 53 In order to ensure the Gabriel enterprise’s freedom of trade, it was important that Søren Gabriel’s shares remain in reliable hands. Once again, the pension funds proved to be an invaluable, stabilising factor. Chairman of the Board Poul H. Lauritsen was instrumental in seeing to it that the pension fund, Pensam (an offshoot of PKA), bought the majority of Søren and his sister Hanne Gabriel’s shares in ±∫∫±, and a private businessman purchased the re- maining shares. With these sales completed, the Gabriel family was no longer involved in the enterprise, and various pension funds owned about ∑∞% of the shares.

In ±∫∫≥, Gabriel was listed by the main stock exchange, Børs I, after the closing down of Børs III. A listing by Børs I requires a share capital of at least DKK ±∂ million. A transfer from the company’s own reserves increased Gabriel’s share capital by DKK ∏ million to DKK ≤± mil- lion, the amount of the current share capital. In October ±∫∫≥, Gabriel A/S merged with Gabriel Garn A/S and Herning Klædefabrik A/S, and the company continued under the Above: A design computer was purchased in ±∫∫≥, name, Gabriel A/S. making it possible to “upholster” furniture with Gabriel’s fabrics in ≥ dimensions. Moving forward on a sustain- able foundation Below: Everyone can see and study the results and measurements. A sustainable foundation was laid in ±∫∫±: Ga- briel had a secure position in its niche market, and operations were divided between Gabriel woollen upholstery fabric, had developed new A/S in Aalborg and Gabriel Garn A/S in Nykø- designs that were successful on the export bing on Falster. market, had trimmed and quality certified its Gabriel’s founder, Robert Gabriel, died production facilities and had a solid financial during the fiscal year ±∫ππ-π∫. His son Palle base. The foundation for increasing sales activ- Gabriel had also died. Robert Gabriel’s posi- ities to ensure continued growth was in place. tion on the board of directors was filled by In ±∫∫≤, ∑ junior salesmen and ≤ sales man- Søren Gabriel who, in the meantime, had agers were hired, and all were given compre- moved to England. It was difficult to attend to hensive sales training. One subject that receiv- work on the board while living in England, and ed special emphasis in this training course was in ±∫∫±, Søren Gabriel wanted to sell his shares “concept sale”, an area developed at that time. in Gabriel. The thinking behind concept sale is that

1984-2001 54 Gabriel must be able to document that a pur- In ±∫∫∏, in celebration of her ≤∂th Jubilee, chase from Gabriel is the customer’s best buy. Her Majesty Queen Margrethe II travelled throughout Denmark, making Aalborg her first Around ±∫∫≤, the design known as Gaja appear- stop on ±≤ May. Queen Margrethe and Princess ed. Today, this crepe upholstery fabric in a uni- Alexandra visited Gabriel and were given a tour que range of colours is Europe’s contract mar- of the factory. ket leader, and sales continue to increase. In the picture, Managing Director Jørgen Kjær While ±∫∫≤ got off to a fine start, in September, Jacobsen is shown presenting rugs specially the European exchange rate cooperation, the designed for the Queen and the Princess by Jette EMS, was shaken by speculation. Gabriel’s then Gemzøe. most important markets, Germany, Sweden, Italy and England, were hard hit, and large de- a modest profit was shown the following year valuations followed. as well as a slight increase in turnover. The economic storm sent the contract fur- When the crisis ended in ±∫∫µ, Gabriel in- niture market into decline. Once again, Gabri- vested in a CAD system that increased the effi- el’s board of directors and management deci- ciency and flexibility of design and product de- ded to remain faithful to their belief that the velopment. foundation of the enterprise was sustainable, in spite of the fact that all their primary mar- Since ±∫∫≥-∫µ, Gabriel has benefited from re- kets were showing a ≤∞-≥∞% decline. latively stable markets for contract furniture. They were right again. While in ±∫∫≤-∫≥, the The sales organisation has been expanded, and company did have to record a net turnover the results are measurable: Turnover has in- that was π.∂% lower than the previous year and creased every year since ±∫∫≥-∫µ and has broken a deficit before taxes of almost DKK π million, previous records every year since ±∫∫∂-∫∑. The

1984-2001 55 sent the greatest potential for future growth. Export initiatives are backed by Gabriel’s own sales representatives in seven European coun- tries.

Ensuring independence, 1997

In ±∫∫∏, a big American group, Interface, took over Gabriel’s largest competitor on the contract market, the English company, Camborne Ltd. The possibility that Interface or others would be interested in taking over Gabriel A/S could not be ruled out. A controlling interest could be obtained simply by purchasing the ∑∞% of the shares held by the pension funds. Chairman of the Board Poul H. Lauritsen and Managing Director Jørgen Kjær Jacobsen investigated the possibility of convincing a group of successful businessmen to buy most of the Gabriel shares owned by the pension funds. This was accomplished in the spring of ±∫∫π, and calm once more descended on Ga- briel’s financial base. Later, the Thygesen group in the town of Ikast purchased the remaining shares held by Gabriel received North Jutland County’s environ- the pension funds (approx. ∏%). The Thygesen mental award in ±∫∫∂. The bronze sculpture was group is considered to be a good partner for created by sculptor Agnethe Brittasius. Gabriel as regards future development and production. percentage of goods exported has shown a steady increase; more than ∂∞% of the goods The responsible enterprise manufactured were exported in ±∫∫∂-∫∑, and this has increased to ∏∂% in ≤∞∞±. From the second half of the ±∫π∞s, environ- mental issues and the working environment In ±∫∫∫, sales activities were divided into three have become increasingly important factors independent divisions: Gabriel Contract, Ga- when defining a successful enterprise. briel Home and Gabriel Transport. This step Well into the ±∫π∞s, the noise level in the was taken to ensure better utilisation of Gabri- weaving mill was far higher than current re- el’s capabilities in each of the three segments. quirements. Already in the early ±∫π∞s, at- Contract is the largest division by far, account- tempts were made to install sound-absorbing ing for π∞% of turnover in ±∫∫∫-≤∞∞∞, and pieces of cloth, and the use of hearing protec- today Gabriel is Europe’s market leader in this tion was required. In order to meet new de- area. Home and Transport shared the remain- mands for the lowering of noise levels, noise ing ≤∞% of turnover, but these segments repre- shields were installed on all the looms.

1984-2001 56 In the ±∫∫∞s, interest centred on the relation- ship with the surrounding environment. The authorities made new demands that had to be met, and increasing environmental taxes were a growing financial burden. Management antici- pated that ordinary consumers and industrial customers would also soon demand environ- mental awareness. A targeted effort to reduce environmental impact also became a means of reducing the consumption of energy and raw materials. At the same time, special tools were developed for monitoring, controlling and re- ducing the company’s impact on the environ- ment.

In cooperation with four other Danish manu- facturers in different trades, Gabriel initiated efforts to achieve environmental certification. Via the so-called M.I.R.T.-project (Medarbej- derindflydelse ved Introduktion af Renere Tek- nologi [Employee Influence on the Introduc- tion of Cleaner Technology]), hourly-wage and salaried employees in the five companies learn- ed from one another’s experience in gathering environmental data and reducing environmen- tal pollution. This work became the basis for The M.I.R.T. project provided the basis for the introducing a system of environmental con- introduction of an environmental monitoring trols. system. Project participants from other companies In appreciation of its efforts on behalf of are shown here during a visit to Gabriel. the environment, and the inclusion of the em- ployees in these efforts, Gabriel received Likewise, in 1999 in cooperation with Cowi North Jutland County’s environmental award Consult, Gabriel was the first supplier of up- in ±∫∫∂. Upon presentation of the award, Ga- holstery fabric to complete a life-cycle analysis, briel was given a bronze sculpture that has covering everything from the environmental in- been placed in the company’s courtyard. fluence of the sheep in New Zealand that sup- In April ±∫∫∑, Gabriel achieved a major goal – ply the wool to the disposal of the used uphol- environmental certification according to the stery fabric. ISO ±µ∞∞± standard. In ±∫∫π, this was followed by certification in accordance with the European Gabriel’s environmental efforts have also EMAS scheme. In ≤∞∞±, leading furniture manu- meant that, today, river water is only used for facturers have introduced environmental con- the washing and dyeing of wool. The chemical trols calling for precise documentation of the purification plant installed in ±∫∏∂ proved to environmental influence of upholstery fabric. be a potential health risk. In the event of leak- Gabriel was at the forefront of this development. age, the solvent used in the plant, perchlor-

1984-2001 57 Chairman of the Board Poul H. Lauritsen at the A further consequence of Gabriel’s comprehen- inauguration of a new drying oven in ±∫∫π. The sive approach followed in ±∫∫π, when in the so- purchase price was approx. DKK ∑ million. called VIA-project under the auspices of the Mu- nicipality of Aalborg’s advisory programme for ethylene, could be very dangerous to the respira- young people, the company set up practical train- tory tract. The plant was therefore closed down ing positions for young men and women who in ±∫∫∑. The use of heavy fuel oil was discon- would otherwise have difficulty in finding jobs. tinued that same year when natural gas was in- troduced for work routines, and district The innovative enterprise heating was installed. Today, following extensive investment in Gabriel’s position as a leader in its niche mar- water purification and water softening plants, ket is easily explained by the company’s ability river water is used only for internal work rou- to launch not only new designs but also new tines. This water is no longer returned to the solutions. river, as it was prior to ±∫π∑, but is sent to the In ±∫∫µ, Gabriel introduced the design, municipal water treatment plant. The waste Comfort, a so-called non-woven micro-fibre up- water contains no harmful substances and is holstery fabric that looks like suede. While this in compliance with all environmental regula- particular type of fabric was already well tions. known in the clothing industry, it had not pre- In ±∫∫∫, following extensive cooperation viously been popular in the furniture trade, with two suppliers of dyes, Gabriel could in- where other technical requirements must be form its customers that it was the first supplier met. Comfort was developed as an exclusively of upholstery fabric to exclusively use dyes priced, top quality upholstery fabric. Sales containing no heavy metals. grew quickly, and in ≤∞∞±, the design is increas-

1984-2001 58 ingly used in each of the three market seg- ments. It is safe to say that Comfort is one of the biggest success stories in the European up- holstery fabric trade in recent years.

In ±∫∫∫, Gabriel began developing a new series of woollen upholstery fabrics for the European domestic furniture sector. Today, people within the trade describe this series as innovative and unique. This product line was originally devel- oped for the German, Dutch and Italian mar- kets. It was launched in ≤∞∞∞, and the first months of ≤∞∞± suggest that the first series will meet with success. Trend-setting Italian and German furniture manufacturers exhibited the fabrics at the international furniture fair in Co- logne in January ≤∞∞±, and more will be shown at the Milan fair in April ≤∞∞±. Gabriel feels cer- tain that this is just the beginning of an excit- ing future in the domestic furniture sector.

At the Orgatec fair in Cologne in October ≤∞∞∞, Gabriel was the leading manufacturer of upholstery fabric for the contract furniture sec- tor. At the same time, Gabriel was the most in- novative manufacturer and presented a whole new concept in fabrics for sustainable seats and screens. Prototypes were demonstrated for selected manufacturers, all of whom showed great interest. This was the first of a number of development projects that are the focus of in- tense activity in the anniversary year, ≤∞∞±.

In the years to come, Gabriel will continue to develop its primary areas of expertise in the manufacture of woollen upholstery fabrics, but the development of new, exciting synthetic fi- bres with special characteristics that meet fixed demands – including environmental de- mands – will also have high priority.

Gabriel will undoubtedly continue to function as a manufacturing enterprise for many years Quality-conscious employees make use of the to come. The company’s major areas of exper- newest technology.

1984-2001 59 Gabriel’s stand at “Orgatec ≤∞∞∞”, Europe’s The competent enterprise largest furniture fair, held in Cologne. When Gabriel was listed for the first time on the stock exchange in ±∫πµ, revenue was added tise continue to be the wet processing, piece to spinning, weaving and distribution, in parti- dyeing and finishing of woollen upholstery cular. This picture changed throughout the fabrics. Investments in new technology in these ±∫∫∞s. Just as the manufacture of jersey cloth, areas will continue in ≤∞∞±. The company re- fabric for the clothing industry and material presents a high level of professional know-how, for uniforms proved unprofitable in the ±∫π∞s, ensured by the hiring of new employees since in the last half of the ±∫∫∞s, it became less the end of the ±∫∫∞s. profitable to spin and weave in Denmark. The looms that have woven faithfully near Gabriel, therefore, carries out this work in the Østerå River in Aalborg for ±∂∞ years will be cooperation with spinning and weaving mills used for new, equally interesting tasks in close at several locations in Europe. In August ≤∞∞∞, affiliation with the competent enterprise, Ga- the spinning mill in Nykøbing on Falster was briel. closed and the equipment leased to a partner Samples will continue to be woven in con- in Lithuania. Spinning and most of the weaving nection with development and design. Gabri- are today out-sourced to partners in Lithuania, el’s expertise of long standing in connection a country with proud textile traditions. with the manufacture of sample cards and fab- What are the current and future tasks of ric for sample collections is currently being or- Gabriel in Denmark and its approximately ±≥∂ ganised in an independent business called employees? “Sample Master”. New technology is also used First and foremost, the company will con- in this area. centrate its efforts on creating a centre of ex-

1984-2001 60 pertise for quality upholstery fabric. For Ga- velops and manufacturers upholstery fabric. briel, knowledge and the sharing of knowledge This will make great demands of logistics and will be important sources of productivity. information technology, two areas that have, In ≤∞∞∞, Gabriel strengthened its exper- therefore, been considerably strengthened in tise by establishing a new development de- recent years. In ≤∞∞∞, a new management area partment comprised of competent textile for IT and logistics was established to ensure engineers and designers. The development an on-going ability to meet demands as well as department will ensure that Gabriel continues progress toward becoming a digital enterprise. to be an innovative partner for its customers in the three segments, Contract, Home and Gabriel’s future is based on living up to the Transport. first sentence in the company’s concept as ex- Over time, Gabriel will become a virtual en- pressed in ≤∞∞∞: terprise, where operations can be carried out “Creativity, innovation and partnership many places in the world. Gabriel in Aalborg which creates added value are keywords in Ga- will be at the centre of a large network that de- briel’s business concept.”

A group of employees gathered on the lawn at the annual summer banquet.

1984-2001 61 ±∂∞ Years of strong thread

We have followed Kjærs Mølle and Gabriel for from the manufacture of clothing fabric, the ±∂∞, often dramatic, years during which almost upholstery fabric niche market became the life everything has changed. Is it possible, in spite nerve of the enterprise. of the many changes, to identify a single thread Traditionally, Gabriel has mastered every that has defined success throughout the entire process from the treatment of raw wool to the period? finishing of the woven fabric. Today, this is changing, and Gabriel is rapidly becoming a In almost all the years, wool and the treatment centre of expertise. Work routines are being of wool have formed a strong thread, a core ex- out-sourced, but the knowledge base and the pertise. Only during the ≤nd World War, from finishing of the products will remain with Ga- ±∫µ∞ to ±∫µ∂, and for part of the ±∫∑∞s and briel in Aalborg. ±∫∏∞s did wool take a backseat as a raw mate- Today, Gabriel takes its responsibility for rial in the manufacturing process. But it the environment, the working environment, in- never completely disappeared from view, and, formation and employee influence seriously. therefore, the company has been able to This has been rewarded by the loyalty of both maintain its competence in this area and the company’s employees and its owners. could quickly return to wool as a basic raw material. Over the past ±∂ years, Gabriel has established itself in a well-defined niche market with long- In the ±∫∑∞s, when the manufacture of fabric term plans for the future. The company has for the clothing industry was dominated by demonstrated that it adheres to its goals, also synthetic fibre, a niche market for woollen up- when market conditions are unfavourable. This holstery fabric began to grow. When, from policy has been a good one – its results speak around ±∫π∞, there was no profit to be gained for themselves.

1850-2001 62 Appendices

Literature Other sources Bender, Henning et al.: Arbejderbevægelsen i (Numbers preceded by “A” refer to a system of Aalborg, ±π∏∞-±∫∏∞, Aalborgs Historie ∑, AOF indexing used by the Aalborg City Archives.) Aalborg ±∫∫π. A≥≥≤: Henrich Henrichsen Beck: Manuscript for Bender, Henning: Aalborgs industrielle udvik- an unpublished history of Aalborg, ca. ±π∂∂-∂∑. ling fra ±∏≥∂-±∫µ∞, Aalborgs Historie µ, Aalborg A≥∑≥: Kjærs Mølles Fabriker. Kommune, ±∫π∏. A∏∫π: Dansk Tekstilarbejderforbund, Aalborg Christensen, Per Bo and Jens Topholm: Aal- Afdeling. borg under stilstand og fremgang fra ±π±µ til A≤∏≥∂: Dansk Textilindustris Mesterforening, ±∫∏∞, Aalborgs Historie ∂, Aalborg Kommune Aalborg Afdeling. [Municipality of Aalborg] ±∫∫∞. Gabriel’s archives. Christiansen, Niels Finn, Karl Christian Lam- Jensen, Aage Ahlmann: Unpublished reminis- mers and Henrik S. Nissen: Danmarks historie, cences, Aalborg Stadsarkiv. bind ∏, Tiden ±∫±µ-µ∂, Copenhagen ±∫ππ. Zacho, Michael S.: Private documents. Den Store Danske Encyklopædi, Copenhagen ±∫∫µ-≤∞∞±. Greens Danske Fonds og Aktier, Copenhagen, Interviews with employees and former various years. employees of Kjærs Mølle and Gabriel: Greens, Opslagsværk om dansk erhvervsliv, va- Albrechtsen, Rise: Seamstress, hired ±∫∑≤. rious years. Christensen, Erland: Dyer and shop steward, Johansen, Hans Christian: Danmarks historie, hired ±∫∑µ. vol. ∫, Dansk økonomisk statistik ±∫±µ-±∫π∞, Co- Christensen, Ketty: Seamstress ±∫∑∫-∫∂. penhagen ±∫π∂. Flindt, Lis Kjær: Planner, hired ±∫∑∂. Kjærs Mølle ±π∂±-±∫≤∑, undated. Jacobsen, Jørgen Kjær: Managing Director Kontakten, ±∫∑∑-∏µ, In-house newsletter, A/S from ±∫π∂; hired ±∫π≥. Odense Kamgarnsspinderi and A/S Fyens Jensen, Borghild: Seamstress, hired ±∫∑∫. Strømpefabrik and for A/S Kjærs Mølles Fabri- Jensen, Aage: Weaver, ca. ±∫∂π-∫∂, former shop ker. steward. Nyt Stof, ±∫π∂-π∏, In-house newletter, Gabriel. Kraan, Victor: Planner ±∫∂≤-ππ. Rasmussen, Hanne and Mogens Rüdiger: Dan- Lauritsen, Poul H.: Chairman of the Board of marks historie π, Tiden efter ±∫µ∂, Copenhagen Directors since ±∫π±. ±∫∫∞. Nielsen, Christian: Sales manager ±∫∑∑-π∫. Rasmussen Stig Günther: Træk af fagbevægel- Peitersen, Kirsten: Seamstress, hired ±∫∂π and sens historie i Aalborg ca. ±ππ∂-±∫±µ, Aalborg ±∫∏∑. ±∫∏π. Petersen, Jørn: Master dyer, hired ±∫∏≥. Skovgaard-Petersen, Vagn: Danmarks historie, vol. ∂, Tiden ±π±µ-±π∑µ, Copenhagen ±∫π∂. Spaanheden, Jørgen: Weaver ±∫∂∞-∫≥. Sørensen, R.: Kjærs Mølle ±π∂±-±∫∞±, Aalborg ±∫∞±. Steffensen, Jytte: Financial assistant, hired ±∫∑≤. Textilfabrikantforeningen ved ∏∂ års jubilæet ±∏. april ±∫∏∞. Særtryk af Tidsskrift for textilteknik. Zacho, Michael S.: Managing Director, ±∫∂µ-π∞. www.britannica.com www.gabriel.dk

Appendices 63 Glossary

Burler: A worker who removes knots from the Kersey: A kind of coarse, narrow cloth woven surface of cloth. from long wool, usually ribbed. Carding: The disentangling of fibres before Øre: A Danish coin worth ±/±∞∞ of a krone. spinning. Owners of the manorial right: the actual, legal Combing: A process that removes the short owners of a property. woollen fibres. Rix-dollar: the dollar of the realm; an old silver Copyhold: Tenure of land based on manorial coin of Scandinavia. records. Tackler: A person who sets up the loom and Cropper: A worker who cuts nap from cloth. starts it. The tackler has a technical knowledge of weaving. Dressing: The size or stiffening used to give tex- tiles certain characteristics. Warper: A worker who arranges the warp or threads running lengthwise in the loom. Frieze: Coarse woollen cloth with a nap, usual- ly on one side only. Willower: A worker who operated the willow, a machine used for plucking and cleaning raw Fulling: A process for thickening cloth. wool. ISO: International Organisation for Standardi- Worsted: Yarn spun from long-staple wool. Be- zation; an organisation that develops interna- fore spinning the short fibres are removed by tional standards in many areas, including combing. quality control and environmental monitoring.

Wool Why wool?

Animal fibre forming the protective covering It is a natural fibre. (...) of sheep or of other hairy mammals, It is biodegradable. such as goats and camels. Prehistoric man, It keeps you warm when it’s cold. clothing himself with sheepskins, eventual- ly learned to make yarn and fabric from It is cool when it’s hot. their fibre covering. It has an attractive appearance that lasts www.britannica.com for years. It is safe: Wool does not burst into flames in contact with fire or hot embers. Animal fibre It absorbs moisture: Wool can absorb up to ≥∂% In the ±∫∫∞s, textiles made of animal fibre of its own weight – and still feel dry. made up only about ±/±∞ of the world’s tex- It is soil resistant. tile production but played an important It absorbs liquids slowly, so spills do not easily role due to, among other things, their elas- penetrate. ticity, thermal and moisture-absorbing cha- It is very elastic. racteristics. It is suitable for combining with, for example, Den Store Danske Encyklopædi nylon.

Glossary 64